The Flying Dutchman

In 1641, a captain and his crew set sail on the their ship–The Flying Dutchman–on a voyage of exploration. Whatever their actual destination was, it’s now lost to history, but it’s well known and documented that they met their end in the ironically named Cape of Good Hope off of South Africa.

It was due largely to the error of the captain that they met their fate. While out on the sea, he failed to notice the dark clouds looming overhead, until he heard the screams of his lookout. By that point, they had already sailed straight into a terrible storm.

Hours went by as the captain and crew fought for their lives. If they could just make it out of the cape, they could escape the storm and make it back to shore.

Soon, they heard a crunch as their ship slammed into the rocks and then a terrible roar as their ship bowed from the pressure of rushing water. Just as the ship was sinking, the captain shouted one final declaration: “I will round this cape if I have to sail ’til the end of time!”

That statement of hubris also served as his eternal curse.

The Flying Dutchman was destroyed. For at time, it was also forgotten.

Then, in 1881, the Bacchante, a ship of the Royal Navy, was rounding the tip of South Africa when the lookout noticed something strange out in the distance. He recorded his sighting in his diary: “A strange red light as of a phantom ship all aglow, in the midst of which light the mast, spars and sails of a brig 200 yards distant stood out in strong relief.”

It’s too bad for that lookout that he spotted The Flying Dutchman. In their eternal voyage around the cape, the ghostly crew is jealous of living, and those who see them always suffer a terrible end. The lookout was no exception. Later on in the voyage, he lost his balance on the mast and fell to his death.

To this day, people still see the doomed ship, and each of them have died shortly after.

Whenever there’s a storm near the Cape of Good Hope, be sure and look out onto the sea, and you may catch the site of The Flying Dutchman, with its red glow and ghostly stillness, as the ship of the damned still tries to round the cape. Be careful while observing this remarkable sight, however, or you may end up joining the captain and crew in their endless voyage until the end of time.