Table Mountain

Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa. The mountain forms a prominent landmark on the Cape Peninsula, rising approximately 1 085 m above sea level, with the plateau stretching roughly three kilometres from side to side. It is flanked by Devil's Peak to the east and Lion's Head to the west, together forming a dramatic backdrop to Cape Town's city bowl. Table Mountain is composed primarily of sandstone and is part of the Table Mountain National Park, a protected area that extends across much of the Cape Peninsula. The mountain is renowned for its rich biodiversity, hosting more than 1 470 floral species, many of them endemic, and forms part of the Cape Floral Region, a Unesco World Heritage Site. A rotating cable car, first opened in 1929 and modernised in 1997, carries visitors to the summit, making it one of South Africa's most visited tourist attractions. The mountain holds deep cultural and spiritual significance for the indigenous Khoi and San peoples and has become an iconic symbol of Cape Town and South Africa. Frequent cloud cover, known locally as the "tablecloth", forms when south-easterly winds push moist air over the plateau. Table Mountain was named one of the New7Wonders of Nature in 2011, cementing its status as a natural landmark of global importance.