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All Colombia El Peñol El Peñon de Guatape

El Peñon de Guatape

A 10 million-ton rock once worshiped by the Tahamies Indians, accessed by an astounding staircase.

El Peñol, Colombia

Added By
Dylan Thuras
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September 2018   ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
September 2018   ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
A view of El Peñon de Guatape in Antioquia, Colombia   brandondeth / Atlas Obscura User
El Peñon de Guatape   tfeldis / Atlas Obscura User
El Peñon de Guatape as seen from approximately 1 km away. Antioquia, Colombia   brandondeth / Atlas Obscura User
September 2018   ccesare / Atlas Obscura User
  siewch / Atlas Obscura User
  siewch / Atlas Obscura User
El Peñon de Guatape as seen from the doorway of a nearby monestary. Antioquia, Colombia   brandondeth / Atlas Obscura User
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About

A massive stone rising over 650 feet out of the flat ground of Guatape, Colombia, the Piedra de Penol or El Peñon de Guatape, was once worshiped by the Tahamies Indians.

By the 1900s, the massive 10-million-ton rock was seen by local farmers as a nuisance, a giant version of the rocks that the farmers regularly dug out of their fields. In 1954 a group of friends—supposedly at the urging of a local priest—climbed the rock using a series of boards wedged into a crack. These were the first people known to have climbed El Peñon de Guatape. (It is unknown whether the Tahamies had a way of ascending the stone.)

Climbing the huge stone took five days, but the top of the rock revealed beautiful views and a new species of plant, Pitcairma heterophila. The rock soon became a modest tourist attraction.

The rock, which is almost entirely smooth, has one long crack, the one that the climbers used in ascending it. In the crack was later wedged a 649-step masonry staircase, the only way to get to the top of the Piedra de Penol. In the 1970s, the area was dammed, and the view from the rock changed: It now overlooks a dramatic series of lakes and islands.

Today, you can ascend the rock (apparently owned by a local family, though also designated by Colombia as a "national monument") for $6 USD. There you'll find a few religious relics and a three-story lookout tower.

Related Tags

Natural Wonders Geological Oddities Stairs Architectural Oddities Architecture Geology Nature

Know Before You Go

Sotrasanvicente bus company has regular services to Piedra del Peñol. The two-hour trip costs 15000 Colombian pesos (or USD 4.70) as of March 2019.

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Community Contributors

Added By

Dylan

Edited By

brandondeth, emilren, Jason Rost, kostas1964ath...

  • brandondeth
  • emilren
  • Jason Rost
  • kostas1964ath
  • Allison
  • siewch
  • ccesare
  • tfeldis

Published

May 15, 2010

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Sources
  • http://roundpicture.wordpress.com/2008/07/25/piedra-del-penol-or-penol-de-guatape-medellin-colombia/
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Peñol_(monolith)
  • http://www.traveladventures.org/continents/southamerica/el-penon-de-guatape.shtml
El Peñon de Guatape
Peñon de Guatapé
El Peñol, 053847
Colombia
6.219721, -75.178959
Get Directions

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Guatapé

Guatape, Colombia

miles away

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Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Colombia

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Guatapé

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Stories 23

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