Table Mountain...the hike down

Okay, so here's the story. Table Mountain is one of the best known landmarks around Cape Town. So, of course we had to make it a destination on our trip. Contrary to what some might think, I did do my research prior to reaching Table Mountain...

The day we were able to visit Table Mountain, it was enshrouded in cloud cover. We couldn't see the top of the mountain and we knew we wouldn't be able to see down from it....but it didn't matter. We wanted to go and the weather showed no sign of allowing the sun free domain. After a very brief debate, we determined that we would ride the cable car to the top, then hike down. Our thought process being that we would be less tired hiking down as opposed to up. I knew there were trails leading from top to bottom of the mountain...and the information I read online led me to believe these were "easy" trails.

It was an unsettling feeling as the cable car made it's way up into the cloudy white mist of sky. Before we entered the cloud, we did see a few people on the trail up the mountain, which looked simple enough. Then the car stopped. In the midst of the cloud. The Guide set it was a "photo opp." HA! I actually thought it was broken at first and we were all going to die...fortunately, I was wrong and we completed the journey to the top.

My oh my, was it cold! And we could hardly see 10 feet in front of us due to the thickness of the cloud! We wandered around the pathways on top of the mountain for awhile...searching for the trail down. There were a few times that we would end up on a very questionable ledge that led straight down into fog... but we finally found it- praise the Lord! We were standing at an intersection wondering which way to go when we stumbled across another hiker (on his way up). He just appeared out of the fog and pointed us in the right direction. And down we went.



The beginning of the trail was very steep as we scooted our way down mounds of rocks and boulders. The cloud continued to hinder our sight and there was also a slight mist, creating a slippery dew on some of the rocks. But there was no turning back. I for one didn't even know if we would be able to find our way back if we tried! Plus...once I start something, I won't quit until I reach the end. (Not to mention the fact I was kinda pretending I was a female Bear Grills!) So we forged on ahead, with careful steps and senses on high alert.

It was so eery...hiking through a cloud on the edge of a mountain...unsure as to how high up we actually were....what lay beneath us.... We heard birds chirp and hoot every now and then through the fog. I could hardly contain myself...it was simply amazing. And a little dangerous, which made it super exciting. (In my opinion, at least.)

As we continued on our way down, we began to wonder when we would reach that "easy" path we saw on our way up. That's about the moment a few other hikers emerged from the mist. He said we had at least an hour and 45 minutes to go. Ben and I just looked at each other and laughed.

Thankfully, we thought to pack a jug of water and Snickers. Being in the Bear mindset, we waited to eat our Snickers. But we did not resort to eating plants and bugs.

Every once in awhile, a cloud would pass and we would catch a glimpse of what lay below. It was breathtaking. And you can imagine what that caused me to do... whip out the camera! Poor Ben. He was not happy with my need to stop every 5-10 minutes to take pictures. He explained later that it would be better to only stop every 30 minutes instead. We'll see how I do next time.

Before we knew it, the cloud was above us. It was around that time that we noticed the strain the hike down was placing upon our legs. Ehh, no big deal (we thought!). We continued to pass hikers on their way up, and to Ben's dismay, some even passed us on the way down (due to my picture taking). I even had one of the passer-by's stop to take our picture. Ben loved that.



So we ate our Snickers.

(Fortunately I had the energy to hold this rock up so Ben could pass underneath!)

And continued on our way. As the air became warmer, the bugs became more present. You know how I feel about that....but it would not have been smart of me to run and scream on top of a mountain, so I contained myself. Go me! I think part of that was due to the fact that my legs were tired...

Finally. We could see the end of the trail. The "easy" trail we saw on our way up was within our view. Straight down a slope of rock stairs.

It was not easy.

Our legs were like jelly by this point and though we could see the end, we just couldn't seem to reach it fast enough.

But we did. All that was left for us to do was hike down to our car. HA! That was a feet all it's own....for we had to park quite a ways down the mountain. I was a little worried as we continued to walk...and walk...and walk. I began to think or car had been stolen. But lo and behold it was there. We discovered from the lot attendant that we had just hiked down a mountain path of about 8KM.

A seat never felt so good.

It wasn't until later we realized our mistake. We didn't drink enough water...and we didn't stretch. As a result, our legs made us suffer for the next 3.5 days.