“Because it is there,” Edmond Hilary said when asked why he wanted to climb Everest. And Table Mountain is always “there”, making its presence felt as it embraces the city. While the flat-top mountain looks quite benign, hiking Table Mountain takes a bit of strenuous hiking to get to the top.

We offer two routes for hiking Table Mountain:

Platteklip Hike

This is the first recorded route to be hiked by early explorers back to the earl 1500s. You will be picked up in the morning at 07h30 by one of our guides and taken to the contour road that hugs the front of Table Mountain and overlooks the city centre. From there you will make your way up the winding path, affording spectacular views of the city and the sea, and bringing you up close and personal with the beautiful vegetation. Once at the top, you can amble around to take in the scenery and enjoy the stillness of the air before we make our way down the easy way – via the cable car. The hike takes about 2 hours and because we’re on the sunny side of the mountain, we prefer to start earlier, before it gets too hot. This is quite a strenuous hike, especially as it gets closer to the top.

Skeleton Gorge Hike

This hike is on the eastern side of the mountain to the front face, with amazing views of Table Bay and the Peninsula. One of our guides will pick you up at 07h30 in the morning and take you to the beautiful Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, where you can have a first-hand experience of the Cape’s most spectacular flora. From there we tackle the densely forested Skeleton Gorge with its views of the Peninsula and leafy southern suburbs.

This is a strenuous hike that includes climbing over rocks and up ladders. At the top we will walk to McLear’s Beacon, the highest point on Table Mountain before we make our way to the cable car to catch a lift down. The hike will take about 7 hours.

What do you need to bring:

• Sun block
• Hat
• Comfortable walking shoes
• Warm top
• Extra water

You are responsible for:

• Cable car ticket
• We are responsible for:
• All transport
• Qualified guide to ensure safe hiking
• Light meal

We are responsible for:

• All transport
• Qualified guide to ensure safe hiking
• Light meal