Table Mountain Trails
Hike up the Table
Because the satisfaction of walking up to the top of Table Mountain is so much more than taking the cable car, you have to walk up at least once. One of the favourite routes is up Skeleton Gorge. It's steep, a little difficult in places and there are a few ladders to scramble up, but the beautiful beginning in Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden and the view from the top are so worth the climb.
A hike up Table Mountain, Cape Town.
Maclear's Beacon
Instead of the stock-standard Table Mountain tourist route of Cableway to restaurant and back down again, go a little further and do something different. Pack a picnic and take an easy 5,5-kilometre walk from the cable car to Maclear's Beacon, the highest point of the mountain; it should take you about an hour to get there and you'll be far from the crowds. Just remember not to walk up when the mountains shrouded in cloud — it'll be cold, windy and miserable up there.
Tranquillity Cracks
Searching for a secret place on Table Mountain? Then do some homework and find your way to Tranquility Cracks. It's a tough scramble, but once you're there you'll find yourself wandering among deep, cool cracks and under the branches of yellowwoods that are stretching out towards the sunlight.
Hoerikwaggo Trail
It's quite a journey, hiking across the length of the Cape Peninsula. The six-day Hoerikwaggo Trail runs from Table Mountain to Cape Point. The Trails name comes from the Khoi name for the mountain and means sea mountain.
By David Bristow
