About 50 miles outside of Medelln is the granite monolith that dominates the surrounding landscape, at 2,135 metres.
El Peon de Guatape was once worshipped by the Tahamies indigenous people. In the 1950s, a group of visitors spent five days climbing to the top of the massive rock using a wooden board to ascend up the rocks long crack along its side. Afterward, a concrete staircase was built into the crack.
On the way up we saw wild orchids growing from the granite rock face and once at the top stunning birds eye views of Guatape & a series of lakes.
Guatap residents paint their houses and businesses in gorgeous bright colors, and decorate the bottom of every building with panels called zocalos.
We visited a local artist studio where the technique of painting is with the stick end of a brush rather than the usual method of painting with the bristles.
A short while after the tour finished it was back with Santi & off on a small boat that he had hired. Getting onboard his hat fell off & landed in the water but thankfully Santi stayed dry and we soon took to the to the water for a view of the rock he had climbed earlier & to watch the sunset.
