Hiking & Canyoning in Cape Town

Cape Town and the surrounding areas offer some of the finest hiking in the world, mostly through the spectacularly beautiful mountains. Kloofing, known as canyoning in the United States, is the practice of following a mountain stream through its gorge, canyon, or kloof by swimming, rock hopping, and jumping over waterfalls or cliffs into deep pools. There are some exceptional kloofing venues in the Cape. Abseil Africa (021/424-4760. www.abseilafrica.co.za) runs a kloofing and abseiling (rappelling) trip on the Steenbras River, better known as Kamikaze Kanyon. Table Mountain Walks (021/715-6136. www.tablemountainwalks.co.za) offers various hikes, including options at Table Mountain and Silvermine Nature Reserve, with a well-informed guide.

There is a fantastic overnight hiking trail (part of the greater Hoerikwaggo Trail) in the Cape Point section of Table Mountain National Park (021/780-9204. www.cpnp.co.za), but you need to book ahead—sometimes by as much as a year.