Walking up Table Mountain from

 Constantia Nek

I am often asked “what is the easiest walk up Table Mountain?” A good question, and one I am not ever too sure how to answer.

A lot of people would immediately answer Platteklip Gorge. This is the steep route, straight up the front of the Cape Town side of the mountain. It is easy in that it is basically a steep staircase. No ropes or a head for height are required. Most people, of even quite negligable fitness, with a bit of determination, can reach the top in under 3 hours. Coming down is another story. Anyone with a slightly dodgy knee will suffer. Sticks are definitely recommended. Or even the cable car. Only a 15 minute away from the top of the gorge. For this reason alone, Platteklip may qualify as the easiest route, as it is the most direct, to the main table top.

However, from Constantia Nek, there is a concrete road leading up the Back Table. Although steep, it winds its way up to 650m, at the De Villiers dam.

The Concrete road at Constantia Nek

From here, the road continues on to the Woodhead and Hely Hely-Huntchinson dams, that dominate the Back Table. The lack of any steps, make this a route that is easier on the knees, heart and lungs, than any other route up Table Mountain. Of course, from the Back Table, the walk to the Main Table, is still around 2 hours, with a climb of a further 300m. So possibly, this discounts this route, from being counted as the easiest route up Table Mountain. It depends if by Table Mountain you mean only the main western table area, that is seen from Cape Town city centre. Or if you will include the entire mountain, that stretches from The City, to Constantia.

view of the Southern Suburbs, from the concrete road

Whatever your opinion. A gentle walk up the concrete road, offers magnificent views over the Southern Suburbs and False Bay. The dams are peaceful, and offer a good destination. Have a bite to eat, sitting by the water and then wind your way back down.

Relaxing by the De Villiers Dam

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The Cape of Good Hope section of the Cape Peninsula National Park, offers some of the finest walking in the Cape. Seldom as steep, and certainly never rising to the height of Table Mountain, nevertheless, the fynbos, the views, the terrain, all offer a fantastic day out.

My favourite full day hike includes a combination of beach, cliff and mountain walking. Thus combining to give the hiker, the best of all Cape Point has to offer.

Starting at Platboom, a small path leads along the top of the dunes, towards Cape Point. At Pegrams cottage the path leads to the shore, and eventually peters out, so you just follow the shore line towards the Cape of Good Hope. Although flat this section is quite hard going over rocks,and on sand. I recommend an early start as for the last 2 km, the road is close by, so later in the day, “civilisation” can begin to indrude upon your solitude.

From Platboom, towards Cape Point

 Once at the Cape of Good Hope, you follow the path up the to the cliff tops. Here a stop to look at the view and take a photograph, is a must.

The cliffs at Cape Maclear

 The path now leads along the cliff tops,  to the steep steps leading down to Dias Beach. It is well worth the effort to go down to the beach, and have an early lunch, or midmorning snack, on the rocks.

Dias beach

Back on the cliff path a gentle climb brings you to the funicular railway and 2 Oceans restuarant. The energetic, can add an hour to their walk, by following the road to the old lighthouse. Otherwise cross the car park and head up towards the path towards Vasco Da Gama Peak. Now on the False Bay side of the point, the path leads up to the highest point of 266m, and continues along a “knife edge” path, with steep drops into the sea below.

Up and over the Peak, you find yourself crossing the main road, and back on the Atlantic side. A final few kilometres along the dunes, returns you to Platboom and your car.

Vasco Da Gama PeakFrom Vasco Da Gama Peak

The view towards Simons Town from Vasco Da Game Peak

One of the best things to see whilst walking on Table Mountain is the King Protea.(Protea cynaroides)  This magnificent plant, which is also the National flower of South Africa, stands out, not only because of the size of flower, but also because of the seeming perfection of such a large flower head.

The King Protea

Throughout the summer, the new buds can be seen interspersed with last years dead heads.

King Protea bud

King Protea

The rest of the climb is in the open, on a clear path, surrounded by Proteas. The final 6m up a handy ladder, takes you to the top of the Back of Table Mountain. 

A view down Nursery Ravine

 

 

 

 

 

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Table Mountain, is surely one of the most recognisable natural features in the world. Whilst for many, the view from the city, or a ride in a cable car suffice, but for keen walkers and hikers, the combination of sea, sky and mountain, make it one of the most spectacular destinations in the world.
Both the walks and the mountain herself are extremely varied. Ranging from a leisurely walk along a beach, to a real cliffhanger.

However, whatever walk you choose to do, being prepared, is important. Table Mountain may be in the middle of a large and cosmolitan city, but it is still a mountain, with all he accompanying dangers. Being on the Southern tip of Africa, and being a huge lump of rock, suddenly rising 1000m up, the most important dangers relate to the weather. It can be a beautiful day in Cape Town, whilst on the mountain, it is cold and wet. On the other hand, it can appear cool when walking up a shady kloof in the early morning, but by midday in the blazing sun, heatstroke is a common problem. Another common problem is getting lost, when in a couple of seconds clouds move in, and hide any recognisable features. So when walking on Table Mountain, please stick to a few basic rules:

Some Mountain safety tips

1. Never climb alone
2. Allow plenty of time to get up and down in daylight
3. Stick to recognised paths
4. Tell someone where you are going, and stick to that plan.
5. Always be prepared for bad weather. Take a warm jersey and
  wateproof coat.                                                                                                                        6. Take plenty of  water  

Cloud cover on Table Mountain

Orange Kloof, is an area, on the Hout Bay side of Table Mountain. It is the only area on Table Mountain, where access is restricted, and a permit is required.

Although there are obviously other paths into Orange Kloof, from Hout Bay, or Table Mountain itself, the main entry point, is at the top of Constantia Nek. Instead of following the road up the Constantia side, you go straight into the deep Kloof, on the Hout Bay side. Almost immediately, regular walkers will sense a difference. It is nothing tangeable. The entire Table Mountain chain is pristine, with clean running water, and once you are away from the carparks, very uncrowded. However Orange Kloof, really does feel special. A clear jeep track leads the way intially, but several paths lead into the sensitive afromotane forest which covers the mountain here. Huge old, and knarled trunks tower and twist over your head. Only indigenous trees here, yellowwoods, rooi els, assegaaibos to name a few.

The forest of Orange Kloof

Follow the path up the Disa River, past several small waterfalls, lined with moss. In the winter they are gushing, and sometimes not passable. However, even at the end of summer they still trickle. Deep. dark pools of clean water, and a few scrambles up the steep sides, soon lead to “Hells Gate”, a remnant from the early 1900’s, when the 5 dams on Table Mountain provided Cape Town residents with most of their water. Here a tunnel goes right through the mountain, emerging at Slangolie ravine, above Camps Bay. 

The Disa River

The Woodhead Tunnel

Finally, the path emerges at De Villiers dam on the top of Table Mountain herself. Truly this is one of the most beautiful hikes on Table Mountain, when the clouds set in. For once the views just don’t seem important. The river, forest and waterfalls provide all the beauty.

Devils Peak, is the large peak, beside Table Mountain, that towers over Mowbray and the city itself.  Seperated from Maclears Beacon and the main table, by a steep drop down to the saddle, this is a part of Table mountain, often overlooked by hikers.

The view of Devils Peak and Table Mountain from Lions Head

However, Devils Peak, has some of the best hiking and also best views of the Table Mountain chain. The easiest ascent is from the upper contour path above Tafelberg Rd. From here, the path takes a relatively gentle climb to the saddle. Crossing the saddle, the final 200m, up to the peak itself is steep, but well worth the effort. At 1001m, Devils Peak is 80m lower, than Maclears Beacon, but the 360 degree views afforded from there are unbeatable.

Overlooking Cape Town, from the Upper Traverse path

Another straight forward route, reaches the saddle from above Newlands via Newlands Ravine. This a steep route, climbing from the contour path. Reaching the top, one again crosses the saddle, and takes the steep path directly to the summit.

2 more routes, lead to the summit, from Rhodes memorial.  These routes, ascend from the memorial to the kings blockhouse. From here a scramble takes you to the fire lookout point at 600m. Here there is a choice of routes. The Knifes edge path, which takes you along the ridge to minor peak, before a scramble up the Eastern buttress to the top. For those less adventurous, the fantastic upper traverse path, takes you right around Devils Peak, gently rising to 850m, before joining the steep path from the saddle to the top.

From the summitt of Devils Peak

Where to hike when its pouring with rain in Cape Town? You may think that a hike is out of the question, and on some days that may be so. However, some times, it is worth a little investigation, to see what is hapenning elsewhere on the Peninsula.

A rainbow over the city. Taken from Tafelberg rd

Yesterday morning, in the Southern suburbs and Cape Town city centre, it was raining the proverbial cats and dogs, and a very wet day, seemed to be in order. Initially I planned a day on the Kirstenbosch side, along the contour path and to Cecelia waterfall. At least on this walk, the trees and forest would offer some shelter, and its a beautiful walk in any weather.

But in a moment of inspiration, I decided to look a little further afield, and so drove to Kalk Bay. No rain! Overcast, but no rain! We set off up the Oukraal Path, and through Echo Valley. Despite being overcast, there was a wonderful view, and still no rain! As we came over the top of the ridge and began to drop into Silvermine, we were hit by a blast of the cold North Westerly wind, and could see the dark clouds over Constantiaberg and Table Mountain, indicating lots of rain over there. But we still remained dry.

View from Hilltop path, above Kalk Bay

Joining the jeep track, and beginning to head back towards False Bay again, we were clearly heading towards blue sky. Whilst behind us, Noordhoek looked very miserable indeed. By the time, we reached the Spes Bona forest Path, and headed into the Amphitheatre, we were fishing in our backpacks to find sunscreen and hats, and were back at the car in blazing sunshine. So despite waking to pouring rain, we still a wonderful days hike.

Someone told me the other day, that there are over 600  walking and hiking trails on Table Mountain. I have no idea if this number is correct, but there are an amazing number. What is even better, is that each walk has its own character, and can be a totally different experience to one, only a kilometre away.

 Agathas Gully, is a short, but strenuous scramble beginning at Constantia Nek. Follow the path from the Nek, to where it joins the cement road after the first corner. Here, instead of following the cement road up, follow it straight on to a dead end, and look for the path that leads up the mountain from here.  Follow the path around to the right, as it traverses above Hout Bay. The views, even at this low level are terrific, and quite different from those if you follow the more traditional routes onto the back table. After 50 metres on the traverse, you follow a faint path, that drops down through the proteas, and continue right around the back of the mountain, to Agathas Gully itself.

The view of Hout Bay, from Agathas Gully

 The Gully at the moment has clearly been affected by the heavy rains of the past few years, so a bit of scrambling is required over loose rock.

Looking up Agathas Gully

 Half way up the gully you take a left turn, through a small overhang and again, continue to traverse the mountain. Now right above Orange Kloof, the views of Grootkop, and the rest of the back Table are magnificent. More scrambling follows, continuing to move to around the mountain, until you join the Constantia Corner path, just before the camel rock.

Follow the path to the De Villiers reservoir, and from there, either continue along the Back Table, or follow the road back to you car, at the Nek.

Admiring the view from the top

Many of the hikes and walks on Table Mountain, begin or end in the magnificent Kirstenbosch Gardens. Situated on the Eastern slopes of Table Mountain, it includes a cultivated garden and nature reserve.             

The garden displays a collection of Southern African plants, including many which are rare or endangered.  The Kirstenbosch Estate was owned by many private owners, the last of which was Cecil John Rhodes. When he died in 1902, the gardens were left to the nation, and in 1913, became a botanical garden dedicated to the cultivation and study of the indigenous plants of South Africa.

Whatever the day or the weather, Kirstenbosch seems a haven of peace. Its wide, sweeping lawns, hosting family picnics under the many huge trees. In the background, the green sides of Table Mountain, and the impressive castle rock sandwiched between Nursery and Skeleton Gorges.

  Not only a walkers paradise, Kirstenbosch also hosts several outdoor concerts during the summer months. What a day, walk in the indigenous forests, and on the mountain slopes, meet friends for a picnic, then relax on lawns, as the evening draws in, enjoying a concert in the open air.