The Rock keeps climbing forty metres behind you; this terrace is not the summit.
Cable Car Top Station
Stop 1 of 7 · 385 m approx. · The summit ridge
Listen to this stop
0:00 of 0:45
Start by turning your back on the view. Behind you the Rock climbs another forty metres; in front of it drops four hundred, more or less straight down, into a town built on the rubble of its own quarries. You are standing on the spine of a ridge fourteen kilometres from Africa, which on a clear morning looks close enough to argue with. The loop you are about to walk takes about three hours. It runs south along the top, drops down the west face to the cave, crosses a bridge over a gorge, meets the monkeys, and then makes you climb back up here. That last climb is 185 metres and it is the only genuinely hard part. Do it now, while you are cool, or take the escape route at Devil's Gap and go down into town instead. Both are fine. Nobody is marking this.
Take care here
The macaques here work the terrace because it is where people stop, put bags down and open them. They can undo a zip in about four seconds and they are quicker than you are. Nothing edible visible, no plastic bags in hand, and no eye contact. A steady stare is a threat in their language, not a photograph.
The cable car has been closed since 18 November 2025 for a complete rebuild, currently expected to run into late 2027. If you did not walk up here, a taxi brought you. Either way, the way down is on foot. Check the reserve's own page before you plan a route that depends on it.
Stops normally appear on their own. Use this if the satellites are slow; under the ridge they usually are.