Crazy About Lighthouses

Q: My son is crazy about lighthouses. We are going on holiday to Cape Town over Easter and I wondered where I could get information about the lighthouses in the area. How many would we be able to visit (within an hour or two's drive of the city)? - Simon Newsom

A: You should easily be able to visit a number of interesting lighthouses, These include the first solidly built lighthouse in the country, located at Green Point in Table Bay, the tallest cast iron tower on the coast, the Slangkop Lighthouse at Kommetjie, and the lighthouse at Cape Point. Another lighthouse close to the city is Roman Rock, which is situated in False Bay at the entrance to the historical naval harbour of Simons Town. Lying further away, but worth considering are the lighthouse at Cape Agulhas on the southernmost tip of Africa (two hours drive), the Cape Columbine lighthouse near Paternoster on the west coast (about two and a half hours drive from Cape Town), the Danger Point lighthouse located on Walker Bay near Gansbaai (two hours drive) and the unmanned lighthouse at Cape Hangklipe (about 90 minutes drive from the city). Two interesting lighthouses lie on islands. The Dassen Island lighthouse lies 55kms from Cape Town, but is considered the most isolated and bleakest manned lighthouse in the country. The Robben Island lighthouse is more accessible. You can find a full listing of the lighthouses on the website www.lighthouses.co.za. (16/1/11)