The Katskhi Pillar is one of Georgia’s most stunning natural landmarks. It is a natural limestone monolith jutting 40 meters into the air just outside the town of Chiatura in the central-western region of Imereti. It’s easy to find a taxi to see the pillar from Chiatura, which can be reached from Tbilisi by marshrutka. While the average visitor cannot climb to the top of the pillar, even from ground level you can see the ancient church perched on top. For centuries this has been a profoundly holy site.

As Keegan Scott wrote for Where.ge, “The history books and locals say that the acre-plot of land on top was abandoned and even unreachable until 1946, when two climbers scaled the sides of the natural wonder. At the crest, the unsuspecting mountaineers discovered the body of the previous inhabitant and the treasures necessary to survive: water, wine vats, a small house, and a church with a robust garden. As for earlier history, it’s said that the pillar was a pagan temple before it became a church in the 10th and 11th century. Nowadays, Katskhi Pillar is firmly in the hands of the Orthodox Church with a recently renovated monastery surrounding the complex and a newly constructed ladder up the side. But it’s not accessible to the general joe- only men are allowed up and even then, only with permission from the monks.”

Main photo: mybestplace.com