Stairway to Heaven

Well, not quite, but it has to be one of the longer outdoor stairways at 750 steps.

The rock has a variety of names: The Stone of El Peñol, or simply La Piedra or La Piedra de El Peñol. In English, it's referred to as the Rock of Guatape. It's unclear why the English and Spanish versions differ so much.

It doesn't fit in at all with the surrounding mountains and hills, and it's classified appropriately as an Inselberg. (Literally an island mountain). Maybe such oddities should be called touristenbergs because they are invariably tourist attractions.

Once there, the vertigo sufferers (3) and the lame(3) bravely suppressed their fears and ailments to climb the massive staircase. The effort was not just cognitive or physical therapy but also delivered stunning views of the lake below.Read more