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Location:
Africa,
South Africa, Cape Town
Category:
Mountain view
Description:
View of Table Mountain from
across Cape town, coastal view
Location Information:
The
main feature of Table Mountain is a
level plateau approximately 3
kilometres (2 mi) from side to side,
surrounded by steep cliffs. The
plateau, flanked by Devil's Peak to
the east and by Lion's Head to the
west, forms a dramatic backdrop to
Cape Town and its Table Bay harbour,
and together with Signal Hill form
the natural amphitheatre of the City
Bowl.
The highest point on Table Mountain
is towards the eastern end of the
plateau and is marked by Maclear's
Beacon, a stone cairn built in 1865
by Sir Thomas Maclear for
trigonometrical survey. It is 1,086
metres (3,563 ft) above sea level,
about 19 metres (62 ft) higher than
the cable station at the western end
of the plateau.
The cliffs of the main plateau are
split by Platteklip Gorge ("Flat
Stone Gorge"), which provides an
easy and direct ascent to the summit
and was the route taken by António
de Saldanha on the first recorded
ascent of the mountain in 1503.
The flat top of the mountain is
often covered by orographic clouds,
formed when a south-easterly wind is
directed up the mountain's slopes
into colder air, where the moisture
condenses to form the so-called
"table cloth" of cloud. Legend
attributes this phenomenon to a
smoking contest between the Devil
and a local pirate called Van Hunks.
When the table cloth is seen, it
symbolizes the contest.
Local
Weather:
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