The top of Girnar Hill, some 900m above the surrounding plains, has been sacred to the Jains for over 2000 years. The buildings that stands there now date from the 12th to the 15th century and consist of 16 distinct temples.
The route up the hill is a gruelling two or three hour climb up a stone stairway that was constructed between 1889 and 1908 using money raised by a public lottery. Altogether there are said to be 10,000 steps although the road takes you to the gateway at step 3,000 so only pilgrims in search of maximum karma actually do the whole lot. The remaining 7,000 stairs wind their way up the hill for mile after mile getting steeper as you rise and with only occasional places where it's possible to sit and rest. Start early in the morning and don't expect to move much the following day.