Conversations with Myself

I have a beautiful view of Table Mountain every day when I drive to work. As you can imagine, I drive to work in the mornings when it is raining, cloudy and when the skies are clear blue. My favourite mornings are when when The Majestic Table Mountain get to be covered with a blanket of cloud. It is a view to be hold.

I always feel like Table Mountain is calling me because of the daily view. The other day I decided to answer to the call. It was the second day of spring and I welcomed spring with a hike up Table Mountain. It did not feel like Spring day, it was chilly but hey this is Cape Town. After I completed the hike, I wanted to do it over and over again. Hello endorphins!!

There are many hiking trails up Table Mountain and around cape town but I like The Platteklip trail. It is the easier route up the mountain yet challenging. The trail is a stone staircase that winds up a steep slope, 1800 steps to be exact. It is only 3km hike trail. Table Mountain is standing at 1060m, the start point of a trail start at a head of 360. That means the route covers a head of 700m at a distance of only 3km. That is a serious steep my friend.

I have hiked Table mountain many times but there are some things that stays the same. Every time I hike Table Mountain it feels so rejuvenating like it’s my first hike yet there are some things that stays the same. Like:

• The first time hiker
  

  Amongst the so called regular hikers (The once that do fast hiking sometimes running all the way to the summit), there is always first timers. The once that think they made a huge mistake by hiking. Some say it loud ‘why am I torturing myself’, ‘why did I agree to this’. I don’t blame them, hiking Plateklip can be tough as hell. The strange thing is at the summit you will never distinguish between the regular hikers and first timers. Its all smiles up there.
  

• The breath-taking beauty

• Rain, shine or cloudy, Platteklip Gorge provides breathtaking scenery throughout to the summit. There is a stream that flows down which is highly scenic. The stream is not perennial, it can only be seen during rainy season. When I get tired I always look down from where I am coming from to experience Cape Town like no others possible could. The view is amazing in the crack of dawn. The geology is also impressive.
  
• The motivating hiker
  

  The one who always says keep going you are almost there. It can be irritating at times when you know you are not even half way there. I am sure the motivations helps to the first time hikers.

• The silence moment
  

  
  

  No matter who I hike with, even when we are chatting a storm there is always a moment of silence. There seems to be a time when all words disappear and conquering the next step is the only thing that matters. To me this is the most important moment because I get to notice things I have not noticed before, I get to be mindful of my strengths and be tune with my inner self so I can draw motivation. After experiencing this silence I come home feeling mentally refreshed, sharper and happier. I often see some guys playing music loud and I always slow down or go faster so I can have a good radius where I can have absolute peace.

• The accomplishment at the end
  The feeling at the end of it all is addictive.  It makes you want more and more.  That is why I easily hike almost once every week.  I get to be reminded that I am already a conqueror because I have made choice to either reach.
• The best view comes after the hardest climb!
  

Take care,
Nez

Cape Town Hiking Table Mountain travel