Boxing Day Walk

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Boxing day was a good day; it was the day of climbing up Table Mountain. We got told by some people we met in a backpackers to take a specific route, ‘it’s a little longer but so much more scenic’. We took it and quickly realised that it wasn’t a stroll in the park but actually a climb up a mountain (who would’ve guessed). We left at 11:30am ready for a 3 hour climb, over the hottest part of the day. I had taken my t shirt off, sweat pouring off my head as I reach for my bottle of water to rehydrate… That was just getting out of the car before climbing. We got overtaken by a couple of young folk wearing sports gear closely followed by some old folk, not breaking a sweat but looking like they are going for a little afternoon walk.

The first part of the walk was cool although we walked half way up the mountain, just to take a scenic walk round the mountain, descending slightly, before joining on the path that every normal person takes to climb the mountain.

We were ready for this climb; we had our ‘full coverage’ sun hats and our walking boots (which we keep trying to find excuses to wear them, after spending lots of money on them and having to lug them around with us just for the few times we need them). We had our water, plenty of food and we were set. Some people were so unprepared; we saw a woman trying to climb up in bare feet, as her shoes were rubbing, insisting her partner that ‘she was going to make it’… (this was the same women that we saw 30 mins from the top, not made it, as we were coming down 3 hours later). There were families trying to walk up and we passed plenty of families whose children were complaining that they need water (and what did the dad forget to pack?).

Anyway, we eventually got to the top and we had some amazing views of the Ocean and Robin Island, the city of Cape Town and some lovely beaches. Table Mountain is called Table Mountain as it looks like a table… so once you had completed the treacherous walk, you had a huge area on top of the Mountain for you to explore. My legs were not up for it so I found the food and starting eating. There was a cable cart that whizzed you to the top of the mountain in 12 minutes, it was so demoralising seeing fresh people, some wearing high heels, prancing around searching the mountain, when I was left sat, not wishing to move just in case I cramped up again.

We walked down in just over an hour, went home and had a well-deserved rest.

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