sunset

Apr 23 2014

MBC Conquer Table Mountain!

Hey! I’m Ailsa and I’m a new volunteer for MBC. I’m from Southampton on the south coast of England. I am already in love with South Africa and am having an awesome time at MBC.

Last Friday was a really special day for MBC, as it was the day that we conquered Table Mountain!

We told the kids when we saw them during the week that we would be climbing the infamous peak on the coming Friday to watch the sun set from the summit. Ant decided that we were going to do India Venster…the most technical and challenging route.

The day of the hike was nothing short of a heatwave. In the heat of the afternoon Ant, Paul, Will, Anna, Saskia and I drove to pick up the boys in Steenberg. Ant lined them all up before they got in the bus to make sure everyone was dressed appropriately and had plenty of water. All the boys had come prepared, ready and raring to go! Everyone then piled into the bus and we headed into the city.

This was the first time I had actually been into the city and the view from the road was something else. The sky scrapers of Cape Town looked incredible against the backdrop of the sea in the afternoon sun, but Table Mountain dominated the landscape, standing tall above the city.

Table Mountain from the bus – you can just see the cable station at the top!

Chatting to the boys, I discovered that none of them had ever been to Table Mountain before, not even with school. Naively, I was really surprised because they live so close. I realised that I take for granted that as well my education, my schools enriched my life with so many great experiences. Just getting kids to school for an education a challenge here, let alone planning school trips. The boys’ families don’t have the means and aren’t in a situation where they can take the kids on days out like this. Without MBC, the boys would never get to fully experience and appreciate the beautiful landscape of their home city.

We arrived at Table Mountain full of energy and excited to get going. Ant handed out apples for some natural energy and gave us all some tips on how to hike effectively.

Getting ready to set off!

Our climb began at the cable station, with a steep path than ran underneath the cable cars. This first section took us up the grassy mountainside to where the steeper terrain began. It was only about a 15 minute section but we were all extremely hot and out of breath. It was at this point that we realised this was really going to be tough! We rested in the shade before starting the main hike.

Phila, Yamkela, Kiyaam, Will and Frankie, resting and rehydrating in the shade

From here the hike got progressively steeper and more technical. But as we climbed higher, the breeze was cooler and the view was even more stunning. There was a mixture of steep rocky paths, scrambles and a couple of climbing sections. The most difficult sections had metal bars and chains drilled into the rocks to grab onto. We rested often to drink water and catch our breath. Although it is a difficult route, I know I speak for everyone when I say I didn’t feel unsafe at any point because we were all helping and looking out for each other.

Saskia and Will checking out the view

The boys really gave it their all and almost all of them made it to the summit for  sunset. Myself and Anna didn’t quite make it but we stood on the edge of the path, on the side of the mountain and watched sun set gently over Camps Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. It was a really special moment.

Me & Anna at sunset

Reaching the summit just as the sun set

After the sun had set, we finished the last bit of the hike and met everyone else at the viewing point at the top of the mountain. There was such a buzz and a great atmosphere between everyone. We all felt so proud of ourselves and of each other. It got dark quickly and soon the lights of the city were sparkling. We were just in time to catch the last cable car down the mountain. We took a few minutes at the bottom to reflect on what we had achieved and take in the view one last time, before all jumping in the bus and heading back to Steenberg.

The amazing view of Cape Town from the top!

Having only just arrived, I’m still getting to know the boys but I was genuinely so impressed by their positive attitude, maturity and teamwork throughout the climb. They looked out for each other and helped each other up difficult sections, whilst still having a laugh as they went. They are so fun and positive which made me relax when parts of the climb were difficult. It was such a great experience and a privilege to do this climb with MBC!

Incredibly, Saskia managed to do the majority of the climb one handed, whilst using the other to film with her GoPro camera. We’ve made a video of our memorable Table Mountain climb, which you can check out here!

By muizenbergbeachclub • Uncategorized • • Tags: Cape Town, climbing, gopro, hiking, Learn2Surf, MBC, Muizenberg, Muizenberg Beach Club, outdoors, South Africa, sunset, Surfing, Tablemountain, Volunteer