Conquering Table Mountain: 5 Scenic Hiking Routes for Every Skill Level

If Table Mountain were a book, Platteklip Gorge would be its well-worn spine – the most direct and frequented path to the summit. Don't mistake popularity for simplicity, though; this route demands respect.

The trail begins innocently enough along Tafelberg Road, where morning light bathes the initial stone steps in a golden glow. Within minutes, you're enveloped in the gorge itself – a massive natural incision splitting the mountain's front face. The path transforms into a relentless zigzagging staircase of uneven stone steps that climb nearly 700 meters over just 3 kilometers.

During my ascent, I found myself pausing frequently – ostensibly to photograph the increasingly dramatic views of Cape Town unfolding below, but truthfully, to catch my breath. The gorge acts as a natural wind tunnel, offering welcome cooling breezes on warmer days but potentially challenging conditions when the infamous Cape Doctor (the local southeastern wind) decides to visit.

What makes Platteklip special isn't technical difficulty but rather its pure, unfiltered challenge – a direct conversation between your determination and the mountain's resistance. The route's final third reveals glimpses of the summit plateau, tantalizing mirages that seem to retreat with each step forward.

When I finally emerged onto the summit after about 2.5 hours of steady climbing, the transformation was immediate and profound. The confined vertical world of the gorge suddenly opens into a vast horizontal landscape – a plateau so flat and expansive it feels like stepping onto another planet altogether. Here, the hiking poles I'd brought proved invaluable for maintaining balance and reducing strain on my knees during the descent.

If Platteklip offers a direct confrontation with the mountain, the Skeleton Gorge-Nursery Ravine circuit provides a more nuanced conversation – one that begins in whispers beneath ancient trees and gradually builds to the summit's expansive crescendo.

My journey began in the lush embrace of Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, where I lingered among endemic proteas and strelitzias before entering the cool shade of indigenous afromontane forest. The contrast to Platteklip's exposed, sun-baked route couldn't be more pronounced. Here, dappled sunlight filters through a canopy of yellowwoods and ironwoods, the air rich with earthy perfume and the gentle soundtrack of the Skeleton Gorge stream.

The trail starts gently enough, but soon reveals its character through a series of wooden ladders and boulder scrambles that follow the stream's course. After heavy rain, these sections transform into small waterfalls, adding both beauty and challenge. I found myself grateful for my waterproof hiking boots as I navigated the occasionally slippery terrain.

Emerging from the forest canopy about halfway up reveals the first breathtaking views – not of Cape Town proper, but of the southern suburbs, the Constantiaberg mountains, and on clear days, the distant curve of False Bay. The vegetation transitions dramatically from forest to fynbos – the unique shrubland ecosystem found nowhere else on earth.

The summit plateau arrives almost unexpectedly, and I recommend crossing to Maclear's Beacon (the highest point at 1,086m) before looping back to descend via Nursery Ravine. This gentler, more gradual descent spares your knees while offering different perspectives of the eastern slopes. The full circuit took me about 5-6 hours, including numerous stops to sketch the changing landscapes and vegetation zones.

When locals speak of India Venster in hushed tones, they're not being dramatic – they're being respectful. This route demands the same respect from anyone attempting it.

The name derives from the India-shaped ravine visible from below and the Afrikaans word 'venster' meaning window. It begins deceptively close to the cable car station, following yellow footprints and then blue dots painted on rocks. Within minutes, you're engaged in a very different experience from the straightforward trudge of Platteklip.

India Venster is less a trail and more a three-dimensional puzzle that requires hands as much as feet. The route traverses directly beneath the cables before veering right into a series of rock scrambles and exposed sections. Several passages require pulling yourself up near-vertical rock faces using chains and staples embedded in the stone.

During my ascent, I encountered a family turning back after the first challenging section – a wise decision as this route is genuinely not suitable for children or those with vertigo. The exposure is real, with sections where a misstep would have serious consequences. My climbing gloves proved invaluable for gripping the sometimes rough sandstone without shredding my hands.

What makes India Venster exceptional is how it blends technical challenge with unparalleled views. Unlike Platteklip's inward-facing gorge, this route clings to the mountain's outer contours, offering continuous panoramas of Cape Town, Table Bay, and Robben Island. The ever-present cable car gliding overhead adds a surreal element – passengers floating effortlessly while you engage in this vertical dance of muscle and mind.

The final approach to the upper cable station delivers a profound sense of accomplishment that the Platteklip route, for all its cardiovascular challenge, simply doesn't match. I summited in about 3 hours, though times vary significantly based on experience and comfort with exposure.

For those who speak the visual language of landscapes, Kasteelspoort offers the most eloquent conversation with Table Mountain. Approaching from the Twelve Apostles side rather than the city-facing front, this route reveals the mountain's lesser-seen profile while showcasing the dramatic coastline of Camps Bay and the Atlantic Seaboard.

I began my journey at the Pipe Track, a relatively flat contour path that serves as a scenic warmup before the actual ascent begins. The morning light painted the Twelve Apostles – the series of peaks extending behind Table Mountain proper – in a soft golden glow, creating natural frames that had me stopping every few minutes to capture another composition.

When the actual climb begins, Kasteelspoort reveals itself as a well-constructed path that zigzags up a broad ravine. While steep in sections, it lacks the relentless verticality of Platteklip or the exposure of India Venster. What it offers instead is a continuous unfolding of increasingly spectacular vistas – each switchback revealing new perspectives of the coastline, the azure Atlantic, and the mountain itself.

About two-thirds of the way up, I encountered the infamous 'Diving Board' (officially called the 'Rock of Contemplation') – a natural stone outcrop that projects dramatically over the void, creating one of Cape Town's most Instagrammed photo opportunities. My trusty camera tripod allowed me to capture both landscape shots and a carefully composed self-portrait that still graces my studio wall back in Sydney.

The final approach to the summit plateau traverses the 'Valley of the Red Gods' – a surreal landscape where wind and water have sculpted the sandstone into organic forms that seem almost deliberately arranged. The summit itself offers access to the historic reservoirs and the option to continue to the upper cable station or descend the same way.

Kasteelspoort took me roughly 4 hours up and 3 down, though photographers should budget additional time – I easily spent an extra hour capturing the changing light across the Atlantic.

Some mountains reveal their true character only to those willing to step away from the well-trodden path. Corridor Buttress – the most technically demanding route I attempted – offered precisely this kind of intimate introduction to Table Mountain's wilder side.

Unlike the other routes that begin from easily accessible trailheads, reaching the start of Corridor Buttress requires a preliminary hike through the Constantia forests. This approach alone filters out casual visitors, creating an immediate sense of wilderness despite being just kilometers from a major city.

The route follows a natural weakness in the otherwise impenetrable cliffs of the Back Table, climbing through a series of vegetated ledges interspersed with scrambling sections that occasionally venture into easy rock climbing territory (Grade 10-12 for those familiar with South African climbing grades). A climbing helmet is essential here – not just for potential falls but for the loose rock that occasionally detaches from the weathered cliffs above.

What distinguishes Corridor Buttress is its profound sense of adventure and solitude. During my entire seven-hour journey, I encountered only two other hiking parties – a stark contrast to the veritable highways that Platteklip and even Skeleton Gorge can become during peak season.

The vegetation along this route reveals Table Mountain at its most primordial – ancient yellowwood trees cling improbably to near-vertical slopes, while rare orchids and endemic ferns thrive in protected microhabitats. For someone who has documented mountain ecosystems across multiple continents, the biodiversity compressed into this single route was remarkable.

The final exit onto the summit plateau emerges near Maclears Beacon, from where I traced a leisurely path across the top to the upper cable station. The descent options include returning the same way (not recommended due to downclimbing difficulties) or taking an alternative path like Skeleton Gorge down to Kirstenbosch – requiring transportation logistics that should be arranged in advance.