The cape is a bold, well-wooded point about 46-metre high (151 ft) that rises to an elevation of 180 m inland (590 ft), with a disused 62-metre-tall (203 ft), metal-framework light tower on the point and a conspicuous rock named Craigs Pillar at its eastern extremity.[2] The waters lying between Cape Ward Hunt and Cape Nelson about 87 miles (140 km) distant are described as being:
of the most dangerous character, due to the unsurveyed areas and the numerous coral patches and shoals. The coral patches are steep-to and the sea seldom breaks on
them. The weather is often thick with passing squalls of rain, and anchorages are rare close to land. Between coral patches only a few miles apart [half-dozen km], a sounding of several hundred meters [1,600 to 2,500 ft] may be obtained.[3]
