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  Struisbaai and Cape Agulhas tourism information

Population = 700  Struisbaai

The holiday village of L'Agulhas is situated at the southernmost point of Africa - a great tourist attraction for inland as well as foreign visitors.

It is a winter rainfall region. The green wheat fields of the "ruens", seen in late winter and early spring are a sight which visitors will remember for a long time.

The village of L'Agulhas grew up around the Lighthouse. The imposing old lighthouse, built in 1848 in the style of the Pharos Lighthouse in Egypt, is the second oldest lighthouse in South Africa. It has been declared a National Monument and visitors may climb right to the top to view the old-fashioned lantern which was imported from France and installed in 1914. According to the International Hydrographic society, the place where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet is just off the coast of L'Agulhas. The sea temperature in summer is a pleasant 20-22°C, while the winter temperature is not much lower.

The L'Agulhas coast is a fisherman's paradise. Cob (kabeljou) and galjoen may be caught from the rocks, while catches from ski-boats include Cape salmon, yellowtail, red steenbras and even the occasional snoek.

The coast is notorious for its shipwrecks and is known as "The Gaveyard of Ships". No fewer than 120 ships have sunk or gone aground here.  The Soetendal, Birkenhead and Arniston are some of the many shipwrecks found along the Agulhas coastline.  Showpieces from these shipwrecks are on display at the Bredasdorp Shipwreck Museum.  Visitors to the area can still see the remains of the Meisho Maru 38 wreck on the shores on route to Suiderstand.  The information centre at the Lighthouse can provide further information in this regard - when u visit the area.

During school holidays L'Agulhas is a beehive of activity. Most of the houses are holiday cottages. Visitors may stay over in the conveniently situated and well appointed Caravan Camp, which consists of 80 lawn camping plots (40 of which are electrified) and 16 Bungalows of which two are Luxury Chalets (fully equipped with bedding, microwave TV etc.)

Situated on the coast L'Agulhas enjoys all the pleasures which the sea has to offer. There are two tidal and two rock pools situated for swimming and surfing. The longest uninterupted white sand beach is about 7 km from Agulhas and is stunning when contrasted with the blue waters.

Shortly after entering the village, a signpost turn-off to your right leads to a scenic viewpoint at the top of the ridge. From there, on a clear day, you can enjoy views from Cape Infanta to Quoin Point.

A hiking trail (Spookdraai) of approximately two-hour duration takes the visitor through the town, over limestone ridges and through part of the L'Agulhas Nature Reserve. The trail begins and ends at the entrance to the town.

The Fynbos in the area is part of the Cape Floristic Kingdom and boasts over 8500 species of flowering plants in the smallest of the world's six floral kingdomsThe southernmost tip of the African continent is at Cape Agulhas and not at Cape Point as many people believe. The official position of the tip is 34°49'58" south and 20°00'12" east and is found approximately 1km west of the Cape Agulhas Lighthouse. The tip's exact location is marked by a simple yet dramatic cairn that was erected in 1986.

At the end of the 15th century the early Portuguese seafarers christened this tip "Cabo das Agulhas" which means "Cape of Needles" and refers to the needle of the compass which at this point shows no real deviation between true north and magnetic north. A truly magic and desolate place, where suddenly one begins to understand the difficulties the early seafarers must have faced.

The Cape Agulhas Lighthouse is the second-oldest working lighthouse in South Africa and was built in 1848. It is one of only three buildings in South Africa to be inspired by Egyptian architecture. Today it houses a Lighthouse Museum

This coastal resort boasts the longest continuous stretch of white sand coastline in the Southern Hemisphere, and each of the 11 pristine kilometers offers safe bathing.  Legend has it that the town was named after vogelstruise (ostriches) found in the area.

Another draw card of this holiday destination, apart from angling, is the un-spoilt environment.  Visitors are drawn to the coast by its natural beauty which enriches and strengthens the soul.  Improved recreation is one way to enhance quality of life and this coastline offers excellent opportunities for people from all sectors of the community to benefit from what this environment has to offer.  

The constantly growing local population with its increased buying power has resulted in the expansion of the business sector and an increase in services.  During holidays a large influx of visitors complement this tendency.  Organized entertainment is offered in the town and on the beach.  The market plain of the town hosts a large variety of stalls during holidays and high days, and is well supported.  The wide range of accommodation facilities is also fully booked during this time.

The lime washed Hotagterklip cottages at the entrance to Struisbaai are well-known landmarks, as is the little thatched roof church in the business centre.  Popular for weddings, this little church is also used for interdenominational services.  These houses and the church are all National Monuments.  

Sea birds are plentiful in the area.  Common are gannets, cormorants, sandpipers, and of course the seagulls, which keep the beaches clean.  There are still some African Black Oystercatchers to be seen in the area, but unfortunately, due to human invasion, these and the Damara Tern have been placed on the Red Data Endangered Bird List.

A considerable number of the permanent residents of this fast-growing coastal town make their livelihood from the sea.  Braving the rich fishing grounds with their little boats, they se tout from the sale fishing harbour, a favourite meeting place for anglers, fishmongers and visitors.

In Struisbaai bordering the ocean you will find the Municipal Caravan Park and Chalets.  The caravan sites are level, have electricity and lawned for your absolute comfort.  A Hotel and many guest houses in the area make up the rest of the accommodation possibilities for the many tourists and travelers wanting to spend more quality time in the area. This hundred-kilometre stretch of coastline is among the most hazardous in the country.

 Popular wisdom has it that the needle-sharp reefs that graze the shallows gave L'Agulhas its name. The truth is more prosaic. Early Portuguese explorers to the area found that their compass readings showed no deviation from true north and magnetic north and thus the Cape of the Needle was christened.

The shipwrecks that litter the sea-bed hereabouts, would seem to favour the first explanation, however. Since those Portuguese navigators of the sixteenth century, more than a hundred and thirty vessels have succumbed to this 'Graveyard of Ships.'

Some crow-flying kilometres east up the coast, lies the wreck of the Arniston. A Dutch East Indiaman carrying wounded British soldiers, wives and children, back from the war in Ceylon, splintered on the reefs in 1815. Only six of the three hundred and seventy passengers survived.

Today, the scalloped dunes and white sand beaches, coves and grottoes and turquoise bays of Arniston bely the sombre history of its name. Other ships which perished here are still remembered, if unwittingly. The Birkenhead went down further west but not before bequeathing to posterity that stirring line: 'Save the women and children first.' But other wrecks have not survived the amnesia of the present.

The Wooden Lady, washed up along the Agulhas coast, is a silent figurehead to the unknown ship she once adorned. It is not surprising then, that this is lighthouse territory. Unsurprising too, that the Cape of Needles should claim the second oldest lighthouse in the country. What is unexpected , perhaps, is that it is modelled on the oldest recorded lighthouse in history; the Pharos of Alexandria; one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

Although smaller than the 140metre tower of the original, the Agulhas lighthouse faithfully reproduces the limestone façade and trio of towers that distinguished its more famous predecessor. Here, far removed from their northern deserts, the winged sun and twin serpents of ancient Egypt look towards the Antarctic. Somewhat more modest in size, our African replica is also much younger.

 At a hundred and fifty years old the Agulhas beacon is a granddaddy among the lighthouses of our coast. In comparison, the wood-burning fires of the Pharos were maintained for fifteen hundred years before an earthquake finally destroyed the long-famous edifice in 1258.

By 1849 wood was in short supply at the southern reaches of the continent but fat-tailed sheep there were a-plenty. Their tails provided the oil for the first light at the southernmost point of Africa. In later years, paraffin was trekked in by ox-wagon.

Nearby

Ancient fish traps and midden sites
Elim, the Moravian Missionary Village,
Bredasdorp - shipwreck museum, candle factory, Julians (the potter)
De mond nature reserve
Arniston, - the world renknowned cave and the historic fishing village
De hoop nature reserve 80km
Struisbaai, - longest uninterupted white sand beach in the southern hemisphere and quaintest fishing harbour ever.