It is one of three passes connecting Hout Bay to the rest of the city, and, with Ou Kaapse Weg is one of the two passes over the mountain range between the city centre and the Fish Hoek valley.
To the north, the Jeep Track (also called the Bridle Path) ascends to the reservoirs on the "back table" of Table Mountain, while the contour path heads into Cecilia Park and northwards towards Kirstenbosch.
The pass was called "Clooff Pas" by Jan van Riebeeck when he crossed it on 23 March 1657.
[3] The mountainside at Constantia Nek is covered in Peninsula Granite Fynbos, an endangered vegetation type that is endemic to Cape Town - occurring nowhere else.
Another different endangered and endemic vegetation type, Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos, can be found much further up the mountain slopes.