♪
AT THE SOUTHERN TIP OF AFRICA, TWO OCEANS VIOLENTLY COLLIDE...
WHILE AN ICONIC LANDMARK STANDS GUARD
OVER A RICHLY DIVERSE METROPOLIS OF CULTURES AND PEOPLE.
HERE WILD ANIMALS STILL ROAM FREE...
AND RUSHING RIVERS RUN WILD.
IT’S A LAND DISCOVERED BY BOLD EXPEDITION...
AS VENTURING SHIPS BECAME VICTIMS
OF ITS TREACHEROUS SHORES.
TODAY, MOVIE STUDIOS STAND WHERE NATIVE TRIBES ONCE RULED.
AND THE MOUNTAINS FORMED BY ANCIENT SEAS
SHED WATER ON IDYLLIC FIELDS OF GREEN.
THIS IS A PLACE WHERE THE HUNT FOR DIAMONDS HAS MADE MAN RICH
WHILE LEAVING MAN-MADE SCARS ACROSS THE LAND.
BUT THE MEDITERRANEAN-LIKE CLIMATE...
ENDLESS STRETCHES OF WHITE SANDY BEACH...
MAJESTIC MOUNTAINS SOARING HIGH ABOVE VERDANT VALLEYS...
AND A GLISTENING MOTHER CITY-- THE NATION’S CROWNING JEWEL--
MAKE THE WESTERN CAPE
SOUTH AFRICA’S MOST SPECTACULAR AND ALLURING PROVINCE.
♪
NESTLED BETWEEN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN
AND A SPECTACULAR FLAT-TOPPED MOUNTAIN
IS SOUTH AFRICA’S FIRST CITY.
THIS IS CAPE TOWN...
THE "MOTHER CITY."
MOST CITIES ARE KNOWN BY THEIR SKYLINES...
CAPE TOWN IS KNOWN BY ITS MOUNTAIN.
FRAMING THE CITY WITH ITS AWE-INSPIRING PRESENCE,
TABLE MOUNTAIN IS NAMED AFTER ITS DISTINCTIVE APPEARANCE.
THE IMPRESSIVE 2-MILE-WIDE PLATEAU
LOOKS OUT OVER CAPE TOWN
FROM MAJESTIC CLIFFS THAT ROCKET 3,500 FEET INTO THE SKY.
BUT THAT’S NOT THE ONLY THING SOARING HERE.
CAPE TOWN IS A BOOMING ECONOMIC HUB
AND AN INCREASINGLY POPULAR TRAVEL DESTINATION.
OVER 2 MILLION TOURISTS FLOCK HERE EACH YEAR,
MORE THAN ANY CITY IN SOUTH AFRICA.
BUT THE FIRST VISITORS TO SET SIGHT ON THIS FAMED LANDSCAPE
WEREN’T HERE FOR VACATION.
THEY WERE ON A MISSION.
SAILING DOWN THE WEST COAST OF AFRICA IN 1487,
THE PORTUGUESE EXPLORER BARTHOLOMEW DIAZ
WAS HOPING TO FIND A ROUTE TO THE SPICE MARKETS OF INDIA.
NO EUROPEAN SHIP HAD EVER NAVIGATED THE TURBULENT SEAS
AT THE SOUTHERN TIP OF AFRICA,
WHERE THE ATLANTIC AND INDIAN OCEANS COLLIDE.
THE FOUR-MONTH VOYAGE
TOOK ITS TOLL ON THE CREW.
SCURVY WAS RIFE,
AND WITH LITTLE FRESH FOOD OR WATER,
THE MEN WERE WEAK.
THEN, A VIOLENT STORM HIT THE VESSEL,
THROWING IT 600 MILES OFF COURSE...
DRIFTING AIMLESSLY WITHOUT LAND IN SIGHT.
BUT BY SOME STROKE OF LUCK,
A WEST WIND FILLED THEIR SAILS,
AND THE BATTERED SHIP CONTINUED ITS VOYAGE
AROUND THE TIP OF AFRICA,
BACK ON COURSE TO INDIA.
THEY HAD FOUND THE TRADE WINDS--
THE ENGINE THAT PROPELLED THEM ON AN OCEANIC HIGHWAY,
OPENING TRADE BETWEEN EUROPE AND THE FAR EAST--
WITH SOUTH AFRICA IN BETWEEN.
DIAZ CALLED THIS REGION THE CAPE OF STORMS.
TODAY WE KNOW IT AS THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.
GETTING THERE IS NO LONGER A LIFE-OR-DEATH ESCAPADE
AS IT WAS FOR MANY HAPLESS SAILORS.
IT’S AN EASY ONE-HOUR BUS RIDE FROM THE CENTER OF CAPE TOWN.
THE ENTIRE CAPE POINT PENINSULA
HAS BEEN DESIGNATED A NATIONAL PARK.
ITS TOWERING 630-MILLION-YEAR-OLD CLIFFS
DRAW TOURISTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
TO EXPERIENCE BREATHTAKING VISTAS
FROM 1,000 FEET ABOVE THE CHURNING SEAS.
THE MOST POWERFUL LIGHTHOUSE ON THE SOUTH AFRICAN COAST
HELPS GUIDE SHIPS SAFELY THROUGH THESE PERILOUS WATERS.
IT DIDN’T TAKE LONG FOR OTHER SHIPS TO FOLLOW IN DIAZ’S WAKE.
♪
TRADE BETWEEN EUROPE AND THE FAR EAST
WAS BEGINNING TO BOOM,
AND SHIPS NEEDED A PLACE TO RESUPPLY.
IN 1652,
THE DUTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY FOUNDED THE CAPE COLONY.
A DUTCH ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE COMPANY, JAN VAN RIEBEECK,
CHOSE THE SITE BENEATH TABLE MOUNTAIN
BECAUSE IT WOULD BE SHIELDED
FROM THE STRONG SOUTHEASTERN WINDS.
ONE OF THE FEW SURVIVING FEATURES
OF THAT FIRST SETTLEMENT
IS THE DUTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY’S GARDENS.
THE EARLY DUTCH SETTLERS PLANTED VEGETABLES HERE
TO SUPPLY SHIPS ON THE TRADE ROUTE.
WITHIN A FEW YEARS THE GARDENS GREW TO BE 45 ACRES.
TODAY IT’S A PEACEFUL GREEN OASIS
IN THE MIDDLE OF A VIBRANT CITY.
BUT THIS SERENE SETTING HARBORS A DARK STORY.
THE INDIGENOUS KHOI AND SAN PEOPLE
WHO LIVED IN THIS REGION BEFORE THE DUTCH ARRIVED
WERE OVERPOWERED AND ENSLAVED.
THEY WERE PUT TO HARD LABOR TENDING TO THE COMPANY GARDENS
AND BUILDING THIS STAR-SHAPED FORT.
IT IS KNOWN AS THE CASTLE OF GOOD HOPE.
COMPLETED IN 1679,
IT WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT TO SERVE AS A DEFENSE FORTRESS
AFTER TENSIONS ROSE
BETWEEN THE DUTCH AND BRITISH COLONIAL POWERS
AMID RUMORS OF WAR.
THE CASTLE OF GOOD HOPE
IS THE OLDEST EXISTING COLONIAL BUILDING IN SOUTH AFRICA,
AND THE BEST-PRESERVED EXAMPLE
OF THE DUTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY’S EARLY INFLUENCE
IN THE REGION.
IN OCTOBER 1679, THE CAPE’S FIRST GOVERNOR ARRIVED--
SIMON VAN DER STEL.
VAN DER STEL WAS A PIONEER,
DEVELOPING CAPE TOWN AND THE SURROUNDING FARMLANDS.
THE GOVERNOR HAD A PASSION FOR AGRICULTURE
AND A TASTE FOR GOOD WINE.
HE WAS GRANTED THIS ESTATE, WHICH HE NAMED CONSTANTIA,
WHICH MEANS "STEADFAST."
HE GREW GRAPEVINES AND OAK TREES ON THE ESTATE,
WHICH ARE STILL HERE TODAY.
AS VAN DER STEL EXPLORED INLAND,
HE FOUND A FERTILE VALLEY WHERE THE WATERS WERE COOL AND CLEAN
AND EVERYTHING SEEMED TO GROW IN ABUNDANCE...
A PERFECT ENVIRONMENT FOR VINEYARDS.
THIS IS WHERE HE ESTABLISHED STELLENBOSCH,
A SETTLEMENT HE NAMED AFTER HIMSELF.
THE VINEYARDS HE PLANTED
MARKED THE BEGINNING OF SOUTH AFRICA’S WINE INDUSTRY.
PRODUCTION IN THE STELLENBOSCH REGION
WOULD GET ANOTHER BOOST IN 1688,
WHEN 200 FRENCH PROTESTANTS, KNOWN AS THE HUGUENOTS,
MOVED HERE TO ESCAPE RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION IN EUROPE.
THEY SETTLED 20 MILES FROM STELLENBOSCH
IN THIS VALLEY,
CALLED THE FRENCH CORNER, OR FRANSCHHOEK.
THESE FAMILIES HAILED FROM THE FINEST FRENCH WINEMAKERS,
AND SIMON VAN DER STEL SAW TO IT
THAT THEY WERE SETTLED ON EXCELLENT FARMLANDS.
THEIR HERITAGE IS MEMORIALIZED BY THE HUGUENOT MONUMENT
WHICH STANDS AT THE END OF TOWN.
THEY ALSO SETTLED ON FARMS
AROUND THE NEARBY TOWN OF PAARL...
PLANTING ORCHARDS, VEGETABLE GARDENS,
AND ABOVE ALL, VINEYARDS.
STELLENBOSCH, FRANSCHHOEK AND PAARL FORM A REGION
THAT TODAY IS CELEBRATED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD
FOR ITS FINE WINES.
PAARL IS NAMED AFTER THE PEARL MOUNTAIN.
DISCOVERED BY SETTLERS IN 1657,
THE MOUNTAIN GLISTENED LIKE A WET PEARL
IN THE SUN AFTER RAIN.
THIS HUGE, SINGLE GRANITE ROCK HAS THREE ROUNDED OUTCROPS
AND IS THE SECOND LARGEST GRANITE FORMATION IN THE WORLD.
♪
TUCKED INTO THE CREST OF THIS OVERHANG
IS A CAVE WITH A SHADY PAST.
REPUTEDLY, IT WAS ONCE USED BY A RUNAWAY MURDERER
AS A HIDEOUT
UNTIL THE SMOKE FROM HIS COOKING FIRES BETRAYED HIM.
LEGEND CLAIMS HE WAS LATER CAPTURED AND HANGED,
BUT LOCALS SAY A WISP OF CLOUD
STILL LINGERS IN THE MORNING AIR,
REMINDING PAARL’S RESIDENTS
OF THE SMOKE THAT FLUSHED OUT THE KILLER.
STANDING IN THE SHADOW OF PAARL MOUNTAIN
IS THE AFRIKAANS LANGUAGE MONUMENT.
AFRIKAANS SPRUNG UP FROM A MIXTURE OF LANGUAGES
SPOKEN IN THE EARLY DUTCH COLONY:
A MISH-MASH OF EUROPEAN, AFRICAN AND MALAYSIAN DIALECTS.
THE MONUMENT SYMBOLIZES WESTERN EUROPE
MIXING WITH AFRICA TO FORM A BRIDGE TO THE FUTURE.
JUST 18 MILES AWAY
THIS MODERN RESERVOIR DAMS UP THE BERG RIVER.
NUTRIENT-RICH WATER
RUNNING OFF THE SURROUNDING DRAKENSTEIN MOUNTAINS
COLLECTS HERE.
IT IS A VITAL RESOURCE
FOR THE PRODUCTION OF WINE AND TABLE GRAPES.
♪
THE BERG RIVER THEN SNAKES 183 MILES TO THE ATLANTIC OCEAN
WHERE ANOTHER TASTY INGREDIENT FOR FINE DINING IS PRODUCED.
♪
THIS IS ST. HELENA BAY.
IT’S WHERE THE BERG RIVER MEETS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.
JUST 90 MILES NORTH OF CAPE TOWN,
THIS BAY IS KNOWN FOR HAVING THE FINEST SAILING CONDITIONS
ON THE SOUTH AFRICAN COASTLINE,
WITH ITS PREVAILING SOUTHEAST WINDS.
♪
THE RESIDENTIAL MARINA, PORT OWEN,
IS A 2-MILE-LONG WATERWAY LINED WITH VACATION HOMES AND YACHTS.
BUT THE ECONOMY HERE ISN’T DRIVEN BY WIND.
ITS ENGINE IS THE SEA ITSELF.
SALT IS BIG BUSINESS HERE.
THE DRY SUMMERS AND LOW RAINFALL IN THIS AREA
MAKE IT IDEAL FOR EXTRACTING SALT FROM SEAWATER.
LARGE PONDS PUMPED FULL OF WATER
RELY ON THE SUN AND WIND FOR EVAPORATION.
THIS RAISES THE CONCENTRATION OF SALT
TO A LEVEL THAT PRODUCES CRYSTALS.
IT’S HARVESTED AND DRIED FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION.
THE SALT IS ALSO USED BY ANOTHER LOCAL INDUSTRY
THAT’S KEEPING THIS REGION AFLOAT.
♪
THIS IS THE HEART OF SOUTH AFRICA’S FISHING INDUSTRY.
ST. HELENA BAY IS THE LARGEST CONCENTRATION
OF FISH PROCESSING FACTORIES IN THE NATION.
MORE THAN HALF THE SEAFOOD PRODUCED IN SOUTH AFRICA
COMES FROM HERE.
♪
THE BAY TEEMS WITH ANCHOVY, SARDINES, HERRING, MACKEREL,
HAKE AND SOLE.
♪
THE REEFS ARE FAMOUS FOR ABALONE,
A LARGE SEA SNAIL THAT THRIVES
IN THE COLD WATER AND ROCKY HABITAT
OF THE CAPE’S WESTERN COAST,
WHERE ALGAE IS A PLENTIFUL FOOD SOURCE.
ABALONE IS SO POPULAR FOR ITS FLESH AND MOTHER-OF-PEARL SHELL
THAT THE ECOSYSTEM WAS BEING HEAVILY DAMAGED
BY BLACK MARKET TRADERS HARVESTING THE VALUABLE MOLLUSK.
TO HELP MEET DEMAND-- AND PROTECT THE DELICATE REEFS--
THE SEAFOOD INDUSTRY HAS CREATED A WAY TO FARM ABALONE.
THESE POOLS ARE HATCHERIES FILLED WITH SEAWATER.
IT TAKES THREE YEARS FOR ABALONE TO GROW
FROM EGG TO MARKETABLE SIZE,
BUT IT’S WORTH THE WAIT.
SOUTH AFRICAN ABALONE FARMERS
REAP MORE THAN $50 MILLION ANNUALLY.
THE SEA HAS ALWAYS BEEN A BIG PART OF LIFE
ON THE WESTERN CAPE.
IN 1653,
DUTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY ADMINISTRATOR JAN VAN RIEBEECK
SENT A SHIP UP THE COAST FROM CAPE TOWN TO SALDANHA BAY
TO HUNT WHALES.
THE BOATS ARRIVED IN SOUTH AFRICA’S SUMMER--
WHEN THE WHALES HAD ALREADY LEFT
ON THEIR ANNUAL MIGRATION TO ANTARCTICA.
BUT THE MISSION WAS NOT A FAILURE.
THE DUTCH DISCOVERED BIRDS AND EGGS
TO FEED THEIR HUNGRY CREWS,
AND THE PLANKTON-RICH WATERS
PROVIDED A BOUNTY OF FRESH FISH AND OYSTERS.
TODAY, SALDANHA BAY
IS SOUTH AFRICA’S LARGEST OYSTER FARM,
PRODUCING 30,000 OF THEM A MONTH.
OYSTER CAGES LIE HIDDEN JUST BELOW THE SURFACE,
SUSPENDED FROM THESE COLORFUL PLASTIC BUOYS.
THE BOTTOM OF THIS BAY IS LITTERED
WITH 30 MILLION TONS OF ANCIENT OYSTER SHELLS.
THESE OYSTER BOATS MAINTAIN THE CAGES,
MONITORING THE SEED OYSTER GROWTH RATE.
COCKTAIL OYSTERS ARE READY AFTER 8 MONTHS,
PACKED ON ICE AND SHIPPED TO RESTAURANTS
ALONG AMERICA’S ATLANTIC SEABOARD.
GIANT OYSTERS NEED A FULL 20 MONTHS TO MATURE.
THESE LARGER SPECIMENS ARE THE SIZE OF A MAN’S HAND,
WEIGH MORE THAN A QUARTER POUND EACH,
AND ARE MORE POPULAR IN THE ASIAN MARKETS.
♪
WHILE THE DUTCH MAY HAVE SETTLED FOR OYSTERS THAT SUMMER,
WHALING EVENTUALLY DID BECOME BIG BUSINESS AT SALDANHA BAY.
THE FIRST WHALING STATION WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1909
HERE AT DONKERGAT.
THE MOST POPULAR WHALE TO HUNT WAS THE SOUTHERN RIGHT WHALE.
THEY WERE KNOWN AS THE "RIGHT" WHALE TO HUNT
BECAUSE THEY WERE SLOW SWIMMERS AND CURIOUS ABOUT SHIPS.
THEY WERE HUNTED TO THE BRINK OF EXTINCTION.
TODAY THIS FEMALE AND HER BABY CAN SWIM UNDISTURBED.
SOUTH AFRICA BANNED WHALE HUNTING IN 1979
AND NOW PROVIDES THE PERFECT REFUGE
FOR THESE GRACEFUL GIANTS.
THEIR NUMBERS HAVE BOUNCED BACK FROM A FEW HUNDRED INDIVIDUALS
TO AROUND 5,000 WHALES.
THEY CAN GROW AS BIG AS 90 TONS.
THOUGH NOT FULLY UNDERSTOOD,
SOUTHERN RIGHTS HAVE STRONG MATERNAL CONNECTIONS
WITH THE LOCATIONS AND GENE POOLS THEY WERE BORN IN,
RETURNING TO THEIR PLACE OF BIRTH EVERY THREE YEARS.
RESEARCHERS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA
TAKE AERIAL SURVEYS TO MONITOR THEIR POPULATION.
THEY PHOTOGRAPH THE WHALES’ HEADS AND BACKS,
DOCUMENTING SKIN PATTERNS THAT CAN IDENTIFY EACH INDIVIDUAL.
OVER 1,200 KNOWN WHALES ARE RECORDED EACH YEAR.
♪
ANOTHER MAGNIFICENT MARINE GIANT,
THE HUMPBACK WHALE,
IS ALSO FLOURISHING SINCE THE BAN ON WHALING.
TODAY, THEY ARE THE SECOND MOST COMMON WHALE SPECIES
IN THESE WATERS.
HUMPBACKS ARE KNOWN FOR THEIR ACROBATIC DISPLAYS
AND SONG-LIKE VOCALIZATIONS.
♪
SLAPPING PECTORAL FINS IS ANOTHER WAY TO COMMUNICATE.
♪
BUT IT’S RARE TO SEE A YOUNG CALF
PRACTICING A PECTORAL SLAP--
PERHAPS LEARNING FROM ITS MOTHER.
THESE WATERS ARE ALSO HOME TO ANOTHER SEA CREATURE
KNOWN FOR THE SHEER SIZE OF ITS NUMBERS.
♪
THIS CAPE SEAL COLONY AT KLEINZEE IN THE NORTHERN CAPE
IS A SEETHING MASS
OF HALF A MILLION ROARING, GROWLING AND HONKING SEALS.
♪
THEY CROWD THE BEACHES
AND PRODUCE 60 TO 80,000 PUPS A YEAR.
MALES CAN GROW AS LARGE AS 800 POUNDS
AND WILL FIGHT VIOLENTLY TO PROTECT THEIR HAREM.
WITH NO NATURAL PREDATORS LIVING IN THE ADJOINING SCRUBLANDS,
THIS SEAL COLONY CONTINUES TO GROW.
THE ONLY DANGER?
HUNGRY SHARKS LURKING IN THE SEA.
♪
LOCATED AT THE ENTRANCE TO SALDANHA BAY,
MALGAS ISLAND IS HOME TO ANOTHER SOUTH AFRICAN NATIVE--
CAPE GANNETS.
OVER 140,000 CAPE GANNETS FLOCK HERE,
REPRESENTING 25% OF THE WORLD POPULATION.
♪
THEY’RE EXPERT FISHERS WHO CAN DIVE 30 FEET UNDER WATER
AND CAPTURE THEIR MEALS WITH PINPOINT PRECISION.
[SQUAWKING]
THE ENTIRE WESTERN CAPE COASTLINE
TEEMS WITH MARINE LIFE,
FROM MINUTE SEA CREATURES TO TITANIC WHALES.
♪
BUT THE WATERS CAN BE DEADLY,
AND THE CAPE SHORES ARE LITTERED WITH THE SKELETONS
OF A DIFFERENT KIND OF SEAFARING GIANT.
♪
SINCE THE TIME BARTHOLOMEW DIAZ FIRST ROUNDED THE CAPE
IN HIS WOODEN GALLEON,
THE WILD CAPE COASTLINE HAS CLAIMED MORE THAN 2,500 VESSELS.
IT HAS BECOME FAMOUSLY KNOWN AS THE GRAVEYARD OF SHIPS.
ONE OF THEM,
A BRAZILIAN CARGO SHIP, THE S.S. PIRATINY,
BECAME SOMETHING OF A LOCAL LEGEND.
IN 1943, IT RAN AGROUND WHILE EN ROUTE TO CAPE TOWN,
300 MILES NORTH OF ITS DESTINATION.
SOME SAY IT WAS DRIVEN AGAINST THE ROCKS
WHEN ITS ENGINE SPUTTERED AND DIED.
OTHERS BELIEVE A NAZI SUBMARINE TORPEDO SANK IT.
THE CREW SCRAMBLED TO SHORE AND WERE RESCUED.
BUT THEY LEFT BEHIND A CARGO OF SHOES,
ROLLS OF CLOTHING FABRIC, AND EVEN CANNED SARDINES.
FOR MANY YEARS, CHILDREN IN SURROUNDING VILLAGES
WORE CLOTHES MADE FROM THE ABANDONED MATERIAL
AND SHOES THEY FOUND ON THE BEACH.
SOME OLD-TIMERS ATE SO MANY SARDINES
THAT THEY LOST THEIR APPETITE FOR THE SALTY FISH.
STRETCHING INLAND FROM THIS DESERTED COAST
IS AN ARID REGION KNOWN AS NAMAQUALAND.
EACH SPRING, THE SCRUBLAND EXPLODES INTO LIFE.
A KALEIDOSCOPE OF BRILLIANT COLORS
CARPETS THE VALLEY FLOORS
WITH BEAUTIFUL SPECIES LIKE PURPLE VYGIES
THAT COVER AN AREA OF 170,000 SQUARE MILES.
THESE SHOWY PLANTS CARRY WATER IN TINY SACKS ON THEIR LEAVES,
ALLOWING THEM TO SURVIVE IN THIS HARSH ENVIRONMENT.
♪
50 MILES INLAND FROM THE COAST,
THE CEDERBERG MOUNTAIN AREA IS FAMOUS
FOR ITS RUGGED LANDSCAPES AND DRAMATIC ROCK FORMATIONS.
♪
THIS AREA WAS SHAPED BY MIGHTY GLACIERS
MANY MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO,
CARVING OUT DEEP VALLEYS AND GORGES.
ONE OF CEDERBERG’S NOTABLE LANDMARKS
IS THIS ROCK FORMATION-- WOLFBERG ARCH.
WATER, WIND AND BLOWING SAND
CREATED THIS 160-FOOT-LONG SANDSTONE FORMATION
AND CARVED ITS AWE-INSPIRING 40-FOOT-HIGH ARCHWAY.
NUTRIENT-RICH WATER FLOWING FROM THE CEDERBERG MOUNTAINS
FEEDS THE OLIFANTS RIVER.
♪
RURAL RESIDENTS LIVING ALONG ITS BANK
RELY ON IT AS A RESOURCE FOR FRESH FISH...
♪
AS DO OVER 60 WATER BIRD SPECIES...
INCLUDING LARGE FLOCKS OF FLAMINGOS WHO COLOR THE SKY
AS THEY FLY IN TO NEST AND FEED HERE.
♪
SOME 200 MILES NORTH OF THE BETTER-KNOWN STELLENBOSCH,
VREDENDAL IS A PROSPEROUS AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITY
THAT SITS IN THE OLIFANTS RIVER VALLEY.
IT IS HOME TO THE LARGEST WINE COOPERATIVE
IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE-- THE NAMAQUA WINERY.
THIS WINERY PRODUCES
ALMOST 24 MILLION GALLONS OF WINE A YEAR.
BUT IT ISN’T EASY.
VREDENDAL LIES RIGHT ON A CLIMATE BOUNDARY,
BETWEEN THE MILD MEDITERRANEAN WEATHER TO THE SOUTH
AND THE DRY DESERT CONDITIONS FURTHER NORTH.
HOT, DRY SUMMERS ARE A CONSTANT CHALLENGE.
THE HARSHER SUN CAN EASILY DAMAGE GRAPES,
SO THE VINEYARDS NEED TO BE PROTECTED.
TO PULL THIS OFF, LEAF CANOPIES ARE CAREFULLY PRUNED
TO SHADE THE CROPS AND BOOST PRODUCTIVITY.
♪
WITH SO LITTLE RAIN, THE GROWERS TURN
TO THE OLIFANTS RIVER FOR IRRIGATION.
BUT THE TOUGH CONDITIONS ACTUALLY MAKE FOR BETTER WINE.
LIMITED MOISTURE YIELDS
GREATER FLAVOR CONCENTRATION IN THE GRAPES.
THE HARD WORK AND DEDICATION TO THE WINEMAKING CRAFT
HAS PAID OFF.
TODAY, WINES FROM THE REGION
ARE ENJOYING INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION,
AND THE WESTERN CAPE WINEMAKERS
HAVE BECOME SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTORS
TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN ECONOMY,
GENERATING OVER $3 BILLION OF REVENUE EVERY YEAR.
THE WINEMAKERS AREN’T THE ONLY ONES CASHING IN.
ANCIENT TREASURES LIE BURIED IN THE WATERS HERE.
♪
CUTTING THROUGH THE VERY NORTHERN PART
OF THE CAPE PROVINCE,
THE ORANGE RIVER IS THE LONGEST RIVER IN SOUTH AFRICA...
RUNNING 1,400 MILES EAST TO WEST.
IT’S A RIVER OF RECREATION AND RICHES.
KANONEILAND IS THE LARGEST INLAND ISLAND IN SOUTH AFRICA.
SURROUNDED BY THE ORANGE RIVER,
IT’S 2 MILES WIDE AND 9 MILES LONG.
THE NAME "KANON"-- OR "CANNON"--ISLAND
STEMS FROM THE 1870s
WHEN RIVER PIRATES LIVED ON THE ISLAND
AND HID IN THE DENSE FOLIAGE.
IN 1879, 80 POLICEMEN ATTACKED THE PIRATES.
THEY FIRED BACK WITH A CANNON
MADE FROM THE HOLLOWED-OUT TRUNK OF A SPONGY QUIVER TREE--
NATIVE TO THE REGION.
IT BACKFIRED SPECTACULARLY!
WHEN THE SMOKE CLEARED,
SIX OF THEM LAY DEAD AMONG THE DEBRIS.
♪
THE ORANGE RIVER CONTINUES ON ITS WILD RIDE WEST
THROUGH THE AUGRABIES FALLS NATIONAL PARK.
TEMPERATURES HERE IN SUMMER OFTEN TOP 100 DEGREES.
ANIMALS LIKE THIS ELAND HAVE HAD TO ADAPT TO SURVIVE.
GIRAFFES HERE ARE A LIGHTER SHADE
TO THEIR DISTANT COUSINS
ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF THE CONTINENT.
THIS ADAPTATION IN PIGMENTATION AND AN ABUNDANCE OF RIVER WATER
HELPS THEM STAY COOL.
AT AUGRABIES FALLS,
THE ORANGE RIVER THUNDERS OVER 200 FEET DOWN,
MAKING IT THE WORLD’S FIFTH HIGHEST WATERFALL.
ITS ROAR IS SO DEAFENING
IT’S KNOWN AS THE PLACE OF GREAT NOISE.
DURING THE FIRST DOWNPOUR OF THE RAINY SEASON,
OVER 2 MILLION GALLONS OF WATER
CAN CASCADE OVER THE FALLS EVERY SECOND,
WHICH EXCEEDS THE ALL-TIME RECORD SET AT NIAGARA FALLS
OF 1.8 MILLION GALLONS PER SECOND.
LEGEND HAS IT THAT THE BIGGEST CACHE OF DIAMONDS IN THE WORLD
LIES IN THE SWIRL-HOLE AT THE FOOT OF THE WATERFALL.
BUT DON’T GO DIVING IN JUST YET.
THE FORCE OF WATER FALLING FROM THE TOP
WOULD CRUSH A HUMAN,
AND SOME BELIEVE THAT THE POOL IS HOME
TO SOUTH AFRICA’S OWN LOCH NESS MONSTER.
DOWNSTREAM, THE RIVER CONTINUES ITS PATH
THROUGH AN 11-MILE-LONG, 800-FEET-DEEP GORGE
FLOWING OUT INTO A MARTIAN LANDSCAPE
KNOWN AS THE RICHTERSVELD.
♪
IT’S A LAND OF EXTREME TEMPERATURES
CHARACTERIZED BY A HARSH, DRY LANDSCAPE.
IT’S THE MOST UNDEVELOPED AND INACCESSIBLE WILDERNESS
IN SOUTH AFRICA.
THIS SECLUSION FROM HUMANS HAS PRESERVED
AN ASTONISHING VARIETY OF PLANTS, BIRDS AND WILDLIFE.
♪
THIS IS A QUIVER TREE, A TALL, BRANCHING SPECIES OF ALOE.
THE SOFT TISSUE INSIDE ITS TRUNK HOLDS LARGE QUANTITIES OF WATER,
MAKING THEM AN IMPORTANT SOURCE OF MOISTURE
FOR ANIMALS IN THE REGION.
THE RICHTERSVELD IS A WONDER TO BEHOLD,
AND THE BEST WAY TO SEE IT IS BY CANOE.
♪
CANOEISTS TRAVEL 20 MILES PER DAY
THROUGH NARROW, STORMY RAPIDS,
AND WIDE SERENE SECTIONS
WHERE THE ORANGE RIVER CALMS TO AN EVEN FLOW.
♪
THE LOWER REACHES OF THE RIVER ARE MOST POPULAR
BECAUSE OF THE SPECTACULAR VIEWS.
♪
EVEN IN THIS HARSH ENVIRONMENT,
AGRICULTURE MANAGES TO FIND A FOOTHOLD.
IRRIGATED FIELDS AND VINEYARDS
STRETCH ALONG THE BANKS OF THE RIVER
FOR OVER 180 MILES.
ABUNDANT SUNNY SKIES AND THE NEARBY RIVER
MAKE THE VALLEY A PRIME LOCATION FOR FARMING.
THIS MAN IS HARVESTING WATER REEDS
THAT CAN BE USED FOR FENCING AND THATCH ROOFS.
SKILLED ORANGE RIVER GUIDES
LEAD GROUPS DOWNSTREAM TOWARDS THE COAST.
20 MILES BY CANOE IS EASY,
BUT IN THE DRY WINTER MONTHS, WHEN WATER LEVELS DROP,
IT’S A BUMPY, ROCK-SCRAPING RIDE
TO THE OVERNIGHT CAMPS ALONG THE BANKS.
AS THE ORANGE NEARS THE OCEAN,
THE ERNEST OPPENHEIMER BRIDGE SPANS THE RIVER,
LINKING THE TOWN OF ORANJEMUND TO ALEXANDER BAY.
OVER THE LAST 80 MILLION YEARS
THE SEA LEVEL HAS RETREATED AND ADVANCED SEVERAL TIMES,
LEAVING DEPOSITS BOTH ON LAND AND UNDERWATER.
IT DOESN’T LOOK LIKE MUCH TODAY,
BUT IN 1867 SOMETHING WAS DISCOVERED IN THE ORANGE RIVER
THAT WOULD BECOME ONE OF SOUTH AFRICA’S
MOST FAMOUS AND VALUABLE EXPORTS--
DIAMONDS! LOTS AND LOTS OF DIAMONDS.
♪
THE DIAMOND STORY HERE
BEGINS AND ENDS WITH ONE NAME-- DE BEERS.
IN 1888 BRITISH BUSINESSMAN CECIL RHODES
SECURED FUNDING FROM THE ROTHSCHILD FAMILY
TO BUY ANY PIECE OF LAND
THAT HINTED AT HAVING DIAMOND DEPOSITS.
SOON THE COMPANY BECAME SOLE OWNER
OF ALL DIAMOND MINING OPERATIONS WITHIN THE COUNTRY.
RHODES NAMED THE COMPANY DE BEERS,
AFTER A FAMILY WHO OWNED THE FARM
WHERE DIAMONDS WERE FIRST DISCOVERED.
♪
TODAY, DIVERS TRY THEIR LUCK LOOKING FOR DIAMONDS
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA.
THESE ARE DIAMOND BOATS.
THEY FILTER SAND THROUGH LARGE SUCTION HOSES
THAT ARE CAST OUT BEHIND THE VESSEL.
DIVERS SINK DOWN TO THE OCEAN FLOOR
AND SHOVE THE HOSES INTO THE SAND AND GRAVEL,
WHICH IS SUCKED UP TO THE SURFACE
TO BE SORTED AND SCREENED.
THE WORK IS DANGEROUS AND GRUELING.
VERY FEW DIAMONDS REMAIN,
BUT DIVERS CONTINUE TO EKE OUT A LIVING HERE,
HOPING TO STRIKE IT BIG.
DIAMONDS MADE CECIL RHODES ONE OF THE RICHEST MEN ON EARTH.
HE BECAME PRIME MINISTER OF THE CAPE COLONY IN 1890,
WHERE HIS INFLUENCE WOULD BE FELT FOR GENERATIONS TO COME--
FOR BETTER AND FOR WORSE.
♪
IN 1893, CAPE COLONY PRIME MINISTER CECIL RHODES
BOUGHT THE GROOTE SCHUUR ESTATE,
A PLOT OF LAND ORIGINALLY OWNED BY THE DUTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY.
TODAY, THE CECIL RHODES MEMORIAL STANDS ON THE PROPERTY,
IN WHAT HE CLAIMED WAS HIS FAVORITE SPOT--
THE SLOPES OF DEVIL’S PEAK, NEXT TO TABLE MOUNTAIN.
THE MONUMENT IS BUILT LIKE A GREEK TEMPLE,
WITH 49 STEPS SYMBOLIZING HIS 49 YEARS OF LIFE--
YEARS THAT STILL SHAPE SOUTH AFRICA TODAY.
NOT FAR BELOW THE MEMORIAL,
ANOTHER STATUE OF RHODES STOOD FOR MANY YEARS,
ON THE STEPS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN.
BEFORE HIS DEATH, RHODES’ DIAMOND MINES
HAD HELPED HIM ACCUMULATE
A STAGGERING $1 BILLION IN WEALTH.
HIS MONEY AND POWERFUL INFLUENCE
HELPED ESTABLISH WHITE MINORITY RULE IN SOUTH AFRICA.
HIS GOVERNMENT RESTRICTED THE RIGHTS OF BLACK AFRICANS
BY ALTERING LAWS ON LANDOWNERSHIP AND VOTING,
PREPARING THE WAY FOR APARTHEID.
♪
ON THE 9th OF MARCH 2015,
BLACK STUDENTS LAUNCHED A CAMPAIGN ON SOCIAL MEDIA
CALLED "RHODES MUST FALL."
THE PEACEFUL PROTESTS SENT SHOCKWAVES
THROUGH THE EDUCATION SYSTEM, DIVIDING PUBLIC OPINION.
EXACTLY ONE MONTH AFTER THE PROTESTS STARTED,
THE STATUE WAS REMOVED.
♪
JUST NORTH OF THE UNIVERSITY,
THE GROOTE SCHUUR ACADEMIC HOSPITAL
HOLDS A PROUD PLACE IN CAPE TOWN’S HISTORY.
THE FIRST HUMAN HEART TRANSPLANT WAS CONDUCTED HERE IN 1967.
A DOCTOR NAMED CHRISTIAAN BARNARD
PREFORMED THE COMPLEX PROCEDURE.
WHILE THIS MIRACLE OF MEDICINE WAS CELEBRATED AROUND THE WORLD,
A BLACK SOUTH AFRICAN WITH A HEART OF GOLD
WAS PLANNING THE BIGGEST POLITICAL OPERATION
IN THE COUNTRY’S HISTORY.
FOR NEARLY 400 YEARS ROBBEN ISLAND WAS A PLACE
OF BANISHMENT, EXILE AND ISOLATION.
JUST 5 MILES OFFSHORE FROM CAPE TOWN’S CAREFREE BEACHES,
THIS PRISON COMPLEX HELD CAPTIVE
MANY LEADERS OF SOUTH AFRICA’S ANTI-APARTHEID MOVEMENT...
INCLUDING ONE OF THE WORLD’S
MOST NOTABLE POLITICAL ACTIVISTS,
NELSON MANDELA.
MANDELA SPENT A MAJORITY OF HIS 27 YEARS AS A PRISONER HERE,
WHERE HE FACED ROUTINE BEATINGS AND HARD LABOR.
THE TORTURE WAS MEANT TO BREAK MANDELA’S SPIRIT.
INSTEAD HE PERSEVERED,
IN SUPPORT OF HIS PEOPLE’S RIGHTS TO FREEDOM.
WHEN HE WAS FINALLY RELEASED ON FEBRUARY 11, 1990,
SOUTH AFRICA UNITED TO CELEBRATE MANDELA’S LONG WALK TO FREEDOM.
JUST HOURS AFTER HIS RELEASE,
NELSON MANDELA MADE HIS FIRST PUBLIC SPEECH
HERE AT CAPE TOWN CITY HALL.
CROWDS CHEERED AS HE SPOKE OF FREEDOM FROM THE BALCONY.
BLACK SOUTH AFRICANS HAD FINALLY BROKEN THE CYCLE
OF COLONIAL RULE.
MANDELA’S RELEASE WAS WELCOMED BY THE WORLD.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE SANCTIONS WERE LIFTED,
AND SOUTH AFRICA BECAME PART OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY.
♪
ITS STUNNING LOCATIONS AND LONG SUMMER DAYS
OFFER THE PERFECT SETTING
FOR FASHION PHOTOGRAPHERS AND MOVIE PRODUCERS.
IN RECENT YEARS, THE WESTERN CAPE
HAS BECOME A FAVORITE LOCATION
FOR FILMMAKERS FROM AROUND THE WORLD.
MICHAEL BAY SHOT THE PIRATE ADVENTURE SERIES "BLACK SAILS"
HERE AT CAPE TOWN STUDIOS.
THE PRODUCERS BUILT SETS TO REFLECT A CARIBBEAN WORLD,
INCLUDING DEEP SEA TANKS, A BEACH AND PIRATE SHIPS.
OTHER BIG-BUDGET HOLLYWOOD PRODUCTIONS SHOT IN THE REGION
INCLUDE THE TV DRAMA "HOMELAND" AND "MAD MAX, FURY ROAD,"
WITH TOM HARDY
AND SOUTH AFRICAN-BORN CHARLIZE THERON.
BUT MAKING MOVIES WOULDN’T BE POSSIBLE WITHOUT POWER,
AND TODAY CAPE TOWN’S PRIMARY ENERGY SOURCE IS THIS...
SOUTH AFRICA’S LARGEST NUCLEAR REACTOR.
KOEBERG IS AN 1,800-MEGAWATT NUCLEAR PLANT
THAT SUPPLIES MORE THAN HALF THE ELECTRICITY DEMAND
OF THE WESTERN CAPE.
BUT EVEN KOEBERG CAN’T POWER
ALL OF THE CAPE’S EVER EXPANDING CITIES.
AS SOUTH AFRICA’S ELECTRICITY DEMANDS INCREASE,
SCIENCE IS LOOKING TO THE SKIES FOR SOLUTIONS.
KHI SOLAR ONE,
AFRICA’S FIRST CONCENTRATED SOLAR POWER PROJECT,
PRODUCES 50 MEGAWATTS OF POWER A DAY.
4,200 GPS-CONTROLLED MIRRORS REFLECT SUNLIGHT
TO THE TOP OF THE 673-FOOT TOWER,
WHERE WATER IS BOILED FOR THE GENERATOR.
SOUTH AFRICA’S SUNNY WEATHER
IS ONE OF THE BEST SOLAR RESOURCES IN THE WORLD.
THAT SUN, THE SEA, AND THE STRONG SOUTHEASTERLY WIND,
KNOWN AS THE "CAPE DOCTOR"
BECAUSE IT HELPS RID THE AIR OF POLLUTION,
MAKE BLOUBERG BEACH
ONE OF THE TOP KITE SURFING DESTINATIONS IN THE WORLD.
TOURISTS COME FROM ALL OVER TO HARNESS ITS POWER.
AS THE WIND MAKES LANDFALL, IT HEATS UP, GATHERING SPEED.
IT STRIKES THE WIND TURBINES AT THE SERE WIND FARM,
GENERATING 100 MEGAWATTS OF ELECTRICITY,
ENOUGH TO SUPPLY 124,000 HOMES.
IT’S ONE OF THE LARGEST WIND FARMS IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
AND COST $375 MILLION TO BUILD...
BUT IT WILL CUT CARBON EMISSIONS BY SIX MILLION TONS
OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS.
BY 2030 SOUTH AFRICA AIMS TO MEET
42% OF ITS NATIONAL DEMAND FOR POWER
USING RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES...
WITH CAPE TOWN LEADING THE WAY.
♪
CAPE TOWN HAS BECOME A MODEL CITY
AND THE GREENEST IN ALL OF AFRICA.
TODAY, THE MOTHER CITY
IS ALSO A BOOMING EPICENTER OF GLOBAL COMMERCE...
AND MANY MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES CALL CAPE TOWN HOME.
WITH BUSINESS COMES PLEASURE.
THE MEDITERRANEAN-LIKE CLIMATE,
PICTURESQUE BEACHES AND SPECTACULAR SETTING
MAKE CAPE TOWN THE MOST POPULAR TOURIST DESTINATION
IN ALL OF AFRICA.
♪
SAILORS ARRIVING IN THE WESTERN CAPE
CONFUSED THIS BODY OF WATER WITH CAPE TOWN’S TABLE BAY
AND NAMED IT FALSE BAY.
IT LIES ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF THE CAPE PENINSULA.
IN 1882 THIS RAILWAY LINE CONNECTED CAPE TOWN TO THE BAY,
TO SERVICE SHIPS ANCHORED HERE.
THE STATION WAS BUILT WITH ROCK
BLASTED FROM THE SURROUNDING CLIFFS.
THE STONE WAS ALSO USED BY GOLD AND DIAMOND MINING MAGNATES
VISITING THE BAY.
THEY BUILT OPULENT HOMES ALL ALONG THE BEAUTIFUL COAST.
TODAY THE METRORAIL FERRIES PEOPLE TO AND FROM CAPE TOWN.
TOURISTS JUMP ABOARD TO VIEW
THE PALATIAL VICTORIAN HOMES, ART GALLERIES,
AND STOP TO EAT AT SEASIDE RESTAURANTS.
FALSE BAY’S BIGGEST DRAW IS MUIZENBERG BEACH,
KNOWN AS THE EPICENTER OF SURF CULTURE
SINCE THE 1960s.
THE LONG, SHALLOW BEACH AND STEADY BREAK
MAKES IT ONE OF THE BEST SURFING BEACHES ON EARTH
FOR NOVICE AND EXPERIENCED SURFERS.
THE EARTH WAVE GLOBAL SURF CHALLENGE
TOOK PLACE HERE IN 2009.
443 SURFERS PADDLED INTO THE ICY WATER,
THEN 103 RODE BACK IN ON ONE WAVE,
BREAKING THE WORLD RECORD.
IT’S BECOME A GLOBAL EVENT-- DEDICATED TO OCEAN CONSERVATION.
THE IDEA WAS BORN IN CAPE TOWN,
WHICH IS FAMOUS FOR ITS OUTDOOR LIFESTYLE.
♪
AND IN 2010, ALL EYES WERE ON THE CITY
AS IT HOSTED SEVERAL MATCHES OF THE FIFA WORLD CUP
IN THE NEW 70,000-SEAT CAPE TOWN ARENA.
♪
FROM THE BAY, TABLE MOUNTAIN LOOKS VIRTUALLY THE SAME
AS WHEN JAN VAN RIEBEECK FIRST SET EYES
ON ITS MAJESTIC PROFILE WAY BACK IN 1652.
AN ICONIC, STEADFAST SYMBOL OF THE CAPE--
BUT WHILE NOTHING HAS CHANGED GEOGRAPHICALLY...
CULTURALLY AND POLITICALLY, THE REGION HAS BEEN TRANSFORMED.
NOW ITS ENDLESS BEACHES, BOUNTIFUL VINEYARDS
AND WIDE OPEN SPACES
CAN ONCE AGAIN BE CALLED HOME TO NATIVE AFRICANS,
WHO ARE NOW INTEGRATED INTO THE MODERN COSMOPOLITAN REGION,
WHERE CULTURAL HERITAGE
RIVALS THE DIVERSITY OF ITS VARIED LANDSCAPES...
AND WHILE ICONS OF COLONIAL RULE
REMIND US OF THE BRUTAL STRUGGLE,
A NEW DEMOCRACY IS BUILT ON THE FOUNDATIONS
OF EQUALITY AND FREEDOM FOR ALL.
♪