Climbing Table Mountain via Platteklip Gorge

I usually drive to Table Mountain and park at the cable car station. That way, my car is close by when I take the cable car down. From the cable car station, walk on along Table Mountain Road for about +/- a kilometer. On your right, you will see a sign for Platteklip Gorge.

Follow the natural stone steps up and that is the start of your hike. A little further up you will see a sign showing that you need to turn left for Platteklip.

And later again one to turn right.

And then you just keep going up and up. There is no height exposure and it is relatively easy, if you are fit. It takes anything from 1 hour (extremely fit) to 2,5 hours to climb the mountain. When you get to a very large flat rock, that is half way.

At the top (+/- a 600 meter elevation from the tar road), you can turn left to visit Maclear’s Beacon, the highest point on Table Mountain.

To go for a well-deserved refreshment or to catch the cable car down, turn right. Follow the chains up to the right and at the top, follow the signs to the cable car station and coffee shop.

You will often see dassies also called Cape hyrax, rock hyrax, rock rabbit or coney basking in the sun on the rocks.

The wifi lounge, above the cable car station, usually opens earlier than the coffee shop – in case you are very early. The first car up/down is at 08:00 but they bring staff and supplies up earlier, so there is usually an earlier car down. If you are planning to hike up regularly, you can get an annual cable car membership for R800.

If you are not a regular hiker, I highly recommend taking the cable car down. The cable car does not run when it is windy but no problem when there is mist or rain.

The last cable car up is at 19:00 and the last cable car down is at 20:00. Sundowner do not get much better than from the top of the mountain. The coffee shop offers champagne, beers, wine, meals etc.

When climbing the mountain always pack water and something warm. It might look sunny but it can get very cold on the mountain.  Please see that your mobile phone is fully charged, not only would you have great photo opportunities but you also want to have it for safety reasons. The Table Mountain Rescue telephone number is 021 937 0300.

There is a free bus that runs from the corner of Kloofnek Road, to the cable car station every 15 minutes. You can take an Uber or a MyCity bus to Kloofnek Road from Camps Bay or the city.

Buon camino!