Cape Peninsula – Part 2
Then it’s off towards Cape Point, through the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve, where you will usually see ostriches and families of baboons which frequently hang out along the main road. But don’t be tempted to get out of the car.
On the way down you will spot a small white cross off to the left hand side of the road. There are in fact 2 crosses, one to Bartholemeu Diaz and the other to Vasco da Gama. Diaz was the first European to round the Cape in 1488 searching for a route to the East Indies and the two crosses, when lined up, point to Whittle Rock, a large, permanently submerged shipping hazard in False Bay. There are two more beacons in Simonstown which provide the intersection.
Then onwards to the main stop of the day, the view site at Cape Point itself. Stop for a snack at the cafe, but watch out for the baboons! They are everywhere and once the novelty has worn off, they can be quite a nuisance, breaking aerials and mirrors off cars and running off with unguarded handbags, right under your nose. Don’t get too close, they can be quite aggressive, particularly the larger males or mothers with their young
Then you can take the funicular railway from the Cape Point car park, up an incline through dense fynbos to the upper lighthouse. It runs every 3 minutes. At the end you can take a short walk along the cliff path until you can go no further, with the wind in your hair, the ocean all around you and steep cliff face below. Here you can pause and spare a thought for those Portuguese sailors of the 15th Century.