Paradise is the cliché of choice when describing Caribbean isles, but the sensual appeal of places like this corner of St. Lucia seems to make it inevitable. The Pitons , the two soaring verdant peaks on the island's southwest coast , more than any Caribbean landmark define the richness of the islands.
It's not their height that is impressive -- Gros Piton is 2,619 feet and Petit Piton, though more dramatic, only 2,460 feet -- it's their steepness and symmetry. Navigating the island's sinuous roadways, travelers repeatedly stumble upon fresh perspectives of the Pitons. The two peaks define St. Lucia: Hotels promote their ``Piton views," the mountains' profiles adorn the national flag, even the island's ubiquitous beer bears their name. So dramatic are the mountains that the United Nations named them a World Heritage Site two years ago .
Rising violently from the ocean south of Soufrière, the Pitons are indeed -- as their French moniker suggests -- brilliant green spikes, instantly identified by sailors and tourists. For the visitor to St. Lucia, Gros Piton and Petit Piton offer a concentration of much of the island's attractions: In their shadow you find evidence of the island's geological roots, turbulent history, its hospitable residents, and , above and below the turquoise waters , its rich natural life.
Dramatic in themselves, the Pitons are only remnants of a much larger mountain that exploded in a volcanic eruption more than 20,000 years ago. The caldera of that dormant volcano -- Sulphur Springs park, which St. Lucians call ``the Caribbean's only drive-in volcano" -- daily draws buses full of tourists who gather at the edge , holding their noses and marveling at the ash-laden bubbling broth.
But the Pitons themselves offer quieter pleasures to both hikers and snorkelers. I decided to sample them, first by climbing Gros Piton, later by snorkeling along the base of Petit Piton, whose vertiginous slopes plunge into the sea, transformed into steep coral walls rich in marine life.
