port on the way to the Dutch East Indies. The Brouwer Route was an extension of the Cape Route across the Indian Ocean to Indonesia. The Clipper Route is a route along the Roaring Forties between Europe and Australia. Suez Canal The Suez Canal opened in November 1869, allowing a shortcut between the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean. Because of the prevailing winds at Suez, the canal is less suitable for sailing boats, so steamships got a competitive advantage when the canal opened. While the Cape Route remained useful for clippers for some decades, the opening of the canal was the beginning of the end of the Cape Route, as well as the Age of Sail as a whole. Nowadays, the route around the Cape remains popular in yacht racing. The maximum ship size for the Suez Canal are referred to as Suezmax. Capesize ships are those too large for the Suez Canal, which need to use the Cape Route between the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean. The 2015 inauguration of the New Suez Canal raised the Suezmax dimensions, and allowed larger ships. Thereby, the Cape Route became even less important, although it still is an alternative secondary route if the Suez Canal is somehow disrupted (for example, during the 2021 Suez Canal obstruction), or to avoid paying fees for crossing the canal if it is economically advantageous to do so. The journey can take up to two weeks longer for modern ships than a direct route via the Suez. See also Winds in the Age of Sail Indian Ocean trade References Sea lanes Indian Ocean trade