Cape St. Francis () is a village in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, situated on a
headland
A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, Jo ...
in the
Eastern Cape Province
The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...
. It is popular for its clean beaches and as a
surfing
Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suita ...
location.
The village is home to the
Seal Point Lighthouse.
The Irma Booysen Floral Reserve is the home to many species of flowers and plants.
The adjacent village,
St Francis Bay
St Francis Bay () is a holiday town in Sarah Baartman District Municipality in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, roughly one hour’s drive from Gqeberha. History Early History
The town's earliest European history of the area can be trac ...
, was the site of "ten-million-to-one" surfing waves seen in the 1966 surf/travel
documentary
A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
, ''
The Endless Summer
''The Endless Summer'' is a 1966 American surf movie, surf documentary film directed, produced, edited and narrated by Bruce Brown (director), Bruce Brown. The film follows surfers Mike Hynson and Robert August on a surfing trip around the wor ...
''.
Cape St. Francis is now known as one of the best surfing locations. Given its geological location, it is susceptible to swell year round from large low pressure systems that form between Antarctica and the southern tip of Africa. When large south west swells wrap around Seal Point and the prevailing offshore winds come up, the surfing is world class.
It is also featured in the 2014 film
The Perfect Wave, starring
Scott Eastwood
Scott Eastwood (born Scott Clinton Reeves; March 21, 1986) is an American actor and producer. The son of actor and filmmaker Clint Eastwood, he has starred in several of his father's films, including '' Flags of Our Fathers'' (2006), '' Gran Tori ...
.
Bartolomeu Dias
Bartolomeu Dias ( – 29 May 1500) was a Portuguese mariner and explorer. In 1488, he became the first European navigator to round the Cape Agulhas, southern tip of Africa and to demonstrate that the most effective southward route for ships lies ...
originally named the cape Ponta das Queimadas because of the fires he spotted there while sailing past.
See also
*
St. Francis Bay
*
Venpet–Venoil collision
References
External links
Proposed E Cape nuclear plant met with resistance
Surfing locations in South Africa
Populated coastal places in South Africa
Populated places in the Kouga Local Municipality
{{EasternCape-geo-stub