Distance:

About 3km (but distance here is irrelevant)

Time:

Between one hour for the super-fit to three hours for the slow

Rating:

Moderate to tough, depending on fitness and weather

Children:

Older children yes, but it is demanding

Water:

Always take plenty of your own water, especially in summer

About the path

This path is well constructed with stone steps and anti-erosion gabions (wire baskets filled with rocks), and is not difficult to negotiate at any point. But it is steep and the best way to tackle Platteklip is slowly - don't try to rush it and frequent stops will also give you the chance to look back at the great view of Cape Town and Table Bay below.

To get to the start, leave your car at the parking area 1.5km past the Lower Cableway Station, opposite a huge retaining wall of gabions. The path starts on a modest incline with a series of big stone steps through a shaded area of Rooiels and other indigenous trees, alongside the stream that becomes a torrent after heavy rain. After 10 to 20 minutes, you will reach Breakfast Rock at the junction with the Contour Path, marked by a signpost - in summer this is your last chance for any decent shade until you get close to the top,so make the most of this opportunity.

Turn left here, follow the Contour Path for about 100 metres along a very stony section, and then turn right at the next intersection also clearly marked. From here on it's a steady climb. The path is built in a series of zig-zags to make the climb easier, although there are a few steeper sections. Please don't take any of the short-cuts, however tempting they may look - they cause serious erosion.

Eventually the gorge starts narrowing and you get the first welcome confirmation that the end is in sight. Finally, you reach the massive boulders that mark the top, with only a short set of stone steps left to negotiate. This last section of the gorge is dramatic, confirming Peter Mundy's 1634 description: "...wonderous steep, the rocks on each side like monstrous walls."

At the top of the gorge, turn right for the Upper Cableway Station: the path here is unmistakable, with a series of poles and chains to help the easy ascent up the small rock face at the edge of the Western Table. The path leads directly towards the Cableway station. This part of the walk will take about 15 minutes, although its worth spending longer exploring the 21 excellent interpretive plaques on the network of paths around the cableway station.

Getting Down

Unless you are planning to walk down again - which is tough on the knees! - remember to take money for the cableway. But before setting out on your hike, check that it is in fact operatin

Reproduced courtesy of Mountains in the Sea - Table Mountain to Cape Point: An interpretive guide to the Table Mountain National Park. Produced for SA National Parks by John Yeld and Martine Barker.
The book is available from the Cableway, at selected book stores and from the Table Mountain National Parks headquarters in Westlake, Cape Town.