View from Lion Rock

Sigiriya is a fortress in central Sri Lanka known as the Lion Rock. This view is from the top of the rock, I believe looking west. I like the subtle contrast of the green jungle with the red rock of the first mountains you can see. Then I like how the successive ridges of mountains recede in the background. You can just tell that there are miles of jungle between them.

In the foreground is a lake or pond. Sri Lanka has an extensive network of man-made lakes and canals to bring water from the rainy north to the more arid south. There's water everywhere.

The puffy clouds tell us that there's a lot of tropical moisture and humidity just waiting to rain down - and later in the day it did!

What the picture doesn't show is the vantage point from which it was taken, and the story of getting the shot.

Sigiriya is about 660 feet tall, and dominates the landscape. An ancient king built the fortress there because it was defensible, though it was captured less than 20 years later.

Nowadays Sigiriya is in a national park, and you get to the fortress on the top by climbing about 1,200 stairs, either carved into the rock or constructed of steel. It's hard to convey the scale of this because the climb is so close to the rock. This picture shows some of the staircases and walkways clinging to the rock, and some ancient walls. Inside the walls are the remains of elegant paintings.

This picture shows the stairs of the final climb to the top. You can see brick remnants of the ancient lion sculpture that served as the entrance portal and gave Lion Rock its name - legs and feet are all that remain. There's a flat area where you can catch your breath before the last climb, but there's almost no shade, almost nowhere to sit, and little water.

Although it's generally safe - handrails and steel stairs, only a few slick stone steps - the climb is brutal in the tropical heat. At about 1,200 stairs, the climb is more than seven times that of the Statue of Liberty. Not quite as many stairs as the Empire State Building (1,576) or the Eiffel Tower (1,665). But it's mostly in the sun. When I was there the temperature was around 100 degrees F (38 C) and the humidity was nearly 100%. Once you're on the top there's some shade and places to rest, but getting there is exhausting.

There's a lot more to tell about the history of Sigiriya, the art and architecture and engineering, the history dating back to the 400's BCE. You can read all about it here. Today's story is about how a beautiful picture doesn't always convey just how hard it can be to get to the site.


This image is available from our Pixels gallery here.