Cape Town
Flying Dutchman
Cape of Good Hope Cape Town, South Africa
Legends of phantom ships on the seas and harbors of the world go back many centuries. Today, some of these ghost ships are incorrectly labeled with the generic term of Flying Dutchman. This isn’t fair, because, though there may indeed be many phantom ships, there’s only one Flying Dutchman, and the centuries-old ghostly legend behind that ship got its start off the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of South Africa.
In 1641, Captain Hendrik van der Decken swore to get his ship around the Cape of Good Hope and home to Amsterdam, even if it took him until Doomsday. The ship was lost, though it seems, from the dozens of sightings of the ghost ship throughout history, that Captain van der Decken kept his word—the ship is still trying to make its way around the Cape.
In earlier legends dating to the mid-1800s, some ships reported being hailed by this vessel—though they didn’t realize it was a ghost ship. Captain van der Decken calls across and asks if the vessel will carry some personal letters of the crew onward for them. To allow the Dutchman’s row-boat across and to accept the letters certainly spells doom. Sightings of the vessel continued in mariner reports from reputable sailors aboard Royal Navy ships throughout the 1800s and into the 20th century. The ship is described as having full, billowed sails, even when no wind is present. Witnesses also claim the ship glows an eerie red at night. The Flying Dutchman is considered a bad omen for any ships that spot it.
