Cango Caves

The Cango Caves are in South Africa.

They have many large rooms. One room is as long as a football field!

People found old stone tools there. A farmer found the caves a long time ago. Today, you can visit with a guide. Some tours let you crawl through tight spots. You might even climb on rocks. It is a very big place to explore.

The Cango Caves are in South Africa. They sit near the town of Oudtshoorn.

These caves are made of limestone. A farmer named Jacobus Van Zyl found them in 1780. He found a room as long as a football field. This room is named Van Zyl Hall. People used these caves a long time ago. They left cave paintings and stone tools behind.

Exploring the caves is a big job. One guide once walked for 29 hours to find the end. The caves have three main parts. They are called Cango I, Cango II, and Cango III. In 1975, a team drained a water room. They crawled through a wet path to find more caves. Now, the whole system is about 3 kilometers long.

Today, people visit the caves on tours. You can take a Standard Tour. It lasts one hour. You can also take an Adventure Tour. This tour lasts 90 minutes. You might crawl through tight spots. Some spots are only 15 cm wide. You will use small lights to see the rocks.

The Cango Caves are a famous group of caves in South Africa. They sit in the limestone at the foot of the Swartberg mountains. These caves are near a town called Oudtshoorn in the Western Cape Province. Many people travel from far away to see them. The cave system is very large. It has many tunnels and big rooms. Only about one quarter of the caves is open to the public. Visitors must go into the caves in groups. A guide always stays with the group to help.

Exploring these caves is a big job for scientists. The caves are split into three main parts. These parts are called Cango I, Cango II, and Cango III. Cango I stays mostly in a single line. It does not rise or fall by more than a little bit. In 1972, three explorers found Cango II. They widened a blocked path to find it. This part goes past a place called the Devil's Kitchen. At the end, there is a deep shaft. This shaft leads to a room full of water.

People have known about these caves for a long time. Long ago, people used them during the Middle and Later Stone Ages. They left behind cave paintings and stone tools. A farmer named Jacobus Van Zyl found the caves in 1780. He found a room as long as a football field. People named this room Van Zyl Hall to honor him. Another room was found in 1792. In 1829, a scientist named Dr. Andrew Smith visited them. He was very curious about the caves.

Many teams have worked to map the caves. In 1897, people made a rough map of 26 chambers. In 1956, a group called the South African Speleological Association started a better map. In August 1975, a large team led by Hans Oosthuizen did something amazing. They drained a water chamber. They crawled through a wet passage that was under water. This helped them find Cango III. The whole cave system is about 3 kilometers long. The biggest chamber is quite large.

Today, you can visit the caves on a tour. There are two different kinds of tours. The Standard Tour lasts for one hour. The Adventure Tour lasts for one hour and thirty minutes. On the Adventure Tour, you might have to crawl. You will also climb up steep rocks. You use small lights to see the limestone shapes. Some passages are very tight. The smallest one is just under 15 cm wide. Visiting the caves is a part of the scenic Route 62.

The Cango Caves are a massive system of underground tunnels and chambers in South Africa. They are located within Precambrian limestones at the foothills of the Swartberg range. These caves sit near the town of Oudtshoorn in the Western Cape Province. They are considered one of the finest and most popular tourist caves in the country. Many visitors travel from overseas to explore these limestone formations. While the entire system is quite extensive, only about one quarter is open to the public. Visitors must always enter the caves in groups led by a professional guide.

The caves are divided into three distinct sections known as Cango I, Cango II, and Cango III. Cango I was the first part mapped in detail. The South African Speleological Association found that these caves mostly follow a single line. They noted that the path never rises or falls by more than a small amount. In 1972, explorers James Craig-Smith, Luther Terblanche, and Dart Ruiters discovered Cango II. They achieved this by widening an obstructed passage that stretched past the Devil's Kitchen. This section includes a shaft that leads down to a chamber filled with water.

Finding the third section, Cango III, required a very difficult process. In August 1975, a large exploration team led by Hans Oosthuizen worked to find more cave space. They focused on the water-filled chamber at the end of Cango II. The team drained most of the water from this chamber. This allowed them to crawl through a passage that had previously been underwater. This successful maneuver led to the discovery of the Cango III system. Later, in December 1977, Digby Ellis and Dave Land found a new crawlway. They added even more to the system in June 1978.

Human history is deeply connected to these limestone halls. Evidence from cave paintings and artifacts shows the caves were used during prehistory. Specifically, they were used throughout the Middle and Later Stone Ages. In 1780, a local farmer named Jacobus Van Zyl rediscovered the caves in modern times. He was lowered into a chamber that was as long as a football field. This massive space was named Van Zyl Hall to honor him. A second chamber was discovered shortly after in 1792. In 1829, Dr. Andrew Smith visited the caves to satisfy his scientific curiosity.

Archaeology has also provided many details about the site's past. In 1930, an archaeologist named A.J.H. Goodwin performed a test excavation. His work at the University of Cape Town uncovered stone artifacts and other cultural materials. These finds help us understand the people who lived there long ago. Today, the caves are managed by the municipality of Oudtshoorn. Legal powers over the caves were established by the Cango Caves Ordinance of 1999. This ordinance gave specific powers to the Administrator of the Cape. These powers now belong to the local government executive members.

The scale of the Cango Caves is truly impressive. Altogether, the various cave sections are about 3 kilometers long. The largest chamber in the system is quite massive, stretching about 70 meters. Exploring the caves offers different experiences depending on the tour chosen. The Standard Tour lasts for one hour and focuses on halls and limestone formations. The Adventure Tour lasts for one hour and thirty minutes. This longer tour requires visitors to climb steep rock formations. It also involves crawling through narrow passages using small lights.

Adventure seekers should be prepared for very tight spaces. On the Adventure Tour, the smallest passage is just under 15 cm wide. This is the space a person must pass through to exit. Many people visit the caves as part of a trip along the scenic Route 62. There are even historical records of the caves being filmed. The Cinema Museum in London holds a film of a visit from the 1930s. Legends also surround the caves, such as the story of Johnny van Wassenaer. In 1898, he reportedly walked 29 hours to find the end of the caves. He believed he followed an underground river to reach his destination.