73www.getaway.co.za72 Getaway May 2012

Year in the Wild Agulhas National Park

There was a time when the Agulhas region hosted one of the largest concentrations of wildlife in Africa. But when humans and their guns arrived, thousands of animals

were hunted, some to extinction. Today, with the help of farmers and scientists, Agulhas National Park is starting small and thinking big. By Scott Ramsay.

75www.getaway.co.za74 Getaway May 2012

Year in the Wild Aghulas National Park

Imagine driving towards Cape Agulhas, making your way

along the national N2 road near Caledon until a herd of a

thousand bontebok blocked your path. Then as you cross

the bridge over the Breede River near Swellendam, a family of

hippo grunt their disapproval before crashing back into the

rooibos-coloured water.

Closer to Bredasdorp, the largest town in the area today, a

black rhino wanders into view, munching on the aptly named

renosterveld and finally, as night arrives and you pull up at

the southernmost tip of Africa, a herd of elephant is illumi-

nated by the flash of the famous lighthouse.

Sound far-fetched? Today, definitely, but in the early 1700s,

things were very different. Before people arrived in numbers,

the bottom of our continent was home to one of the largest

concentrations of wildlife in Africa. In 1689, traveller Isaq

Schryver noted that he encountered a herd of at least a

thousand bontebok on his journey through this region.

‘Most of the Cape Overberg, in which Agulhas National

Park lies, has been transformed by agriculture,’ park manager

Ettienne Fourie explained. ‘But from the archives, we know

this area used to be known as the Serengeti of the South,

where huge herds of wild animals were commonly seen.’

It’s something early explorers would have been exposed to

– and not always pleasantly. One of the survivors of the first

recorded shipwreck on the coast was killed by an elephant in

1673. Today, people are still discovering elephant tusks and

black rhino skulls in the sandy soils, evidence that these

animals were once abundant here.

As with elsewhere in Africa, however, colonial bloodlust

took its toll. The last hippo in the area was shot at Zeekoei-

vlei in 1898 – it made for easy hunting – and some species

unique to the region, including the bloubok and quagga, were

previous pages: The lighthouse at Agulhas was on the first piece of land to be pro-claimed as a national park in 1999. opposiTe: Agulhas National Park’s main conser-vation aim is to conserve the southern tip of Africa’s unique fynbos. BeLoW: The wreck of Meisho Maru is just one of hundreds along Africa’s most southerly shores.

Year in the Wild Agulhas National Park

76 Getaway May 2012

Year in the Wild Agulhas National Park

no surprise then that Agulhas is a special place. ‘The park

has the highest botanical diversity per unit area in the world,’

Ettienne said. ‘It’s vital for the conservation of fynbos in

South Africa and the world.’

As an example, he explained that on the slopes of the

Soetanysberg, which at 249 metres is the highest point in the

park, there are seven fynbos types in a 90-square-kilometre

area. Four of these are endangered: limestone proteoid, Elim

asteraceous fynbos (which is unique to Agulhas), restioid

fynbos and neutral sand proteoid fynbos. Each of these

contains several hundred species of plants. Some species

– such as the wonderfully named bashful sugarbush (Protea

pudens) – are extremely limited in their distribution, occurring

in just one or two places.

The park is focused on biodiversity and conserves 230

bird species, including more than 21 000 water birds (about

nine per cent of those in the Western Cape), which find

protection on Soetendalsvlei, the most southerly lake in

the country and one of the largest.

White pelican, greater flamingo, lesser swamp-warbler

and little stint are quite common and the coastline is home

to the near-threatened damara tern and African black oyster-

catcher. Significant populations of blue crane and Stanley’s

bustard – both vulnerable – occur on the inland plains.

Numerous vleis, estuaries, rivers and wetlands are home to

at least 18 species of frogs and toads, including the critically

shot to extinction. Both the bontebok and Cape mountain

zebra were also almost eliminated.

But it isn’t all gloom. The endemic bontebok made a

remarkable comeback with the help of farmers and con-

servationists. By 1837 only a few small herds remained.

In that year farmer Alexander van Bijl rounded up the

last 27 bontebok on Earth and protected them on his farm.

Ninety years later, this remnant population had increased

to just 77 animals. The government came to its senses and in

1931 declared a farm just south of Bredasdorp as Bontebok

National Park (nowadays it’s further north near Swellendam).

Today, the national parks of Bontebok and Agulhas, and a

few other provincial nature reserves such as De Hoop, are

responsible for protecting what’s left in the region and for

restoring some semblance of the historical abundance.

Starting from scratchVery few large wild mammals are left near the southern

tip of Africa. Although 65 species have been recorded in

Agulhas, these are mostly rodents and small carnivores

such as honey badgers. But fynbos was the real reason

for the park’s proclamation in 1998.

Despite its relatively small size – just 72 kilometres long

According to the International Hydrographical Organisation,

the Atlantic and Indian oceans officially meet at the longi-

tudinal point of Cape Agulhas, the southernmost tip of Africa.

This area falls within the national park and, along with the

nearby lighthouse, is the most visited site.

Early Portuguese navigators named it Cabo das Agulhas

(Cape of Needles). In the late 15th century magnetic north

(indicated by the needle of a compass) and true north co-

incided. However, in the past few centuries, the magnetic

variation has changed, so that today magnetic north is

about 26 degrees west of true north at Cape Agulhas.

Bartholomeu Diaz was the first European to see the

southernmost tip of Africa in 1488, although he initially

thought this honour lay with Cape Point, near Cape Town.

He wrongly believed the dramatic promontory on the Cape

Peninsula was the end of the continent and named present-

day Cape Agulhas as Ponta de Sao Brendao, after the Irish

monk St Brendan, on whose feast day of 16 May he had

landed. It was only in 1502 that Cabo de Agulhas first

appeared on a maritime chart.

and about 25 kilometres wide – Agulhas protects some of the

most endangered parts of the Cape Floral Kingdom. The park

began when SanParks purchased several small farms where

this unique fynbos was relatively intact.

The Agulhas region, which includes the park and farmland,

has about 2 500 species of plants, roughly 300 of which are

found nowhere else on Earth. Thirty-two species are threat-

ened with extinction. In some places, the concentration of

endemic plants is unparalleled anywhere in the world. It’s

endangered micro frog, the endangered Cape platanna and

western leopard toad, previously thought to exist only on the

Cape peninsula near Cape Town.

There are just two freshwater fish species, the Cape kurper

and Cape galaxias, both of which are near-threatened by the

introduction of alien fish such as bass. Crucially, however, the

Ratel River in the west of the park is free of aliens.

But SanParks isn’t doing it alone. Today, like 200 years ago

when locals saved the bontebok from extinction, farmers are

helping to restore the area’s fauna and flora. More than 2 700

square kilometres of private land around the 220-square

kilometre national park has been committed to sustainable

agriculture, of which almost a third is being formally con-

served in its natural state. The Nuwejaars Wetlands Special

Management Area is an organisation of 25 landowners in the

Overberg who have title deed restrictions signed against their

properties to ensure conservation principles are followed.

The Agulhas Biodiversity Initiative is the programme guiding

the region’s development.

Wild animals have been reintroduced and sustainable

harvesting of wild fynbos brings income to local communities.

Dirk Human from Black Oystercatcher Wines – the chairman of

the co-operative – now has 15 disease-free buffalo on his farm

aBove: The Agulhas shoreline was once one of the most fertile seas in the world, before being decimated by uncontrolled fishing and bait collecting.

aBove: The wooden chalets at Agulhas National Park have brilliant views over the fynbos and coastline, and are fully equipped for self-catering.

77www.getaway.co.za

Take a picture at Cape Agulhas, the southernmost tip of Africa.

Check out the nearby lighthouse.

Stay in one of the restored farm houses at Renosterkop or

in one of the new wooden cabins, which have beautiful views

over the coastline.

Rent Lagoon House, which is right on the rocks and is

perhaps the most beautifully situated accommodation in the San-

Parks network.

Go birding at Soetendalsvlei, Africa’s most southerly

freshwater lake.

Walk along the coastline to the beautiful dunes west of

Cape Agulhas and swim in the (usually) warm water.

Spot flowers. During spring, the veld is dotted with

thousands of special wild blooms.

79www.getaway.co.za

‘Examine the map of the world from north to south, from

east to west, and you will find there is not a spot upon the

face of God’s Earth where it is for the interest of so many

different nations that a lighthouse should be built as upon

the very spot in question, Cape L’Agulhas.’

So read an extract from the South African Commercial

Advertiser of 18 July 1840. The coastline of Cape Agulhas

is notoriously dangerous for ships and the shallow, rocky

reefs have ensnared many an ancient and modern vessel.

Because of this the lighthouse was commissioned in 1849

and cost £15 871. It was declared a national monument in

1973. It’s open to the public and you can climb the steps

to the top to enjoy the views of the Indian and Atlantic

oceans. There’s also a tea room and museum which are

worthwhile visiting. Tel 028-435-7580.

and the first calf to be born in Agulhas for more than 200

years was welcomed last year. The variety of wildlife in the

region includes bontebok, hartebeest and eland.

‘We’ve also reintroduced hippo, last seen here some

150 years ago,’ Dirk explained. ‘We’re slowly moving

towards bringing back the natural systems as they existed

in previous centuries.’

Saviours of the southOrganisations such as Unesco are lauding the partnership

between farmers and conservationists as a model for

elsewhere in the world, but who would have thought

humankind owed its very existence to the biodiversity of the

Agulhas region? A new international scientific study suggests

that the Agulhas Plain was the last place on Earth where our

modern ancestors were able to survive the most recent ice

age, between 120 000 and 190 000 years ago.

When temperatures started dropping, there may have been

about 10 000 human individuals on Earth, but after a huge

freeze there was a massive decline in population numbers.

Eventually, there were only about 1 000 people left – and they

all lived on the Agulhas Plain, which stretches from Gansbaai

in the west to De Hoop Nature Reserve in the east, and

includes Agulhas National Park at its centre.

‘Everybody alive today – whether you’re from America,

Asia, Europe or Africa – comes from this coast,’ said botanist

Professor Richard Cowling, who is working with a team of

international scientists studying the Agulhas area. ‘So far, all

the evidence collected supports this theory.’

Unlike the rest of the world, which either froze over or

succumbed to desert conditions as vast quantities of fresh

water were locked up in massive ice fields, this small part of

Africa remained hospitable, thanks mainly to the warming

effect of the Agulhas Current. Furthermore, it was the fynbos

and diverse shellfish of Agulhas which contributed to modern

human’s survival.

Year in the Wild Agulhas National Park

78 Getaway May 2012

cLockWise, from LefT: The famous lighthouse at Cape Agulhas; the egg of a small shark; Lagoon House is an old homestead right on the rocks near the Agulhas Rest Camp; the blue crane, of which there are only about 25 000 left in South Africa, can be seen at Cape Agulhas; the wooden chalets at Agulhas Rest Camp are well positioned; a limpet shell with seaweed attached on pebbles; the white-washed home-steads at Renosterkop have been beautifully renovated.

80 Getaway May 2012

Year in the Wild Agulhas National Park

Getting thereAgulhas National Park lies

about two-and-a-half hours

southeast of Cape Town,

about 30 km south of Bredas-

dorp. To get there, take the N2

from Cape Town, turn right to

Caledon and follow the signs

to Bredasdorp. Drive through

this town and follow the signs

to Cape Agulhas. The park’s

offices are in the town of

L’Agulhas, near the lighthouse.

The park isn’t fenced and can

also be accessed from the

R319 and R317 roads.

Where to stay Renosterkop comprises

three restored, whitewashed

farm cottages about 5 km

north of the rest camp on

old farm land. The two-

sleeper is R570 a night and

four-sleeper units cost R930

a cottage a night. All of them

have fully-equipped kitchens

and bathrooms.

Bergplaas Guesthouse

is a relatively modern build-

ing, about 35 km inland from

the lighthouse on an old farm.

There are five bedrooms, a

kitchen, lounge and dining

room. Four rooms have en

suite bathrooms. One bath-

room has been adapted for

wheelchairs. Costs R1 160 for

first four people and R172 for

each additional person up to

a maximum of 10 people.

The fully equipped, self-

catering Lagoon House is an

old homestead with four bed-

rooms and sleeps eight. Two

of the bedrooms have sepa-

Photojournalist Scott Ramsay is

documenting and photograph-

ing 31 of South Africa’s most

special nature reserves, includ-

ing all the national parks. Year

in the Wild is sponsored by

Total, Ford, Evosat, Goodyear, Frontrunner, Conqueror Trailers,

Vodacom, Digicape, Lacie, Garmin, National Luna, Safari Centre

Cape Town, Escape Gear and EeziAwn. For more, go to www.

yearinthewild.com and www.facebook.com/yearinthewild. You

can also follow his journey on blog.getaway.co.za.

rate external entrances and en

suite bathrooms, while the oth-

ers are in the house with a sin-

gle bathroom. There is also a

kitchen and living area. Costs

R2 365 for first six people and

R290 for each additional per-

son up to a maximum of eight.

Agulhas Rest Camp

has six fully equipped, self-

catering wooden chalets about

10 km from the lighthouse,

each with en suite bathrooms

and superb views over the

fynbos and ocean. Two-sleeper

chalets cost R840 a unit a

night and four-sleeper chalets

are R1 560 a unit a night.

Rietfontein, a self-catering

homestead in the west of the

park, burnt down in recent fires

and is currently being restored.

Who to contactCentral reservations, tel 012-

428-9111, email reservations@

sanparks.org, www.sanparks.

org. Park offices, tel 028-435-

6222, email agulhasinfo@san-

parks.org.

Accommodation price ratings: a person a night, usually B&B, sometimes full board under R250 R251 – R499 R500 – R750 R751 – R999 R1000+

‘The fynbos biome has the richest bulb flora of any

vegetation in the world,’ the professor said. ‘The abun-

dance on the Agulhas Plain is phenomenal. We reckon

there could be as much as 400 kilograms a hectare of

bulbs, tubers and corms. They’re an excellent source of

good carbohydrates, especially when cooked.’

But not only were carbohydrates abundant, there was

also plenty of protein. Here, the Agulhas Current mixes

continuously with the cooler Benguela Current, creating

unique conditions for a fecund marine ecosystem, which

provided plenty of easily collected food such as limpets,

mussels, oysters, abalone and alikreukel.

Prospective marine protected areaToday, although the terrestrial part of Agulhas National

Park is formally protected, everything below the high-

water mark is open to fishing and exploitation. Most of

the past wealth of shellfish has disappeared and illegal

fishing and unsustainable catch sizes have all but de-

stroyed the marine biodiversity.

It’s something park authorities would like to change

and a proposed marine protected area would ensure

the marine habitat is allowed to revive itself.

‘This coastline has been seriously overfished,’

Ettienne said. ‘It desperately needs protection, but

it’s a long, political process and we need the support

of the community.’

The abundance of shellfish and fynbos helped

humans survive the last ice age, and the declaration

of an Agulhas marine protected area would go a long

way to repaying the debt humankind owes to nature

in this part of the world.

So although it’s unlikely you’ll see herds of elephant

at the famous Agulhas lighthouse in the next few decades,

it’s quite possible that in a few years you’ll be able to spot

bontebok and buffalo grazing at the southern tip of Africa,

while marvelling at teeming marine life in the rock pools.

And one day, perhaps, it will be this biodiversity

which again plays a crucial role in saving humankind

from extinction.