Located just north of Oudtshoorn, the Cango Caves are home to some of the biggest dripstone formations in the world. Over a quarter of a million visitors flock to explore this fascinating subterranean network each year.
t Dramatic drip formations inside Cango 1
Deep in the foothills of the Swartberg Mountains lies an underground network of chambers and passages where dissolved minerals have crystallized to form stalactite and stalagmite dripstone formations that resemble fluted columns and delicate, ruffled drapes.
The complex was first explored by Jacobus van Zyl after his herdsman stumbled upon the cave opening in 1780, but rock paintings and stone implements discovered near the entrance indicate that the site was occupied as early as 80,000 years ago.
Of the three caves, only Cango 1 is open to the public. Access to Cango 2 and 3, discovered in 1972 and 1975 respectively, is prohibited in order to preserve the crystals. Some of the dramatic dripstone formations in Cango 1, which is 762 m (2,500 ft) in length, are the 9-m- (30-ft-) high Cleopatra’s Needle – believed to be some 150,000 years old – a dainty Ballerina and a Frozen Waterfall. The largest chamber is Van Zyl’s Hall, 107 m (350 ft) long and 16 m (52 ft) high.
An hour-long standard tour takes in the first six chambers, while the full tour is a 90-minute hike that includes 416 stairs and is best attempted only by the fit. The temperature inside is a constant 18° C (64° F), but humidity can reach an uncomfortable 99.9 per cent. Book ahead; the last tour begins at 4pm daily.
Did You Know?
Cango contains the only piece of South African cave art to have been created in a totally dark area.
EXPERIENCE The Garden Route
Formation of the Cango Caves
The tunnels of Cango burrow through a 20-million-year-old limestone stratum at the base of the quartzite Swartberg. Situated in a wide fault, the limestone was gradually washed away by seepage water, which carried with it the particles of semi-soluble calcite that form the caves’ many drip formations.