Ros Lepa - Stairway to devil`s hell EarthCache
Ros Lepa - Stairway to devil`s hell
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(not chosen)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
Ros Lepa is geological site formed by erosion of the granitrocks
Ros Lepa, Ros leskalye or the Stairways to devil`s hell is a spectacular place on Mahe, close to Port Launay.
It is difficult to get there by hiking. But you will not be disappointed !
It is a granitformation, which looks at first sight not natural, therefore some people argue that the old Phoenicians more than 3000 years ago carved it in the stone as a landmark or for religious reasons.
The islands of the Seychelles are very special. While most oceanic islands are of volcanic or coralline origin, the so called inner Seychelles islands - such as Mahe - emerged from the decay of the supercontinent Gondwana. When the continents of Africa and Asia broke off the giant supercontinent Gondwana, two big boulders and some small boulders remained at the junction between what is now India and the African East coast. The big blocks today are Madagaskar and Sri Lanka, whereas the small “pebbles” now form the inner Seychelles which mainly consist of granite in the sea which had meanwhile emerged. The outer Seychelles, which are of coralline origin, emerged from the sea only later. Mauritius and La Reunion are of volcanic origin and emerged through submarine eruptions. Geologists have calculated that Gondwana broke apart 200 million years ago. On the smooth grinded surface of the granite rocks on the Seychelles, you can see compressed minerals in different colours embedded in the granite. These minerals evolved after heated molted rocks rose from the interior of the earth to the surface and then cooled down. These soft minerals, which look like randomly formed stairs, are embedded in the granite and have been washed out by erosion. They are today the Ros Lepa - the stairway to devil’s hell.
Startingpoint could be the busstop ( PK). You can hike from the Ephelia Constance Resort beach (TH). There are signs on the beach to Ros Lepa (R1), but the hiking trail may be difficult to find, because sometimes its overgrown by plants, but if you follow the cost line, you can not miss it.
As an alternative you can get a good view on Ros Lepa from the seaside by boat, but you will not be able get access to the shore, because of the rocks.
To log this earthcache please try to find two granitstones of different colours, scratch them together and find out, wether they have different hardness. Describe the colour you have used and the result of your investigation. Send your answers by email. You do not have to wait for an answer . I will contact you, if anything is wrong. So have fun ! I would appreciate , if you upload any fotos, but this is not a must.
See also other earthcaches on the Seychelles : GC40M5K, GC1PT2G, GC1V22G
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)