Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa boasting an elevation of 3,566 feet above sea level. It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the cableway or hiking to the top. The mountain forms part of the Table Mountain National Park.
The main feature of Table Mountain is the level plateau approximately 2 miles in length from side to side, edged by impressive cliffs. The plateau, flanked by Devil's Peak to the east and by Lion's Head to the west, forms a dramatic backdrop to Cape Town. This broad sweep of mountainous heights, together with Signal Hill, forms the natural amphitheater of the City Bowl and Table Bay Harbour. You can either hike the mountain or take the cable cars up/down.
I hiked Table Mountain using the longest route. I went with Elisabeth, Sarah and Tom all of whom I met during my short stay at Kwantu. We got sort of what I consider a late start, 10am. I am used to hiking very early in Colorado to get up and down the mountain before the storms roll in. Here you need to be careful of the heat as there is very minimal shade along the route. It was pretty hot the day we went. The hike had a lot of steep sections and I definitely underestimated how hard it was going to be! We made it up in the average time of 2.5 hours although we did stop quite a bit for breaks. Once at the top we took in the amazing views. There is a gift shop and a restaurant up there as well as the cable car station. In that way it reminds me of Pikes Peak in Colorado. We met Ally and Emily (also from Kwantu and my Garden Route travels) at the top. They took the cable car up. We all had lunch and then took the cable car back down. Its crazy that it can take you 2.5 hours to hike up and the cable car takes you down in like 3 minutes! lol
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| Hiking up a not so steep section |
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| See those switchbacks?? Yeah, we went up that! |
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| View from the top |
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| View from the top |
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| View from the top |
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| Tom, Sarah, Elisabeth and me |
Hiking Devil's Peak
Devil's Peak stands 1,000 metres (3,281 ft) high. Slightly lower than Table Mountain. The name Devil's Peak comes from a folk-tale about a Dutch man called Jan van Hunks, a prodigious pipe smoker who lived at the foot of the mountain circa 1700. He was forced by his wife to leave the house whenever he smoked his pipe. One day, while smoking on the slopes of the peak, he met a mysterious stranger who also smoked. They each bragged of how much they smoked and so they fell into a pipe-smoking contest. The stranger turned out to be the Devil. Van Hunks eventually won the contest, but not before the smoke that they had made had covered the mountain, forming the “tablecloth” cloud that can sometimes be seen over the peak.
I hiked this peak alone. There weren't many people hiking that day. Again, I got a late start. I needed to take a cab to the trailhead and since there are so many conventions in town this week I had a hard time getting a cab. I had the cab let me off at the base of the road going up to Table Mountain so I hiked a good 4 miles before I even got to the trailhead.
Once at the trailhead I powered my way up. It took about an hour which I have heard is about an average time. It was really steep near the top and the wind started to pick up. I got some amazing photos of Table Mountain, Lion's Head and Signal Hill along the way. I was sitting at the top taking in the sights and when the clouds rolled in blocking my view. I was enjoying a peach when a lone hiker came upon me. We started chatting and I found out his name was Lee and he's in his late 50s. He is a contractor in England about 30 minutes outside of London. The winter is his off season so he takes that time to travel. He comes to Cape Town about twice a year and stays with friends. He knows the trails pretty well as he hikes a lot. We decided to descend together and he took me a different way back. We ended up down lower on the mountain in a suburb and walked down the street to a little cafe and had some coffee. I caught a cab from there back to my hotel. We made plans to meet for dinner a few nights later. It's nice to meet some new people.
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| Cool flowers that look like Easter eggs! |
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| View from the top just as the clouds rolling in |
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| Look how the petals look like feathers |
Hiking Lion's Head
Lion's Head is a mountain in Cape Town, South Africa, situated between Table Mountain and Signal Hill. Lion's Head peaks at 669 metres (2,195 ft) above sea level. The peak forms part of a dramatic backdrop to the city of Cape Town and is part of the Table Mountain National Park. In the 17th century the peak was known as Leeuwen Kop (Lion's Head) by the Dutch, and Signal Hill was known as Leeuwen Staart (Lion's Tail), as the shape resembles a crouching lion or a sphinx. Lion's Head is known for spectacular views over both the city and the Atlantic Seaboard, and the hour-long walk to the top is particularly popular during a full moon and to watch the sunset.
Elisabeth, Sarah and I did this hike together. We met one day at 5:30pm so we could hike up to watch the sunset. It was AMAZING! The hike was fairly easy until you got closer to the top. There you had to do quite a bit of low-level bouldering (basically scrambling/climbing over the rocks) which was kind of fun! This was the busiest peak we climbed. I found out later that Lion's Head is the most climbed peak in the world. Not sure if it's true or not......
The hike took about 1.5 hours. Once at the top we took photos and then watched the sunset. It was incredible! I have never seen more incredible sunsets than the ones I have seen in Africa. Just after the sun went down we started our decent, in the dark. We brought head lamps so that helped but we still needed to be very careful. Especially the bouldering portions. On the way down we were treated to some views of the full moon. By the time we got down and got our cab it was about 9:30pm. I was exhausted when I got back to my hotel and I crashed hard! What a great time!
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| Lion's Head to the left and Signal Hill (the tail) on the right |
Two Oceans Aquarium
The Two Oceans Aquarium is an aquarium located at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. The aquarium was opened on November 13, 1995 and comprises seven exhibition galleries with large viewing windows. The enchantment of this particular aquarium is its location, where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. My hotel gave me a free ticket to attend and so I went because free is good :) I thought it was a rather nice aquarium. Here are some photos:
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| Twobar Clownfish |
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| Clown Triggerfish |
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| A column of clownfish! |
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| Sea urchin |
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| Honeycomb Moray Eel |
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| Geometric Moray Eel |
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| Starfish |
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| Knysna Seahorse |
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| Perlemoen (a type of abalone) |
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| Giant Spider Crab |
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| African Penguins |
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| Rockhopper Penguin |
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| Mole Snake |
Wine Tasting
South African wines are grown in one of the world's most special places – with ancient soils, two oceans, soaring mountains and unparalleled natural beauty. The South African winelands are renowned for their breathtaking scenery and the wines are as full of variety as the myriad of cultures that form this Rainbow Nation.
First stop, Anura Vineyards.
http://www.anura.co.za/
The Anura wine farm is located at the base of the Simonsberg mountain range. The estate is more than just a vineyard, with a complete animal farm, restaurant and function rooms. The wine estate had previously been a very small estate, with only a couple of small vineyards lying side by side. The current owners have worked hard to ensure that the wine farm has flourished, and there are now 150 hectares of vineyard, producing around 700 tons of wine annually.
The majority of the vines planted in Anura are of red grapes, including Petit Verdot, Grenache, Malbec, Petit Noir, Mouvédre, and Sangiovese. Some of these grape plants are rather rare in South Africa.
The many grapes which are grown on the estate are harvested by hand, and selected carefully for their ripeness. The nature of the grapes are also taken into consideration, since the estate believes in producing top-quality wines, and the grapes need to be treated in certain ways in order to enhance the flavor. Once the fruits have been hand-picked, they are then placed on a machine which removes the leaves, rotten berries, and any stalk matter. They are then turned to hand sorting in order to maintain the standard of the grapes. Once the best fruits have been selected, the grapes are then crushed.
At this winery we had a wine and cheese pairing. It was incredible! My favorite wine here was the Anura Malbec 2013 Limited Reserve. So good! They also make their own cheese and deli type items (ie: chutney, balsamic reductions, salad dressings, relishes, etc). I loved, and subsequently purchased, the Froggit Habanero Jelly. I sure hope I can get this back home!
http://froggit.co.za/index.php
FairView Wine & Cheese
http://www.fairview.co.za/wine/
Fairview’s wine and cheese tasting room has become one of the most popular Cape winelands destinations, building on a reputation that stretches back to the 1970′s. The tasting room comprises a number of tasting pods. This unique pod concept was implemented in 2009 and is aimed at creating a more welcoming and less rigid environment. The pods offer a tasting selection of 6 different wines with dedicated hosts to guide and assist guests. There is a wide range of wines available to choose from, including a selection from the single vineyard range. Your tasting also includes a selection of 6 to 8 of Fairview’s Jersey milk and goat’s milk cheeses. These are tasted at our deli, allowing guests to enjoy their wine and then move across to the cheese section as they seek out interesting pairings and their particular favourites.
Once again, this place was amazing! My favorite wines: Fairview Viognier, Fairview Petite Sirah, and the La Capra Pinot Grigio. We didn't taste any of their Goats do Roam brand wines but they do sell those in the US and they are readily available.
Spier Wine Farm
http://www.spier.co.za/wine
Spier Wine Farm is situated in the Stellenbosch region approximately 50 km from Cape Town, South Africa. The farm has enjoyed a long history which dates back to 1692. As one of the oldest farms in the region, it has long been noted for its cultural and historical significance particularly of its architecture. Wine production and sales as well as leisure activities are the core business activities on the farm today and the farm has become well known for its sustainability initiatives.
We had a wine and chocolate tasting here. It was outstanding! Just incredible! My favorite wines: Spier Signature Pinotage and the Spier Creative Block 2.
There were MANY more wineries to visit but of course, we didn't have time to do them all. What I learned is that South African wines are amazing. If you haven't tired South African wine you need to!
"Wine is bottled poetry." ~ Robert Louis Stevenson
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