One of the joys about hiking Table Mountain is perching yourself on a free-standing rock mass. Several needles – or pinnacles – exist on Table Mountain, one as alluring as the other. Surmounting a pinnacle gives you the sense of topping out on a peak, and it usually requires a scramble to gain its summit, providing a sense of achievement. Then there’s the views, the sense of being suspended above your surroundings and the exhilaration of having a sheer drop on all sides.
Most Table Mountain hikes can be structured to include a visit to a pinnacle or salient rock stack that provides you with a superb vantage point of the mountain – not just outwards and down, but also onto the mountain itself. Not wanting to sound new-age, but pinnacles are energy points that connect you with the surroundings and the mountain – a focal point of the terrain.
Some of Table Mountain’s pinnacles include the summit of Kloof Buttress, Blinkwater Needle, Bosch Kloof Needle. Llandudno Peak, Disa Needle, Arrow Pinnacle, The Pulpit and Porcupine Needle. Taking the time and making to the effort to include any of these while hiking Table Mountain will add something special and memorable to the overall experience.
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