The Rock of Guatapé or otherwise known as Peñol Stone is a 220 meter (approximately 750 foot) tall granite monolith located about a two hour drive from the center of Medellin in Colombia. The closest city is Guatape, about a 10-15 minute drive away. First climbed in 1954, the ‘rock’ is still owned by the descendants of that original climber.
Visitors can walk to the main entrance from the base (about a 10-15 minute walk), or take a tuk-tuk from Guatape and will be dropped off within a very short walk of the entrance. For a small admission, visitors can climb to the top using a narrow walkway which leads up one of the sides of the sheer vertical face of the rock. The climb to the top is up 700+ steps with a dedicated narrow walkway specifically for those ascending. A separate walkway is available for those descending accessible from the top. Allow up to 30 minutes for ascending and 15 minutes for descending.
Along the way up and at the top there are panoramic vistas of the nearby terrain including of the picturesque Embalse del Penol reservoir. Bathrooms are located at the top along with a short circular walkway inside a stone tower which reaches the ultimate high point on the rock. Numerous vendors are located at the bottom of the rock – and several are also located at the top.
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