Cape Horn: Conquering the “End of the Earth”

At 55°58′ south latitude, Cape Horn rises from the Drake Passage as a cliff-edged island swept by near-constant wind. It is not, as is sometimes thought, the southernmost point of South America; that’s the Diego Ramírez Islands, 65 miles (105km) further southwest. However, its position at the meeting point of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans has seen it written into maritime lore.

An old sailing proverb states that “below 40 degrees latitude, there is no law; below 50 degrees, there is no God” and nothing better reflects the wildness of Cape Horn. During the four centuries it acted as the principal trading route between Europe and the west coast of the Americas, it became part of maritime legend, with those who successfully “rounded the horn” achieving one of the most dangerous sailing feats in the world.

While the oceans surrounding Cape Horn are untamable, modern ships possess the technology to make circumnavigating the island far from the perilous journey it once was.  That’s not to say that many do it, however: the only means of reaching Cape Horn is via expedition cruise and landing on the Cape itself is never guaranteed. Here, the weather reigns supreme and humans are just another species subject to the fury and tumultuousness of Patagonia at the very ends of the earth.

Why is Cape Horn so famous?

When in 1520 Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan first sailed through the Strait of Magellan, a channel around 220 miles (350 km) north of Cape Horn as the crow flies, he found a route that transformed global trade. It opened up a new means of sailing between Europe and Asia beyond the traditional voyage around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope. At the time, the most prosperous trading company in the Netherlands was the Dutch East India Company, which held a monopoly on all Dutch ships using both routes. After being thrown out of the company and thus determined to dismantle its monopoly, Amsterdam merchant Isaac Le Maire sponsored an expedition in 1615 to find an alternative passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

It was led by his son Jacob and the veteran sea captain Willem Schouten. Six months later, after sailing down the eastern coast of South America and to the southern tip of Tierra del Fuego, the crew sighted a group of islands further south. They named the southernmost Kaap Hoorn after Schouten’s hometown on the Dutch coast, before continuing west into the Pacific and onwards to Asia, thus becoming the first men to sail between the two oceans via Cape Horn.

Over the next three centuries, this sailing route was at the heart of global trade between Europe and much of the world. But, while it offered speed, “rounding the Horn” as it came to be known, was a perilous journey. This island marks the northernmost tip of the Drake Passage, a 600-mile (1,000km) channel of churning waters separating South America and Antarctica that has become mythical amongst travelers heading to the latter, who must cross its fearsome waters. This is where the world’s strongest ocean currents converge, with the water whipped into a frenzy by gale-force winds dubbed the Furious Fifties to generate waves that exceed 50 feet (15m).

Because of these inhospitable conditions, sailors who successfully survived the journey were permitted to showcase their bravery in the form of a gold loop earring in their left ear (the ear that had faced the Horn on the typical eastbound passage) and to dine with one foot on the table. However, the treacherous waters surrounding Cape Horn soon became known as a ship graveyard. From the 1700s until the early 1900s, an estimated 800 ships were wrecked there, with some 10,000 sailors perishing.

The opening of the Panama Canal in 1914 spelled the end of Cape Horn’s role in global trade. Instead, it has become a place of nautical bragging rights for yachtsmen and cruise ship passengers alike, who refer to it as the “Everest of sailing”.

Planning a visit to Cape Horn

Cape Horn is typically visited as part of a multi-day expedition cruise between Ushuaia and Punta Arenas, with itineraries lasting between five and nine days as they venture into the Patagonian channels for Zodiac excursions to glaciers, penguin colonies, and indigenous heritage sites, as well as to circumnavigate Cape Horn. Antarctica cruises departing from the same cities may also include a visit to the Cape.

A landing on Horn Island is never guaranteed, and only 10,000-or-so achieve this feat each year. When weather conditions permit, expedition cruise ships will use Zodiacs to reach the island and guests can spend an hour or two exploring its bracing conditions. Cape Horn is part of the Cape Horn National Park, which covers this small island and the cluster of others located nearby. In 2005, they were designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve for their hardy sub-Antarctic forests, although Cape Horn’s wind-blasted surface is mostly covered in scrubland.

Boardwalks crisscross the island, leading from Cape Horn’s small dock to the steel Cape Horn Monument on the cliffside. This sculpture was designed by Chilean artist José Balcells Eyquem to represent an albatross in flight, a poignant symbol of the seamen lost to the ocean.

Perhaps the most intriguing part of a visit to Cape Horn is the lighthouse, which towers over the island. It’s part of the Chilean Naval Station based here and managed by a member of the Chilean Navy, who braves the conditions year-round alongside his family, and will pass the winter months without a single visitor. There’s also the wooden Stella Maris Chapel that holds the title of the southernmost church in South America.

Cruises sail to Cape Horn from the very end of September through to April, although the best window for travel is November through March, when daylight hours are at their longest and weather conditions, while never entirely predictable, are calmer than during the rest of the year.

While a cruise to Cape Horn is a remarkable excursion in itself, it pairs perfectly with many of Patagonia’s other major sites. Cruises starting or ending in Punta Arenas are within a few hours’ drive of Puerto Natales, the gateway to Torres del Paine National Park, making it straightforward to combine a cruise itinerary with a private land-based excursion into the park. Our destination experts can plan itineraries that combine a Cape Horn exploration with on-land elements, creating a trip that delves deep into the two distinct sides of Patagonia’s remarkable character.