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AA young woman walking across a rain-wet dune leaves her small footprints in the sand. She is slightly built, about 1.4m high, and seems to have been burdened by something, perhaps a small animal she was bringing back to her people. Sand covered up her footprints again, and very slowly turned to stone, protecting the unseen marks she had left behind.
But, many thousands of years later, erosion causes the layers to split and break, and the little woman's footprints are exposed. Geologist Dave Roberts discovered them in 1995, and paleoanthropologists like Dr Lee Berger confirmed they belonged, in all likelihood, to a grown woman. They called her 'Eve'.
Berger in fact wrote a book called In the Footprints of Eve (co-authored by Brett Hilton-Barber), in which he describes the above scenario, which we can only imagine, given that the young woman must have passed over those dunes 117 000 years ago. She was an 'anatomically modern human' if she walked among us today, we would hardly give her a second glance, except to think she was a little short.
The footprints are now at Iziko’s South African Museum in Cape Town, but will one day be displayed closer to where they were found, at Kraalbaai within the West Coast National Park.
The 'footprints of Eve' is a fanciful name implying that the West Coast, where the footprints where made, was a kind of Garden of Eden.
Perhaps that's not too far from the truth.
Nearby is the Klasies River Mouth site, where a large cave seems to have been home to a group of early humans about 130 000 years ago.
If it wasn't exactly Eden, at least these people seem to have had a good address, and a good lifestyle, with plenty to eat and a pleasant climate.
Did You Know?
Travel tips & planning info
Who to contact
South African Museum, Iziko
Tel: +27 (0)21 481 3800
Langebaan Tourism
Tel: +27 (0)22 772 1515
How to get here
The site can be found at Kraal Bay, West Coast National Park, Langebaan Lagoon and the
Footprints at Iziko’s South African Museum in central Cape Town.
Best time to visit
Langebaan is best visited in the flower season (July to September) when the wild flowers are in bloom. Cape Town is great all year.
Things to do
West Coast National Park has some great activities for the whole family. Why not take a walk or a more strenuous hike along one of the many trails, or mountain bike on a cycling route, in the park. If you’re into water sports, there’s kayaking and kite boarding in the Langebaan lagoon. For birders, there are 4 bird hides in the park with hundreds of bird species to identify. In August and September watch out for whales from the Tsaarsbank section of the park. You can also just explore the park from the comfort of your car and do some game viewing. There are picnic and braai facilities.
What to pack
Comfortable walking shoes, a hat and sunblock.
Related links
South Africa on social media
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