Hiking Table Mountain

Today, I hiked Table Mountain! I had already been to the top of Table Mountain via the cable car when my parents visited, but this was truly something else. It was challenging and tiring but soooooo worth it. We took the Smuts Track

from Skeleton Gorge to Maclear’s Beacon, following in the footsteps of one of the most famous Prime Minsters in South Africa, who supposedly did the hike well into his 70’s (I have NO idea how.) We started our hike from the beautiful Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens.

We first hiked Skeleton Gorge, which was extremely steep and relentless. It seemed as if it would never end, and there were even times when it felt more like rock climbing than hiking.

The top of the gorge seemed impossibly far, but when we got there it was great. The view overlooked the entire Southern Suburbs, something I had not seen from the cable car.

Just past the top of Skeleton Gorge, we stopped for lunch at this awesome reservoir. It was so strange and cool to see a reservoir in the middle of a mountain, especially this one with red tannin-tinted water.

We then continued on Smuts Track, walking for another hour steadily uphill to Maclear’s Beacon, the highest point on Table Mountain. Reaching the highest point was so satisfying and it felt great to push myself on the hike, not to mention that the rest of it would be across the flat tabletop of the mountain.

On our hike we saw incredible flora. The Western Cape is home to its own Floral Kingdom, the smallest in the world, and home to so many interesting species, all of which were on display at Table Mountain. We even saw a mountain goat!

We spent about an hour walking around the tabletop, taking in the views of the city, and then took the Cable Car down (our legs needed a rest!) Somehow, the views of Cape Town were even more beautiful than the first time, probably because of the sense of accomplishment gained from completing the hike.

It was truly a perfect day. We couldn’t have asked for better weather, it was not too hot but nice and warm without too much wind at the top. I am still in awe that we hiked the massive monument that has been staring at me for the past three months.