The Bloody Lake On Top of Table Mountain
Howzit! I have been very busy for the past 3-4 days doing... well, that's the topic of another post.
Throughout these mostly cloudy and stormy days of winter in Cape Town, I missed hiking the most. I realized that I haven't been hiking for more than a month now! This has to end! But anyway, this post can be dedicated to one of the most iconic hikes I have ever done in Cape Town, Skeleton Gorge.
It was thanks to one of my flatmates, Marta from Italy, who introduced me to her group of friends. When they decided to hike and have a picnic on top of Table Mountain, they also invited me.
Table Mountain has numerous hiking trails that range in difficulty. Skeleton Gorge was one of the more adventurous routes. The main reason for that was the stream water running down and the resultant slippery rocks along the way. Needless to say that good hiking shoes are a must!
The hike started from Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden (we paid 60 R per person for entry). The first half of the hike was mostly in the jungle with a few small waterfalls along the way.
The second halfwas more in an open area with spectacular views of the city.
The trail actually didn't lead us to the top of Table Mountain, but we rather arrived in a flat area with a reasonably big lake. Thanks to one of our local guides in the group, we acknowledged that it wasn't a lake but rather a reservoir- Hely-Hutchinson Reservoir. This was the second of the five dams built on top of Table Mountain. So what is the use of these dams?
Well, the water was being supplied from only one stream on Table Mountain before these reservoirs. When the city was struck with a drastic draught, the city planners started to build these reservoirs to capture more water coming from the streams and provide controlled delivery of the water. Hely-Hutchinson was the second one built, in 1904. Actually, these reservoirs still contribute to around 5% of the water supply of the city today. It didn't make much sense since the water was literally red. When I first saw it, I brainstormed possible ideas as to why the water would run red. Was it a chemical, an animal sacrifice, or bacteria, or me being color blind? None of the above, but it was in fact due to the fynbos (indigenous South African plants) growing underwater. Source
Regardless of this weird occurence and the cold wind, there were some crazy people swimming in the dam as we were relaxing by the beach. I guess you never know what South African people are up to.
We took a slighly easier path down that was called Nursery Ravine, followed by a relaxed afternoon at the tea court of Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden. On a side note, they have incredible thick Belgian-style hot chocolate with marshmallow and it is the ultimate best reward for any kind of physical activity on Table Mountain.
What do you guys think about Skeleton Gorge? Drop me a comment below.
Cheers!
Haritakurdu.
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Never hiked up the mountain, used the old and new cable car to the top, then enjoyed all the scenery on offer. Lovely small shop used to be up top to enjoy the view as well.
Interesting information, they often mention the old reservoir, interesting to see how you found it by hiking up @haritakurdu looks like good fun.
Hello @joanstewart, to be honest I had no idea that we were going to end up at the reservoir, so that was a very pleasant surprise :) I am planning a hike this weekend as well.
Enjoy!
I love your post. You are right, you never know what us South-Africans will do next!! The photos are great!!
Hahaha South Africans are very unpredictable, especially when it comes to romantic relationships lol
Wow... So beautiful the pictures are... The colors.. Is that really orange reddish...? Looks like you had an amazing time hiking up there.
Love. Swati
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It's more like brown-reddish, and actually a lot of rivers and lakes have the same color around here. I will feel weird when I see a normal fully transparent-blueish lake
I dont think I would ever get tired of all the hikes one can do on Table Mountain. I did one once long ago but never saw the reservoirs. I found that info quite interesting....thank you.
Thanks for your comment :) I also missed hiking there and I actually might have plans for this weekend ;)
Looks like you all had a fantastic hike up. Beautiful scenery. I've lived in the Cape all my life and I've never hiked up there yet. So you've shown me something that I had no idea existed.
I am really glad that you found it helpful :) I think you should go hiking to make the most of the scenery ;)
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Wow! Seems to bee an amazing hike! Unfortunately I was in Cape Town with a group of persons, who wanna take the cable car. I prefer always the hike to see so great thinks and enjoying the nature!
Ugh, I know right! And the queue for the cable car can be enormous! I may not be 100% fit but that will never stop me from hiking :)
Having never been to South Africa before, this looks like a place I need to visit for Table Mountain alone! Amazing hikes, scenery and I liked the information you gave in your blog! Thanks for sharing :)
Thanks for your comment :) You should definitely visit South Africa when you have the chance, it has much more to offer than people think.
I know, I have a friend who lives there and another friend who lived there for a couple of years and said it was a wonderful place. Hopefully, if all goes well, I can get myself down there in the not too distant future :)