This week I have chosen to examine the importance that Table Mountain has on Cape Town's landscape. I would argue that the first thing that comes to mind when you think about Cape Town is the dramatic backdrop of Table Mountain, the 3 km long plateau that is surrounded by steep cliffs. The highest point on Table Mountain is 1086 meters above sea level, and the mountain forms the end of a sandstone mountain range that extends up the Cape Peninsula.
In fact, there are numerous questions that spring to mind on the subject of Table Mountain. For example, what is the geological composition of the mountain? What is the mountain's history? What are the implications of the fact that it is such a popular tourist attraction? What flora and fauna inhabit the area?
All in all, there are numerous questions that could be asked on the subject in order to ascertain the effect the mountain has on the landscape, however, the above mentioned ones are just some of the most obvious.
All in all, there are numerous questions that could be asked on the subject in order to ascertain the effect the mountain has on the landscape, however, the above mentioned ones are just some of the most obvious.
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| Table Mountain, looking back from Robben Island http://www.tropicalisland.de/south_africa_cape_town_peninsula.html |
Firstly, the mountain is composed of sandstone (highly resistant to erosion) and then a layer of shale underneath this. The main vegetation on the mountain is Cape fynbos and the mountain is most densely populated by the dassie, otherwise known as rock hyrax. The most obvious point of note with regard to the tourist industry is the fact that the mountain has a cableway, which is easily visible from almost anywhere in Cape Town, built on its facade. At the same time, the cableway is merely the most visible manifestation of the high volume of tourists that visit every year; there are of course increased erosion patterns and the problem of littering.
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