Table Mountain. It is an icon of South Africa and the only natural site in the world that gives its name to a southern constellation: Mensa (Latin for Mesa). This flat-topped mountain has resisted erosion for six million years and is home to the richest yet smallest floral kingdom in the world with more than 1,470 species of flowers .
Features and location
Table Mountain is at the northern end of a sandstone ridge that forms the foothills of the Cape Peninsula. To the south of the main plateau is the lower part of the mountain range called the Black Table (Back Table). On the Atlantic coast , the mountain range is known as the Twelve Apostles. The range continues south towards Cape Point.
Table Mountain also has an impressive selection of wildlife with many endangered species. This natural monument is the most recognized place in Cape Town , the gateway to South Africa , and reaches its highest point at the eastern end, with some 1,086 meters above sea level.
It is a flat-topped mountain that is a well-known prominent landmark that overlooks Cape Town in South Africa, and is depicted on the Cape Town flag and other insignia of local governments. It is a major tourist attraction, with many visitors using the cable car or hiking to reach the top. The mountain is part of the Table Mountain National Park.Table Mountain
You can access the mountain on foot or by means of a very modern cable rail. At its summit, at 1086 meters above sea level, there are eleven viewpoints from which there are impressive views of the city, the peninsula and the coast. Other ways to enjoy Table Mountain are: hiking its slopes, visiting its souvenir shops, having lunch in its restaurant with an impressive panoramic view, or having a picnic and enjoying a “field day” there.
Curious fact
Table Mountain is the only land feature that gives its name to a constellation: Mensa, which means Table. This constellation is seen in the Southern Hemisphere, below Orion, around midnight in mid- July . It was named after the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille during his stay on the Cape in the mid- 18th century .
Flora
The main vegetation of the mountain is the unique and rich Cape fynbos, which is part of the protected areas of the Cape Floristic Region. These protected areas are a World Heritage Site, and an estimated 2,200 species of plants are found only in the mountains. Among these species are many kinds of proteas. Remnant patches of indigenous forests persist in one of the few wet gullies but not on the most exposed face above the city, where conditions are very dry and unfavorable for the forests. The mountain also suffered serious invasions of strange plants for a whole century, perhaps the worst invader is the Maritime Pine. Considerable efforts have been made to eliminate these strange plants.
Fauna
There are only five other such flower kingdoms in the world. The mountain has more indigenous plant species from across the UK .
Flanking the side of the mountain are 100-year-old commercial plantations of pine and eucalyptus. Most Capetonians refer to them as their green belt forests. Generations of locals have used these areas for picnics, excursions, places to walk their dogs, and a safe park in the shade of their children.
The most common mountain animal is the rock dassie or hyrax. They are especially clustered around the upper cable station, near areas where tourists dump food. There are also porcupines, mongooses , snakes and turtles . The last lion in the area was until 1802 . The Leopards persisted on the mountain until perhaps the 1920s but are now extinct locally. Two small stealthy nocturnal carnivores, the rooikat (caracal) and the vaalboskat (also called the vaalkat or African wildcat) were once common in the mountains. The rooikat continues to be seen rarely by mountaineers but the status of the vaalboskat is uncertain.
Himalayan tahres , fugitive descendants of tahres who escaped from the Groote Schuur Zoo in 1936 , were common in the less accessible upper parts of the mountain. As an exotic species, they were nearly eradicated through a culling program initiated by South Africa’s National Parks to encourage the reintroduction of the indigenous Klipspringers. Until recently there were also small numbers of European fallow deer of European origin and sambar deer from Southeast Asia . These were primarily in the Rhodes Memorial area but during the 1960s they could be found in relatively remote locations. Animals can be eliminated or relocated.
Table Mountain is characterized by having a plateau of approximately three kilometers on each side, which is what gives it its name. It is flanked by other peaks, such as Pico del Diablo and Cabeza del León.
This trio of mountains together with Signal Hill form the City Bowl, a vast terrain that is shaped like a bowl, whimsically shaped by natural formations. In that area are located some of the most interesting and historically significant places in the city, which will be the subject of another post.
The usual is to use the cable car to reach the top of Table Mountain. But in addition, it is a place where various activities such as hiking are practiced, with paths of varying difficulty, as well as climbing. The mountain has an interesting cave system to explore, which can be done in these activities.
Cableway
The cable car takes passengers from the lower cable station on the Tafelberg road, approximately 302 m above sea level , towards the plateau at the top of the mountain. The upper cable station offers views overlooking Cape Town , Table Bay and Robben Island to the north, and the Atlantic coastline to the west and south.
Construction of the cable car was first started in 1926 , and the cable car was officially opened in 1929 . In 1997 , the cable car was extensively improved, and the new cars introduced carry 65 instead of 25 passengers. The new cars give a faster ride to the top, and rotate 360 degrees during the ascent or descent, giving a panoramic view over the city.
The cableway station at the top offers viewpoints, curio shops, a restaurant, and pedestrian paths of various lengths.