I Didn't Come to Africa to See Snow

After two days of 'heavy weather warnings' Mother Nature cooperated and provided a bit of relief. The winds continued to gust today, however, no rains and for a while a bit of sun. The good fortune translated into a hike up Table Mountain to see the amazing skyline view of the city. A group of four of us departed from the hostel on the "2 hour" hike up the mountain. We foolish believed the local hiker coming day the trail that it would only take us non-locals two hours.

The first hour of climbing was easy but boring. There was no view other than into the living rooms and bedrooms of people living along the edge of the mountain. Since this was the first nice day of weather in a while every one was outside so there was nothing to see even in the apartments. The second hour the hike was still easy and the view was amazing. You could see the entire bowl of the city, the mountains on the other side, and the ocean. This section of the hike provided momentum for finishing the hike. At this stage we now realized 2 hours had passed and we could barely make out the top of table mountain - so much for the 2 hour prediction from the local hiker! The final hour to the top of Table Mountain almost killed us. The hike pretty much went straight up hill. I am sure the view was amazing but if you didn't concentrate on the 'trail' (small clearing among the lose rocks) you were a goner! Head down, hands out, and try not falling to the bottom of the mountain was the motto.

After 3 hours of hiking we conquered Table Mountain! The temperature along the hike had been quite warm and as a result I had peeled off most of the layers of clothing I was wearing. After the excitement of reaching the top of the mountain subsided I quickly had to put every layer of clothing I had back on. The temperature at the top of the mountain was only 1 C. Within an hour the temperature had dropped to -1C and snow flakes began to fall. Two of my fellow hikers from Mozambique were thrilled to see snow flakes for the first time in the lives. I on the other hand was not impressed. I did not come half around the world to see snow flakes! I can see those five months of the year.

The original plan was to hike up and down the mountain to save the ridiculous fee for riding the gondola. This plan was discarded around the beginning of the third hour of hiking when consensus was quickly reached that VISA would facilitate the ride down the mountain. This new plan was confirmed when reading the trail signs to go down the mountain!