SOUTHERN CROSS AWARD

Awarded for travelling to the most Southerly point of the African Continent, not the Cape of Good Hope but Cape Agulhas which is approximately 60k further South.

To fully appreciate the ruggedness of the Cape, located in Agulhas National Park, and the other nearby attractions it is worth camping at the nearby beach side Struisbaai Caravan Park for a couple of nights particularly as the parking around the Cape is not really suitable for Caravans.

Travelling the 7k or so from the Caravan Park to the Cape we travel on an apparently new road with new housing developments on both sides of the road. Approximately 1k before the monument at the most southerly point we pass the Agulhas lighthouse built in 1848 and still in use today.

It is worth stopping at the lighthouse where it is possible to climb the timber ladders (15 Rand charge) to the gallery to enjoy the spectacular view and enjoy a cup of coffee in the cafe when you have regained terra firma. As you walk round the car park stop for a moment to read the inscription on the small grave to a lighthouse keepers young daughter. There are also a tourist information centre and toilets in a nearby annex.

The tarmac road ends at the lighthouse and we continue for 1k on an unpaved road to the car park for the monument which is a further 50m walk on a rough pathway. The monument was erected in 1985 and unveiled by P W Botta the, then, State President.

The cape is the theoretical meeting point of the warm currents of the Indian Ocean and the cold currents of the South Atlantic Ocean, although at the time of our visit both sides were freezing.

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