Cape Horn Location: Southern Tip of the Americas, Chilean Territory

Cape Horn (Cabo de Hornos): Geography and Significance

Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago in southern Chile.

Precise Location

• Coordinates: 55°58′S, 67°17′W
• Island: Hornos Island (Isla Hornos)
• Archipelago: Tierra del Fuego (Chilean sector)
• Region: Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena Region
• Commune: Cabo de Hornos (capital: Puerto Williams)

What It Is — and Isn't

• IS: Northern boundary of the Drake Passage (600 km to Antarctica)
• IS: Historic sailing milestone — "rounding the Horn"
• IS NOT: Southernmost point of land — that's Diego Ramírez Islands (56°32′S, 100 km SW)
• IS NOT: Southernmost point of South America mainland — that's Cape Froward (53°54′S, Brunswick Peninsula)

Historical Significance

• Discovered 1616 by Dutch explorers Schouten & Le Maire (named for Hoorn, Netherlands)
• Critical clipper route (Europe ↔ California/Asia) until Panama Canal (1914)
• "Graveyard of ships" — 1,000+ wrecks; 10,000+ lives
• Chilean Navy maintains lighthouse & station since 1942

Current Status

• Cabo de Hornos National Park (UNESCO Biosphere Reserve)
• Chilean Navy station (lighthouse, weather, SAR)
• Tourist destination: expedition cruises (Australis, Ponant, etc.) land via Zodiac
• No permanent civilian population (Puerto Williams, 2,500 pop, is 140 km north)

Climate

• Subpolar oceanic: 5–10°C summer, 0–5°C winter
• Extreme winds (100+ km/h common), precipitation 2,000mm+
• "Furious Fifties" latitude — no land break to Antarctica

Cape Horn: where the Atlantic and Pacific meet, where sailors prove themselves, where Chile ends and the Southern Ocean begins.