Discover the earliest forms of art and technology
L’Agulhas
L’Agulhas derives its rich heritage from the shipwreck survivors of many nationalities who settled in this desolate place.
The windswept, ruggedly beautiful coastal plain also lays claim to the Agulhas National Park, which has more than 8 500 species of flowering plants and the coastline supports rich marine and intertidal life, with breeding sites of rare birds such as the African black oystercatcher.
The country’s second-oldest working lighthouse was built here in 1848 in the Pharaoh style. You can browse the fascinating lighthouse museum and curio shop, or stop for a cup of tea. The koppie (hill) behind the lighthouse provides a panoramic view of the area where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet, ships pass and southern right whales play in spring and early summer.
The southernmost tip of Africa is 1km west of the lighthouse and marked by a simple cairn.
East of the tip you can see the “vywers” (fish traps), created by early inhabitants of the area thousands of years ago. These traps were made by building dams across shallow gullies so that fish would be stranded in them at low tide. Some of the traps have been maintained through the centuries.
Stone hearths and pottery, discovered here together with shell middens, are part of the valuable historic and cultural legacy left by the hunter-gatherers who lived along this coastline though the centuries.
Highlights
- Southernmost tip of Africa
- Atlantic and Indian oceans meet