Great capes


In sailing, the great capes are three major capes of the continents in the Southern Ocean — Africa's Cape of Good Hope, Australia's Cape Leeuwin, and South America's Cape Horn.

Sailing

The traditional clipper route followed the winds of the roaring forties south of the great capes. Due to the significant hazards they presented to shipping, the great capes became significant landmarks in ocean voyaging. The great capes became common points of reference, though other nearby capes may have been more southern or shared in notability.
Today, the great capes feature prominently in ocean yacht racing, with many races and individual sailors following the clipper route. A circumnavigation via the great capes is considered to be a noteworthy achievement. Sailor Joshua Slocum completed the first solo circumnavigation of the world in 1895–98, and the Joshua Slocum Society International presented its Level 3 Golden Circle Award to sailors who solo circumnavigated passing the great capes.
In his book The Long Way, Bernard Moitessier tries to express the significance to a sailor of the great capes:

Five southernmost capes

Other southern capes mark significant points of passage through the southern oceans. The five southernmost capes refer to the five geographically southern mainland points on the earth.
Sailors circumnavigating the world have used these five southernmost capes as goals on their route.
CapeLocationCoordinatesNotes
Cape HornChileHornos Island; Southernmost point in the Tierra del Fuego islands of South America and the official dividing point between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Roughly 2 degrees of latitude farther south than Chile's Cape Froward, the southernmost point on the mainland of South America, in the Magellan Strait.
Cape AgulhasSouth AfricaFrom Portuguese Cabo das Agulhas, for "Cape of Needles"; Southernmost point of Africa and the official dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian oceans. Roughly 29 minutes of latitude farther south than the more commonly cited Cape of Good Hope.
West Cape HoweAustraliaContains three "heads", with the easternmost Torbay Head being the southernmost point of the mainland of Western Australia. Roughly 46 minutes of latitude farther south than the more commonly cited Cape Leeuwin.
South East CapeAustraliaSouthernmost point of the main island of Tasmania, roughly 4° 30′ farther south than South Point on the Wilsons Promontory peninsula in Victoria. South Point, Victoria is the most southern mainland point of Australia, on the north side of the Bass Strait separating Tasmania from the southeast Australian mainland
South CapeNew ZealandSouthernmost point of Stewart Island and the southernmost point of the main islands of New Zealand. Roughly 37 minutes of latitude farther south than Slope Point, the southernmost point of the South Island.