Table Mountain National Park

A great view at every turn. The easy spiral walk starts on Signal Hill Drive, below Lion’s Head. The view from its 669m summit offers a breathtaking 360-degree sweep taking in the city bowl; Devil’s Peak and the famous front face of Table Mountain; the majestic Twelve Apostles; the stunning scenery of the Atlantic seaboard from Oudekraal through Bakoven, Camps Bay and Clifton to Sea Point and Green Point; Table Bay, and of course, Robben Island.

The short and relatively easy walk to the top of Lion’s Head is necessary for those wanting to enjoy the very best that the Park has to offer.

• Distance: about 2km one-way
• Time: 1 – 1.5 hours up
• Rating: easy with some minor rock scrambling
• Children: yes but may require help at the chains
• Dogs: Are not recommended
• Water: none available along this route

This walk starts at the junction of Tafelberg Road and Kloof Nek. The Pipe Track is precisely what it says: a path constructed to service a pipeline running below the series of peaks known as the Twelve Apostles. This pipeline was built to carry water from Disa Gorge in Table Mountain’s Back Table, via the Woodhead Tunnel through the mountain in Slangolie Ravine, to the Molteno Reservoir in Oranjezicht to help slake the thirst of the booming, late 19th century Cape Town.

In several places, the path is very stony, but it is an easily accessible and popular walk, with many locals making regular use of certain sections; it is part of the Atlantic seaboard way of life.

• Distance: about 6km one-way to Corridor Ravine
• Time: 4 – 4.5 hours return
• Rating: easy to Slangolie, moderate to Corridor
• Children: yes, but the full route is tough
• Dogs: yes
• Water: tap at the start; take lots in summer

Up – relentlessly up! That’s the only way to describe the path in Platteklip Gorge. It’s the most direct route to the top of the mountain and the most popular. However, it is not a route to be trifled with; the going can be tough. The “highway” to the top.

The walk starts on Tafelberg Road and ascends the main gorge that divides the front face (Africa face) of Table Mountain. The path is well constructed with stone steps and anti-erosion gabions and is not difficult to negotiate at any point. However, it is steep, and the best way to tackle Platteklip is slowly – don’t try to rush it, frequent stops will give you a chance to look back at the great view of Cape Town and Table Bay below.

Allow sufficient time for walking down, even if your plan is to come down with the cableway. Rapid changes in weather conditions often cause the cableway to shut down unexpectedly, leaving hikers stranded in darkness at the upper cable station.

• Distance: about 3km up!
• Time: 1 hour for the super fit to 3 hours for the less-than-fit
• Rating: moderate to tough, depending on fitness and weather
• Children: older children yes, but it is demanding
• Dogs: not recommended, and not on the cableway
• Water: always take plenty of your own, especially in summer

This walk is a must if you want to be able to say you’ve stood at the highest point on Table Mountain, even if at 1 088m it is only 21m above the Upper Cableway Station. To the very top!

From the Upper Cableway Station, choose the main path leading to the diagonally opposite corner of what is known as the Western Table – look for plaques as guide marks to make sure you’re on the right track. It will take you 10 to 15 minutes to walk across to the point where chains and poles have been provided to assist the short climb down the rocky steps at the edge: it is not difficult. Do not attempt to climb down at any other point! The path to Maclear’s Beacon is marked by painted yellow footprints.

• Distance: 5.5km overall
• Time: 45 minutes to an hour one-way to Maclear’s Beacon
• Rating: easy
• Children: yes
• Dogs: not recommended
• Water: none available along this route

The Smuts Track is one of the most popular walks on Table Mountain, and especially in summer when the Afromontane forest offers shade almost all the way up Skeleton Gorge, the toughest section. The climb is steep and unrelenting, although not difficult or requiring more than the ability to climb a wooden ladder and negotiate a few rocky steps. However, many people underestimate the effort required, particularly when they go all the way to Maclear’s Beacon. Be prepared; don’t make the same mistake. The walk starts in the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, but the heart of this route begins at the intersection of Skeleton Gorge and the Contour Path. The first 40 to 75 minutes are spent in the forest climbing log and stone steps. About two-thirds of the way up a series of wooden ladders eases the way over steep rocks, which can be slippery when wet.

• Distance: about 4km
• Time: from 2 hours for the super fit to 4 hours for the less-than-fit (one-way)
• Rating: moderate, no shade in the second half
• Children: yes
• Dogs: not recommended
• Water: mountain streams usually flow, but it’s best to take your own