Chapman’s Peak Drive, or Chappies as she is affectionately known, has become an iconic symbol of the beauty of South Africa and has captured the imagination of Capetonians and international visitors for 100 years. Chapman’s Peak was named after John Chapman, the first mate of an English ship called the Consent which rounded the Cape of Good Hope in 1607. While anchored off the west of the southern peninsula, John Chapman was sent to shore by the captain in search of provisions, and upon his successful return the skipper named the bay Chapman’s Chaunce.
While that bay would later become known as Hout Bay, John Chapman’s name stuck for the most compelling peak at the end of the ridge running from Hout Bay to Noordhoek, Chapman’s Peak.
Hundreds of years later in 1915, work began to cut a road along a series of ridges to connect Hout Bay to Noordhoek. It was a feat of engineering back then, and when it was officially opened on the 6th of May 1922 it was called Chapman’s Peak Drive.
Almost a hundred years later we now celebrate the centenary of this iconic wonder situated on the Western Coast of the Cape Peninsula of Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
However, it is more than just a picturesque drive that attracts tourists. For Capetonians, Chapman’s Peak Drive is a bridge that connects communities and allows for life on the Southern Peninsula to thrive. It has opened pathways to new opportunities and even after 100 years, Chappies continues to be an intrinsic artery that connects communities, businesses, and people.
