Chapman's Peak

Last updated

Chapman's Peak Drive
Chapmans Peak Drive 2.jpg
Chapman's Peak Drive facing southwards.
Length9.5 km
Traversed by M6
Location Cape Peninsula, Western Cape, South Africa
Range Table Mountain
Coordinates 34°5′14″S18°21′38″E / 34.08722°S 18.36056°E / -34.08722; 18.36056
Chapman's Peak
Location of Chapman's Peak Drive in the Western Cape Province.
South Africa Western Cape relief location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Chapman's Peak (Western Cape)

Chapman's Peak is a mountain on the western side of the Cape Peninsula, between Hout Bay and Noordhoek in Cape Town, South Africa. The western flank of the mountain falls sharply for hundreds of metres into the Atlantic Ocean, and a road, known as Chapman's Peak Drive, hugs the near-vertical face of the mountain, linking Hout Bay to Noordhoek. Tourists and locals often stop at viewpoints along this road, which offer views of Hout Bay, The Sentinel peak and surrounds, as well as over Noordhoek Beach.

Contents

Chapman's Peak Drive is part of the route of two of South Africa's biggest mass-participation races, the Cape Argus Cycle Race and the Two Oceans Marathon.

History

The official opening of Chapman's Peak Drive, Cape Town, on the 6 May 1922 by Prince Arthur of Conaught. Official opening of Chapman's Peak.jpg
The official opening of Chapman's Peak Drive, Cape Town, on the 6 May 1922 by Prince Arthur of Conaught.

Chapman's Peak is named after John Chapman, the pilot of an English ship becalmed in today's Hout Bay in 1607. The skipper sent his pilot ashore to find provisions, and the name was recorded as Chapman's Chaunce. [2]

Chapman's Peak Dr Chapman's Peak 2022 13.jpg
Chapman’s Peak Dr

Chapman's Peak Drive was hacked out of the face of the mountain between 1915 and 1922, and at the time was regarded as a major feat of engineering. The road was closed in the 1990s, after a rockfall caused a death and a subsequent lawsuit, [3] and subsequently reopened after being re-engineered to protect motorists from falling rocks. It was reopened in 2005 as a toll road, part of the M6. The road was again closed for a number of months beginning on 19 June 2008 "as a result of risk areas identified on the mountain above the road". [4]

Geology

Chapman's Peak Drive. The pass is built on top of a layer of granite, cut into the softer sedimentary rocks above. Chapman's Peak Drive, Sudafrica, 2018-07-23, DD 135.jpg
Chapman's Peak Drive. The pass is built on top of a layer of granite, cut into the softer sedimentary rocks above.

The top of Chapman's Peak consists of flat, sedimentary rocks related to those that form Table Mountain. The base of the mountain, however, consists of Cape Granite and the two formations meet at a geological unconformity that is world-famous amongst earth scientists.
Two different endangered vegetation types can be found along this road, and correspond to the two main geological formations. They are Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos and Cape Granite Fynbos and they are both endemic to the city of Cape Town, occurring nowhere else. [5] [6]

There is an old, abandoned manganese mine on the northwestern slopes of the peak. The remains of a jetty from which the ore used to be shipped are directly below the workings.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Table Mountain</span> Flat-topped mountain overlooking the city of Cape Town, South Africa

Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa. It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the cableway or hiking to the top. Table Mountain National Park is the most visited national park in South Africa, attracting 4.2 million people every year for various activities. The mountain has 8,200 plant species, of which around 80% are fynbos, meaning fine bush. It forms part of the Table Mountain National Park, and part of the lands formerly ranged by Khoe-speaking clans, such as the !Uriǁʼaes. It is home to a large array of mostly endemic fauna and flora.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devil's Peak (Cape Town)</span> Mountain peak in Cape Town, South Africa

Devil's Peak is part of the mountainous backdrop to Cape Town, South Africa. When looking at Table Mountain from the city centre, or when looking at the standard picture postcard view of the mountain, the skyline is from left to right: the spire of Devil's Peak, the flat mesa of Table Mountain, the dome of Lion's Head and Signal Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kommetjie</span> Seaside village in the Western Cape, South Africa

Kommetjie is a small town near Cape Town, in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It lies about halfway down the west coast of the Cape Peninsula, at the southern end of the long wide beach that runs northwards towards Chapman's Peak and Noordhoek. The community of Ocean View is located to its immediate south east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Peninsula</span> Rocky peninsula in the Western Cape, South Africa

The Cape Peninsula is a generally mountainous peninsula that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean at the south-western extremity of the African continent. At the southern end of the peninsula are Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. On the northern end is Table Mountain, overlooking Table Bay and the city bowl of Cape Town, South Africa. The peninsula is 52 km long from Mouille point in the north to Cape Point in the south. The Peninsula has been an island on and off for the past 5 million years, as sea levels fell and rose with the ice age and interglacial global warming cycles of, particularly, the Pleistocene. The last time that the Peninsula was an island was about 1.5 million years ago. Soon afterwards it was joined to the mainland by the emergence from the sea of the sandy area now known as the Cape Flats. The towns and villages of the Cape Peninsula and Cape Flats, and the undeveloped land of the rest of the peninsula now form part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality. The Cape Peninsula is bounded to the north by Table Bay, to the west by the open Atlantic Ocean, and to the east by False Bay in the south and the Cape Flats in the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lion's Head (Cape Town)</span> Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa

Lion's Head is a mountain in Cape Town, South Africa, between Table Mountain and Signal Hill. Lion's Head peaks at 669 metres (2,195 ft) above sea level. The peak forms part of a dramatic backdrop to the city of Cape Town and is part of the Table Mountain National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constantiaberg</span> Mountain on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa

Constantiaberg is a large, whale-backed mountain that forms part of the mountainous spine of the Cape Peninsula in Table Mountain National Park, Cape Town, South Africa. It lies about 7 km south of Table Mountain, on the southern side of Constantia Nek. The mountain is 927 m high. It is not known who first ascended the peak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hout Bay</span> Seaside suburb of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Hout Bay is a seaside suburb of Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is situated in a valley on the Atlantic seaboard of the Cape Peninsula, twenty kilometres south of the Central business district of Cape Town. The name "Hout Bay" can refer to the town, the bay on which it is situated, or the entire valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noordhoek, Cape Town</span> Place in Western Cape, South Africa

Noordhoek is a seaside town in the Western Cape, South Africa, located below Chapman's Peak on the west coast of the Cape Peninsula and is approximately 35 kilometres (22 mi) to the south of Cape Town. The name "Noordhoek" was taken from Dutch and literally means "north corner". It was given this name in 1743 as being the northern corner of the Slangkop farm. The first permanent resident of European origin is Jaco Malan who built his house there. In 1857, the region was divided into six plots, most of which were bought by a single family, that of the de Villiers. Noordhoek nevertheless remains a predominantly rural area where farmers grow vegetables to supply ships calling at Simon's Town. It is best known for its shoreline and its long, wide, sandy beach, which stretches south to the neighbouring village of Kommetjie. Near the southern end of this beach is the wreck of the steamship "Kakapo", which ran aground in 1900, when the captain mistook Chapman's Peak for the Cape of Good Hope and put the helm over to port.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Table Mountain National Park</span> A nature conservation area on the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town, South Africa

Table Mountain National Park, previously known as the Cape Peninsula National Park, is a national park in Cape Town, South Africa, proclaimed on 29 May 1998, for the purpose of protecting the natural environment of the Table Mountain Chain, and in particular the rare fynbos vegetation. The park is managed by South African National Parks. The property is included as part of the UNESCO Cape Floral Region World Heritage Site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beaches of Cape Town</span> List of beaches in the Cape Town metropolitan region

The Cape Metropole has a wide variety of beaches divided into three regions by the Cape Peninsula:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geology of Cape Town</span> Geological formations and their history in the vicinity of Cape Town

Cape Town lies at the south-western corner of the continent of Africa. It is bounded to the south and west by the Atlantic Ocean, and to the north and east by various other municipalities in the Western Cape province of South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constantia Nek</span>

Constantia Nek is a low pass over the Table Mountain range in Cape Town, South Africa, linking Constantia to Hout Bay in the west. It is one of three passes connecting Hout Bay to the rest of the city, and, with Ou Kaapse Weg is one of the two passes over the mountain range between the city centre and the Fish Hoek valley.

The Fish Hoek Valley is situated in the Cape Peninsula, eighteen miles south of Cape Town, South Africa. It takes its name from the town of Fish Hoek on the False Bay coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kogelberg Sandstone Fynbos</span> Vegetation type endemic to the far south of the Western Cape, South Africa

Kogelberg Sandstone Fynbos is a critically endangered vegetation type occurring in the far south of the Western Cape, South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peninsula Granite Fynbos</span> Vegetation type endemic to the city of Cape Town, South Africa

Peninsula Granite Fynbos is an endangered Fynbos vegetation type which is endemic to the city of Cape Town and occurs nowhere else. It is a unique type of tall, dense and diverse scrubland, scattered with trees. It can be found all along the belt of granite that encircles Table Mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peninsula Shale Renosterveld</span> Vegetation type found only in South Africa

Peninsula Shale Renosterveld (PSR) is a unique vegetation type that is found only on the slopes of Signal Hill and Devil's Peak in Cape Town, South Africa. It is critically endangered and exists nowhere else.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos</span> Vegetation type endemic to the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town, South Africa

Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos is a unique and endangered vegetation type that is endemic to the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town. This type of Mountain Fynbos occurs on very poor, acidic soils but is incredibly rich in biodiversity with an enormous number of plant species – many of which occur nowhere else. Due to its poor soils and steep, inaccessible location, it has not been developed for farming or houses, and consequently it is relatively well conserved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cecilia, Table Mountain</span> Section of the Table Mountain National Park

Cecilia is a section of the Table Mountain National Park on the lower eastern slopes of Table Mountain in Cape Town, located just to the south of Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden. It was previously used for commercial logging and known as Cecilia Forest or Cecilia Plantation, but has now been given protected status and integrated into the National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tokai Park</span> Small section of Table Mountain National Park in Cape Town, South Africa

Tokai Park, previously known as "Tokai Forest", is a small wing, about 600 ha, of the greater Table Mountain National Park in Cape Town, South Africa. Tokai Park is made up of two sections: upper and lower Tokai Park. Lower Tokai Park is flat, and characterized by the threatened Cape Flats Sand Fynbos. Upper Tokai Park is on the slopes of Constantiaberg Mountain, and consists of conservation area as well as the Tokai Arboretum. Upper Tokai Park is characterized by Peninsula Granite Fynbos, Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos and Afromontane Forest and noted for its diversity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M6 (Cape Town)</span> Metropolitan route in the City of Cape Town, South Africa

The M6 is a short metropolitan route in Cape Town, South Africa. It connects the Cape Town CBD with Glencairn on the False Bay coast via Sea Point, Camps Bay and Hout Bay. It is an alternative route to the M4 for travel between Cape Town CBD and Glencairn, with the M6 passing to the west of Table Mountain.

References

  1. Drive, Chapman's Peak. "History". Chapmans Peak Drive. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  2. "History of Chapman's Peak Drive". chapmanspeakdrive.co.za. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  3. "The BTA Chapman's Peak Fund" . Retrieved 28 July 2017.
  4. Chapman's Peak Drive
  5. "Cape Granite Fynbos. Cape Town Biodiversity Factsheets" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 August 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  6. "Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos. Cape Town Biodiversity Factsheets" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 August 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2017.