Cape Horn
South America's tip
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of South America, located on Hornos Island in Chile.
It marks the northern boundary of the Drake Passage, where the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans meet.
Historically notorious for treacherous sailing conditions—violent storms, powerful currents, and massive waves—rounding the Horn was a legendary test for sailors before the Panama Canal offered an alternative route.
- DarwinBritish naturalist, species theorist
- BeagleHistoric British survey ship
- DrakeAdult male duck
- circumnavigationComplete journey around something
Age of Sail · trade route · passage · rounding · expedition · voyage · discovery · logbook
Sea around Antarctica
- South AmericaWestern Hemisphere's southern continent
- ChileSlender Andean coastal nation
- Tierra del FuegoIslands near Cape Horn
- archipelagoChain of scattered islands
subantarctic · albatross · petrel · kelp · glacial · fjord · channel · strait
Maritime angular measurement device
- celestial navigationLocation-finding via astronomical observation
- dead reckoningPosition-tracking via estimated motion
- chartData shown visually
- lighthouseCoastal beacon tower
latitude · longitude · bearing · waypoint · landfall · headland · southernmost · sea lane
Unpredictable giant ocean swells
- williwawSudden violent polar gust
- gale forceViolent wind intensity
- squallBrief, violent windstorm
- shipwreckDestroyed vessel at sea
perilous · hazardous · survival · endurance · ordeal · freezing spray · capsizing · broaching
Adjusting to simpler values
- beatingRepeated striking or pulsing
- tackingAngled sailing maneuver
- reefingReducing sail area
- sea anchorUnderwater parachute for vessels
drogue · windward · leeward · Golden Globe · Chichester · yacht · ketch · clipper
Magellan
circumnavigation · Age of Sail · trade route · passage · rounding · expedition · voyage · discovery · logbook · charting
Southern Ocean
Sea around Antarctica
- South AmericaWestern Hemisphere's southern continent
- ChileSlender Andean coastal nation
- Tierra del FuegoIslands near Cape Horn
archipelago · subantarctic · albatross · petrel · kelp · glacial · fjord · channel · strait · continental shelf
sextant
Maritime angular measurement device
- celestial navigationLocation-finding via astronomical observation
- dead reckoningPosition-tracking via estimated motion
- chartData shown visually
lighthouse · latitude · longitude · bearing · waypoint · landfall · headland · southernmost · sea lane · pilotage
rogue waves
Unpredictable giant ocean swells
- williwawSudden violent polar gust
- gale forceViolent wind intensity
- squallBrief, violent windstorm
shipwreck · perilous · hazardous · survival · endurance · ordeal · freezing spray · capsizing · broaching · dismasting
rounding
Adjusting to simpler values
sea anchor · drogue · windward · leeward · Golden Globe · Chichester · yacht · ketch · clipper · tall ship
- remote capesCape of Good Hope
- South AtlanticFalklands, Falkland Islands, Saint Helena, South Georgia, St. Helena
- Age of ExplorationColumbus, Marco Polo, exploration, explorers, expeditions
- Latin AmericaArgentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Cuba
- South AmericaArgentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador
- capesCape Cod, Cape of Good Hope, Cape Hatteras, Cape Canaveral, Cape Fear
Cape HornCape of Good Hope
South African peninsula tip
Arctic · Svalbard · Alaska · Greenland · Bering Strait
Cape HornGulf of Mexico
Partially enclosed Atlantic basin
Mediterranean Sea · Caribbean Sea · calm waters · doldrums · Sargasso Sea
Cape HornPanama Canal
Interoceanic shipping route
Suez Canal · calm waters · inland waterway · English Channel · Strait of Malacca