Tenerife 28 Jan – 4 Feb 2023

I was so looking forward to my holiday. I had been in England looking at areas in Derbyshire where I might move back to in the future, and now I was in my way to Tenerife for a week’s holiday. I have never visited this island, although I have been to La Palma, which I very much enjoyed.

It could have started better. The Canaries are a place for winter holidays and although I didn’t expect really hot weather I didn’t expect as much rain, or mud, or for it to be as cool. I was also expecting it to be prettier, but my first encounter with it was on a very boring motorway in the south on which we travelled for 40 mins. The scenery was not captivating either, but I reassured myself that HF would not offer a holiday in a destination devoid of attractive scenery and good hiking countryside.

I was also somewhat dismayed to discover that La Laguna was a fair sized town, almost adjoined to Santa Cruz. The hotel Nivaria is situated in one of the few tree-lined squares in the town. It is an imposing building with a large entrance hall with comfy seating. The rooms are spacious and the beds comfortable. The food was excellent and always presented with a friendly smile. What about the walks you ask? This was a week of two halves, where after the first few days I could easily have packed my bags and gone home, but from Wednesday onwards the walks did improve.

The first day, the guides (as opposed to HF leaders) changed the planned walk due to bad weather, which is totally understandable. Instead they took us to the Roques de Garcia that are imposing rock formations on the western side of Teide, and the sun shone all day. We could see the mist just a few hundred metres below us, and we could see this was a good decision. However, much as it was a beautiful walk with amazing views, it was extremely short, just 3 miles with, if I remember rightly, less than 300 ft of ascent (less than going up to Bradda Head) and about 1200 feet of descent. The guides were incredibly knowledgeable and we learned a great deal and had an unforgettable experience crawling on our bums through an former underground lava tunnel, which was great fun. But, it was too short, and I must admit I felt short-changed, especially as this was meant to be the harder walk.

I didn’t walk with them Day 2 and instead got my bearings walking around the town, a gentle day in preparation for more extensive and more arduous walking the next day, only this walk too was changed to a most forgettable beach walk. We were not given detailed briefings or shown examples of the terrain or maps which would allow us to judge the suitability of the walk, but I was already worked out this was not going to be a great walk, so I packed my sketching set in anticipation of needing something ‘extra’. Our guide again provided interesting geological and historical facts, but as we neared our destination I decided to stop and do some sketching, even though there was little of interest to sketch. I am glad I did, as the group finished their walk by 12.30pm and had a 90 mins wait for the other group. To make matters worse we then had to wait a further 45 mins as the longer party (who had only done an extra 2 miles of beach walking) had been promised that they could get lunch when they arrived. I was literally hopping mad at this point, as this was meant to be a walking holiday not a sightseeing tour. The photos below make it look nicer than it really was!

The next day was the off day when guests do their own thing. I had asked one of the guides about local walks, so off I went in search of an adventure. The route started from the hotel with a short walk through the town. Crossing over a small river, the ascent on the eastern side of La Laguna began. It is something of a pull-up, but with a few small rests to gets my breath and admire the view I was soon at the true starting point amongst the dramatic hills. My tracker that we had spent some time getting to work, worked, and then didn’t work, so I looked at the hills and decided my route, bearing in mind I was looking for scenic views rather than views of the nearby conglomerations. I was not disappointed. The wide track turned into a narrow track just about where I thought my original route would have gone north. I was enjoying my new route and it took me around the back of one hill and provided distant views into the northern hills and a most delightful valley with a reservoir. I had no poles with me today, so extra care was needed over scrambly bits and muddy bits. I eventually ended up on a small road leading to the north side of this group of hills. Checking my map, I could see that the original route would be largely road walking from here, so I took the alternative path on to the very top of the hill. What a surprise I received up here, with oodles of yellow meadows in the foreground with the purple hills behind. There were masses of flowers throughout this route and it was almost like being in Austria. I dropped down the other side and contoured above my previous track with had surprising variety including some really rocky outcrops. The route was altogether 5 miles with 1300 ft of ascent and descent. Even so, I was back by lunchtime, and then I enjoyed a lazy afternoon reading and writing.

Thursday was a walk in the Teno mountains and by this time the guides had reverted to the original HF walks. Still not sure of my abilities I opted for the glorious easier walk, initially gently ascending through a green valley, then ascending more through a magical laurel forest before reaching the summit and a memorable ridge walk. The weather had improved and we had both distant views, views down the sea several thousand feet below and other views into the neighbouring ravines. I could have stayed up there for hours. The ridge walk was sadly only short and then the walk descended, contouring around hills to a viewpoint and cafe. This was a truly beautiful walk with great variety, 5.6 miles in length, 858 ft of ascent and 1483 ft of descent.

On the final day of walking I opted out for a variety of reasons. The easier walk, although attractive was not compelling as there was only a small amount of ascent and a lot of descent where the views would not change much. I was concerned that I might find the altitude too thin for me on the harder walk and I didn’t want to hold up other walkers. Plus, I wanted to go up Mount Teide. The cablecar doesn’t go all the way to the top, just as far as the cone where it changes colour, but I knew that I would be able to see views towards inside the crater of Pico Vieja, and to go to a volcanic island and not really experience a volcano would have been disappointing. I agreed with the guide that I would do this, followed by a walk to meet them at the end of the day. I am so glad I did this. The cablecar was very expensive at 38 Euros but it was worth it for the experience. I went from one viewpoint on the west to the other on the east. The weather was good but not fantastic, but I was treated to some steam emanating from Mount Teide as I returned to the cable car, reminding everyone that it may not be awake but it is still breathing.

From the cable car I had a 2 hour walk across the semi-barren landscape to the Parador beside the Roques de Garcia. The colours and distorted shapes of the volcanic rocks were interesting and varied as I twisted and turned around corners, and the vegetation looked even smaller against the magnificence of the huge mountains behind. In places, there were dried up areas that become wet with snowfall and form small lakes. It was a very pleasant and easy 5.3 miles of walking, basically flat, although my Garmin watch is telling me porkies and saying I climbed a few hundred feet. I did descend 853 ft, which seems realistic. It is impossible to gauge distances. I walked 2 miles south across the valley which from the road looked about half a mile, and when up on Teide, those summiting looked really tiny on the rocky top, whereas without any perspective it looks just a stones throw to the top.

So ended my holiday. I am back home now and it all seems very strange now, as if I have just woken from a dream, something that never happened but only occurred in my imagination. Perhaps you will get a sense of this from the last photo I took as the plane took off from Tenerife, with Mount Teide hiding in the sunset clouds.

Time away in Crete

Yes, I know it’s not the Isle of Man, but reluctantly I cannot do any walks at the moment as I have an ankle injury sustained while I was… in Crete, two weeks ago.

This was a walking holiday but I was not sure how much walking I could actually do, so on the spur of the moment I put a sketch pad in my suitcase along with my walking boots and off I trotted to Crete. I have been before, but not stayed on the western side. I had hoped to do the Samaria Gorge this time, at least that was my intention.

We stayed in a beautiful 4 star hotel miles from anywhere in a village called Spilia, a little distance from Chania. If I wanted to do any walks by myself this would necessitate a 32 mins walk each way to the nearest village to use public transport. But I am not complaining. The hotel was so relaxing, with two lovely swimming pools; the food was excellent and each room was completely individual and all scattered around the complex. It had originally been an olive pressing factory.

I did some walks with the group, alternating days, sometimes doing my own thing and yes, I did do some sketching, sometimes just 30 mins sketches and at other times adding in watercolour, but nothing taking more than 2hrs from start to finish. This was an absolute joy and has opened my eyes to painting ‘plein air’. I never want to have to paint anything from a photo again. Just give me an image and let me and my imagination paint the picture.

My highlights of the week are probably rather different from the rest of the walking group. The intrepid walkers did do the Samaria Gorge, but I and others opted for the Imbros Gorge, this being the shorter option and with the opportunity of a boat ride to otherwise inaccessible villages along the coast. I completed the Imbros Gorge in under two hours, then did a quick sketch of a village by the sea and then Loutro after the boat ride. The weather of course, was just wonderful, hot and sunny, but not too hot. Other than that, my favourite times were spent on my own, walking up the hill to the magnificent St John’s Cave at Spilia, seeking out other lesser known tiny chapels built into the rocks, and paying for a tour to Elafonisi beach on a day when nobody in their right mind would think of spending time on the beach as it was really windy, open and exposed! It looks idyllic on the photos but they are deceptive. It was extremely windy! But I loved it, and despite sand blowing all over my paints and painting, my water getting blown over time and time again, and the wind and sun drying out the paint as soon as it landed on the paper, I have a sketch painting that I positively like. It has life and vibrancy, not surprisingly rather more than was actually present on the day. The odd thing about Elafonisi is that the coastal footpath is certainly not flat and even. You have to walk through a boulder field, often clambering over rocks taller than me, but offering views of the most beautiful coastal nature reserve. The E4 footpath goes right round the island. Now that sounds like my kind of walking, at least in my mind. I would go back there again should I revisit Crete, but take a little more care as it was on the last stretch of this that I twisted my ankle and it still swells and bruises two weeks later if I walk on it.

The cave of St John’s at Spilia was a real bonus. I didn’t expect it to be so spectacular. It was huge, with lots of nooks and crannies, so I was able to sit there with the dog I acquired on the way up and just do an outline of the pillar cave. On returning to the hotel, I spent a couple of hours painting it from memory. It is so nice to have 5 sketches /paintings all in one sketchpad and I shall take this with me every time I go away to add others to my collection. Florence will be my next trip in the autumn – just two or three days, but time for my more experiences and sketching. I think a sketchbook will be more memorable than any photo I could take and when I am in my dotage I shall enjoy reminiscing about my time in Crete and other places I have visited.

The HF walking party were great fun. We all got on together so well, and there was a lot of laughter, eating and drinking, and until I did my ankle, we played table tennis too. Thank you to everyone who made my holiday so enjoyable. I shall try and put behind me the absolutely dreadful treatment we got from Easyjet when our flight to the IOM was cancelled having been half way round England before taking us back to Gatwick and totally abandoning all the passengers in the evening and not even providing any food or accommodation! To make matters worse, there were no flights for 3 days. As you would expect, I found an alternative and was back on our island the next day.

So I finish with a slideshow of photos to whet your appetite. Oh, and if you wish to try out the hotel it is called Spilia Village and you can find out more here: https://spiliavillage.gr/

Guernsey – final day 30/08/20

With only a morning left, I had my last opportunity to visit any local attractions, and as Little Chapel was less than two miles from my hotel at La Villette, this seemed the perfect choice for my final walk.

The interior of the island is much quieter than the main thoroughfares and Guernsey has many publicised ‘Routes Tranquilles‘, the equivalent of our Green Roads. I was able to make use of many of these, which I imagine were farm roads in years gone by.

You will recall that the island claims to have no hills. Of course, it is not entirely flat, and inland it has a regular pattern of small hills cut through by attractive streamlets. I walked 7 miles inland this morning, and even then I managed to climb over 809 ft, so you can see this is a surprisingly undulating island. The highest point on Guernsey appears to be Hautnez at 111 metres, which is near the airport. Many of the cliffs are of similar height.

But today was pure countryside and brown and white Guernsey cows, and tiny villages with magnificent buildings.

The Little Chapel is very beautiful. I was expecting just one area for worship but there were a number of small chapels, all equally beautifully adorned. Creating it must have been a real labour of love and I could imagine using it for personal worship. Somehow it doesn’t feel as if it ought to be a tourist attraction.

Having visited the chapel I went to the village of Les Vauxbelets and followed the route tranquille up to the Candie Road. I turned left as I had spied a walking path through woodland that interested me at Les Fauxquets. This was a pleasant walk, though the end of the path was unfortunately very muddy, making a mess of my new shoes.

I followed the Route des Talbots with the Talbot Valley on the right. It is very picturesque with some beautiful houses. I then took side routes, that lead to St Andrew church. From this point I followed more routes that were ‘tranquilles’ but unremarkable and I was soon back at Mouilpied, the small village close to La Villette. I was back in time for a lunchtime pint in the bar, and later on a cream tea to keep me going until I arrive back on the Isle of Man.

So what have I gleaned of Guernsey these last few days?

1) it has far too many people and cars

2) the coastline to the south and south east is magnificent walking country.

3) their number plates contain only numbers, usually 5 digits but I saw one today with only 4

4) they have a good bus service, but narrow lanes therefore all journeys are slow, and if you happen to be behind pedestrians or cyclists, very slow

5) they build very large walls around their properties in the main town

6) books are cheap. My copy of Les Contemplations cost £3.71.

7) the footpaths are good but many do not contain waymarker signs. The scaled map is very good.

8) their post boxes are blue and set into walls.

9) many of the villages have their own ‘abreveur’, pumps which provided water for the local villagers

10) although the village names and places look and sound as if they are french, the pronunciation is different, more anglicised

11) it has a lot of cows

12) it is inundated with reminders of its war time histories

13) I didn’t pass a single shop on any of my walks, except beach cafes and, naturally, in the metropolis that is St Peter Port

14) if walking the coastline, be prepared for hundreds of steps! Continue reading “Guernsey – final day 30/08/20” →

Guernsey Day 4 – coastal walk 29/08/20

This was my last full day of walking, so I started out early from the hotel finding a new route down to Petit Bot Bay.

Others had already arrived by the time I got there, mostly children and their parents who I think were about to go kayaking. There was already one group in the water. There is a cafe here, but as it was not yet 10am it had not opened.

The climb onto the cliffs is fairly strenuous, with something like 160 steps. I tasked myself with counting them today. Over the full day, I think I climbed 800 steps as well as encountering the standard undulations. It is worth the climb as the views are terrific and you get a sense of accomplishment too.

The coast path goes inland to cross streams in a few places and the paths weren’t always easy to find. To make matters worse ( or better), the Guernsey National Trust has purchased various areas around the cliff path and there are numerous routes within these areas, should you decide to veer off the regular track to explore. On one such occasion around Les Corbieres I did not quite end up back on the right path and found myself on a path slightly more inland than intended. Not that it mattered. This was a fairly long walk anyway of between 9 and 10 miles and I was more interested in reaching my destination than being pedantic about which path I took. However, because of this detour I did not visit the German Observation Tower at the top of this post, though I saw it for many miles thereafter.

There are only two places on this section of the coast path where you can get drinks so make sure you take plenty with you in case they aren’t open. It hasn’t been very warm for late summer but even so my stocks of water were getting low towards the end and I was concerned about getting dehydrated. There is a cafe and a bus terminus at the end of this walk, so it is easy to replenish your stocks and get back to your starting point, although buses are only once a hour. I had thought of going to see Little Chapel as I had finished by 2pm, but there were no buses going to that area at all on a Saturday.

The paths look very similar to the walk I did the other day, so instead of describing the route, I will leave you with a gallery of photos of the walk. I must say, I think this south western point is prettier and quieter than the eastern side around St Peter Port, and the houses I saw were much less showy.

Tomorrow, I shall walk to Little Chapel and return to my hotel for afternoon tea before my mid afternoon pickup for the airport.

Overall distance: 9.17 miles; total ascent 1414 ft; total descent 1762 ft

Guernsey Day 2 – La Villette to St. Peter’s Port 27/08/20

I had been warned by the taxi driver that this is quite a strenuous walk with a lot of steps, so I knew what to expect.

I set out early in the morning and was on the cliffs shortly after 9am. I decided to miss out Icart point and start with a gentle route down to Saints Bay, following another gladed valley. I soon hit the coast path contouring around several small bays, including Bon Port to Jerbourg Point.

At Moulin Huet car park, be careful to follow the map and descend along the road. The path then takes you through some light woodland before you ascend once again on the open coast path. There are one or two ins and outs on this stretch giving some variety to the walk, but whenever you turn a corner, the views are splendid. Renoir created some of his masterpieces here and there are several information boards showing you the view he was capturing. Below is one such scene.

There are two viewpoints mentioned on the map on the Jerbourg peninsula and it is worth taking your time here. The close up view of Les Tas de Pois d’Amont (translates as Pea Stacks) which have been visible all the way around this large cove is magnificent. The path continues around the point to join a lane which leads to the Jerbourg hotel. If you have had enough of steps by this point you can while away your time in the hotel having a cream tea, and then catch the bus (no 81) which will take your on a tour of the island back to St Peters Port.

I do not say this lightly, as the next section begins with a lot of descent and more steps, in the sure knowledge that you will have to ascend the same amount before long. This is a kinder path and slightly more undulating than straight up and down and you get the first views of Helm and Sark and the Castle at St Peters Port.

I had set off in fine sunshine, and pleasantly warm. I was also aware of dark clouds looming over the land and I was forlornly hoping that I might escape rain. This was not to be, but thankfully there was some tree cover and I waited patiently for a gap to appear in the lashing rain before I continued. Patience was clearly not a virtue and was going to make no difference, so I set off again for Fermain Bay, where I could see a cafe beside the beach. It was just about noon and I had walked 6 miles. I enjoyed some warming cups of coffee, had a chat with a local who had been swimming and I think wished he hadn’t bothered and ate my packed lunch. The tide was almost in but it looks to be a lovely beach and on a nice day I bet the locals come down here.

There was a brief respite so I set off again, yes, you can guess it, uphill again through woodland at Ozanne Steps and past some houses that had the most scenic and uninterrupted views of the sea. Leaving that path, it takes you to the Clarence Battery at Les Terres Point, an outpost that has guarded St Peters Port for centuries. From there it was a steady descent along La Vallette into St Peters Port.

I didn’t spend much time here today. I wanted to get back to the hotel, dry off and catch up on some sleep! So I boarded the bus, which showed me the delights of the area and dropped me off outside my hotel – very convenient.

I don’t know how many steps there were altogether, but it must be hundreds as there were usually about 30-40 minimum on each ascent. The total distance was 8 miles, descent 1726ft and ascent 1427ft. This walk started with descent, and it is this combination that makes it a little tiring. But it is so rewarding, and if you have a fine day, I would recommend it.

The weather forecast for tomorrow is not great, so I am thinking of doing a hop on hop off bus tour to the other side of the island and maybe do a bit of shopping.

Continue reading “Guernsey Day 2 – La Villette to St. Peter’s Port 27/08/20” →

Air-Bridge Guernsey – Arrival Day 26/08/20

What an eye-opener! From the sky Guernsey looked to be a highly populated possibly overcrowded little island. In the taxi, I was struck by the amount of traffic, but once I got to my hotel south of St Peter Port at La Villette, I discovered a different world, of long lost lanes, attractive stone cottages, cows(!) and a most magnificent coastline only a mile away.

From what I have seen in the few hours I have been here, this is an island that cares for itself and looks after itself. The houses in the villages are well maintained and look as if they follow tradition. There is evidence of many former farms dotted around and even the new houses are made to blend in with the natural stone of their predecessors.

When I arrived it took me a while to get my bearings as I thought the airport was near the main town, when in fact it was in completely the opposite direction. This being so, my first amble took me in a different direction from that where I wanted to go 🙂 Thankfully, my trusty Garmin watch knew where I was going, so I soon discovered my error. It would have been useful to find out where I was staying before I went on holiday, as I was guessing from the word ‘go’, and usually I am better prepared. On this occasion, I hadn’t given my short break a moment’s thought beforehand.

So here I was, an hour and half after arrival and three hours left before the restaurant closed. Time to explore. This time I went in the right direction and after a mile I was on the cliffs admiring the sea and shoreline. I couldn’t stop there, so after a cursory look at the map I decided to head westwards or if looking at the sea – to the right! The cliffs were so inviting – so inviting I would break into a hop and a skip or even a little jog every now and again. The sunlight was glinting behind the cliffs in front of me me and I made a mental note that this walk would be best undertaken left to right in the morning another time.

There are a number of ups and downs on this stretch of path but nothing too demanding. The paths are very well maintained and look natural (note IOM govt), and there are many sections with stone and sandy steps which are easy to traverse. The path reminded me very much of sections of the South West Coast Path which I did with my third son, Matthew, when he was a teenager.

The cliffs are interspersed with shady glens leading down to the little beaches. I am looking forward to exploring more over the next few days, but I know it will be over too soon.

I am trying to extend my holiday to 5 days. The hotel has room for me but the flights are fully booked, so I must make the most of my four days here.

Total distance: approx 3.5 miles, 489 ft of descent, 500ft of ascent.

La Palma, Canaries, January 2020: Day 6, Final Walking Day – Cumbre Nueva

The final day promised to be interesting. We would start on the eastern side of the Cumbre Nueva, in the hills behind our hotel, scramble up some heady paths through the oldest volcanic rocks, reach a open green picnic area, and then descend on the other side walking across more recent lava flows, finishing in El Paso, the terrrain on the west and east escarpments being wildly different.

We were following what would originally have been an ancient path linking one side of the island to the other, rather like you find in the passes above Coniston in the Lake District. You could sense the spirits of bygone fellows leading their donkeys carrying their wares on their backs up and down these steep and narrow paths.

The Cumbre Nueva (translates as New Summit) contains the sharp spine of hills that we could see yesterday leading off to the south from Caldera Taburiente to the Cumbre Veija (Old Summit). The harder walk were heading off on the ‘volcano route’ of the Cumbre Vieuja, which sounds like a child’s paradise: lots of craters in a small area to play around in. A part of me wanted to do that walk, but I knew they would set off fast and I want to enjoy the scenery and not be on a forced route march. Cumbre Nueva being slightly smaller than its neighbouring friends with a maximum height of 2100m is rather softer in appearance than the other craggy volcanos surrounding it. and maintains a steady transpiration rate as it is mostly within the cloud forest height range, so it is lush and green. There are many pines on the eastward side whose lines are only broken where the lava has had its strongest grip. On the eastern side the vegetation is more varied and more abundant – tree heathers can grown to 4 metres in height., whereas on the western side they are more stunted in growth due to the lava flows and also to the strong winds which buffet that side of the mountains.

At the bottom of this map is a marker point called Montana de los Tomillos at 1522 metres. That is the point where you change over from east to west. If you enlarge the photo you will see a green path to the right saying Pared Vieja on the east side. We started somewhere along that path, walking continuously uphill for an hour and a half.

Then we reached El Pilar which is an area that has been cleared to some extent to allow locals and tourists to make the most of the wonderful countryside. You can drive up to this point, there is a small visitor centre, toilets and a snack bar in season. It is very pleasant and cool, although the sun can still creep through the trees. One remarkable thing about this island is its taxi service. Every now and again where a path meets a track you will come across a green sign saying TAXI with several taxi numbers and prices to different places. They are very geared up for walkers and try to discourage vehicles by offering this service, and they are not expensive. The Refugio de La Pilar is a wonderful starting point for a walk. You can do at least six different walks from this starting point and I would have loved to have been able to spend time messing around exploring all of them. Maybe that will be for another visit.

As you leave El Pilar you cannot fail to notice the Volcano Montano Quemada of Tacande, which erupted as recently as 1470-1490, similar to other volcanic eruptions in the south, and indeed the terrain is very similar. You can see the black ash sliding down the hillsides and there are only a few loose boulders here. This ‘sand’ was procured by the locals over the years to make paths and gardens, but that practice has now been forbidden. This tiny loose rock was created when magma was thrust into the air, forming shiny black granules cooling rapidly as it hits the ground. This is called obsidian and it looks like glass. Everywhere we looked you could see it glistening up at us, but try to pick one up and it would mysteriously disappear. I did finally manage to bring a couple of tiny pieces home, along with some volcanic pumice!

This was a very pleasant walk down, with some open areas and lovely shaded areas in the pines. This was the first time there was evidence of water, admittedly not flowing right now, but there were channels in the lava which would allow the water to flow freely when it does rain. The rainy season is meant to be between November and February but as everywhere, the climate is changing and they have had little rain this winter. The annual rainfall is about 327mm p.a, compared with the Isle of Man that has 1139mm p.a, so you can see that if is dries up here they will be in serious trouble.

Throughout this holiday we had come across all kinds of lichen, which of course only grow in healthy terrains. They hung from the trees and where they fell off, it felt quite hard and leathery. The photo below shows such a lichen dripping from a tree, with the backdrop of the Punta de les Roques which is the last part of the volcanic ridge and the first part of the Caldera de Taburiente.

The further down we went we lost the sandy rocks and found ourselves walking over a very craggy lava flow that went all the way down to El Paso. This had been incorporated into the gardens of the local houses

And here we could hear the sound of birds as we went through more pine forests, casting their magical spell on us all as we passed through them.

Nearly at El Paso, we had our final trek over some tricky lava and a few minutes later we were at the Visitor Centre and the bar, where we sat and waited for the harder walkers who were not so far away. The fact that the lava continues right down to the road makes one very much aware that this is a living landscape and that it will always have the final say over mankind.

In this last photo, you can see the whole of our route on the eastern side and reminisce about all the wonderful things we saw.

Distance: 6 miles

Ascent: 948 ft (all in the morning)

Descent: 2041ft

So ends a truly memorable holiday, so inspiring that I have already booked to go walking on one of the other Canary Islands this time next year. For now, I shall resume normal service and report on walks on the Isle of Man, starting this coming Saturday with a report on Peat Monitoring which we plan to do if the weather is suitable.

Thank you for following this blog, and keep in touch.

La Palma, Canaries: Day 5 – Caldera de Taburiente Rim

This was a spectacular day. It started with a long, meandering, climbing, one and a half hour bus journey through the laurel cloud forest, giving wonderful views of Santa Cruz and its defunct volcano; the higher we got, the further north we could see and the laurels gave way to tall, elegant pine trees. At times, I wondered if it were possible to go any higher. Every now and again we would get glimpses of rocky peaks through the trees and then finally we came out into the desertified landscape where the bus stopped temporarily at a viewpoint into the crater of the Caldera de Taburiente. This volcano erupted over 1 million years ago and again 1/4 of a millenium after that. It has a diameter of 8 kilometres, though landslides and erosion have now blocked off one side of the crater so that it resembles something of an icecream cone now.

We continued on the twisting lava road turning left beside some observatories, some which look at the stars and others that look at the sun. Then we stopped and could go no further, and indeed this was true for the bus too, it puts its foot down and the clutch or brakes decided they had had enough of carrrying the HF party, so the bus driver spent the next 30 minutes organising another bus to pick us up later. We had arrived at our starting point – El Roques de Los Muchachos, which strangely translates as Rock of the Boys! We were at 2,426m or 7959ft. We were warned we could be a little light-headed but no-one suffered more than usual.

We were at the highest point of the Caldera and looking across to the left were several observatories, none of which are accessible to the public. They are too busy doing serious stuff. It was at this point that it was discovered that the easier walk could not run as only one person opted for it, the other person having changed his or her mind. This posed a problem as HF cannot lead a walk with 1 person. Fortunately we had a guide with us, who was supposed to tell us about the geology, flora and fauna, and she kindly offered to take the lady on the easier route and leave the two leaders with the harder walk.

It has a nice feeling being on top of the island, if not on top of the world, with sky all around, the cloud forest to the left, blue sea to the right and the other Canary Islands daring to raise their heads above the cloud parapet and make their own claim for our attention. At different times we saw Tenerife, La Gomera, and El Hiero. We were so lucky to have a mostly clear day, certainly along the rim, although inside the crater there was a kind of blue haze. The previous week the walkers had traipsed around the rim in total cloud, with not a view in sight. We obvously picked the right week.

View south east to Los Llanos — Los LLanos just visible to the east

View across to Cumbre Vieja — The Cumbre Vieja

But I am leaping ahead of time. Most of the time we were inside the cauldron, with many short and steep ascents and descents to Pico de la Cruz (2,351m), where we had our lunch. Now that’s what I call a lunch stop, though the wind was blowing a hooley and it was quite chilly.

At this point we became aware that we did not have our easier walker and the guide. What’s more, the leader had no signal on her phone, so many a moment was spent trying to make contact to find out where they were. One of the guests finally succeeded and we were able to continue. Ah, maybe this is what our leader Mary has spotted in the distance?

We carried on up and down the rocky rim, which had amazing colours at times and at other times seemed quite dull but never boring. We crossed two other tops, Piedro Llana 2,321 m and our final point on the rim was Pico de la Nieve, which reminded me of yesterday’s story of the talcum powder as Nieve means ‘snow’ and lends its title to the patron saint of that area and everything to the east towards Santa Cruz. Not that it looks very white, or does it?.

End Point Pico de Bejenado — The youngest volcano in the rim, Pico de Bejenado

From here, it was all downhill, though perhaps the rocks underfoot were whiter than the rocks we started on. We had passed ancient pillow lavas created undersea when the volcano erupted, now evident at 500 metres showing how the uplift and shifting plates make mountains out of molehills. The whole of the Canaries is moving towards the African plate, so one day there will a mighty upheaval yet again. Even so, this island is unique in that its volcanos go some 4000 metres under the sea and 2500 metres above sea level, making them some of the highest volcanos in the world.

I end this section with a slideshow of some photographs taken on the rim to show you the variety of colour and interest created by the weathering of the rocks. Tomorrow is the last day of walking, and different yet again. Having been in the oldest volcano, I now enter one of the newest and the terrain is certainly different. Look out for the final instalment in my story of La Palma tomorrow.

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Distance 7.5 miles

Total ascent 1312 ft

Total descent 2907 ft.

Maximum elevation 7951 ft; minimum elevation 6,283 ft.

La Palma, Canaries, January 2020 – Days 3 and 4: Santa Cruz, Breña Alta, Los Llanos

For a small island, it sure does pack a punch. The volcanoes in themselves are enough to take one’s breath away but it also has its calmer, more serene side where most people live scattered across the hillsides.

I took a day off instead of walking as my poor (big) toes were throbbing, I had blood blisters under both nails, the toes were swollen and painful and the thought of another long descent was not appealing. You will be pleased to know I don’t have a photo of my feet! On Day 3 I had a leisurely morning, caught up on some sleep and watched some of the Australian Tennis Open. Our hotel was magnificent. We were staying at the Parador de la Palma in Breña Baja, an ancient ‘suburb’ of Santa Cruz where they grow tobacco, apparently on a par for quality with Cuban tobacco. The hotel is relatively modern with extensive grounds which have been landscaped beautifully. It has a pool and a gym, neither of which I frequented, a lounge and a bar and a lovely enclosed patio area where one could sit and listen to the sound of water as one drank one’s wine, read one’s book or engage in mindless chatter. And of course a restaurant. The food was out of this world and there was so much to eat I am glad to be home, otherwise I would end up a big fatty! So, all in all, a day off was very appealing.

In the afternoon, having written some postcards, I thought I should venture out to post them and explore the local community, wearing comfortable pumps which would not put any pressure on my toes. It is impossible to avoid uphill but at least I was on tarmac. Off I went, expecting a gentle ramble, which indeed it was. I found myself turning this way and that and two and half miles and a 1000ft later, I decided it was time to turn back. I was already in the foothills of the Cumbre Veija by this point where the cloud forest begins and it was trying to drizzle. It was a happy ramble in that I was able to nose into people’s gardens, which were generally large houses or smallholdings. It is noticeable that most of the houses are two storey. No large tower blocks here. As I turned onto the top road I felt I could almost have been in the wild west. Imagine those big doors on the photo below are saloon doors and imagine horses tethered up in front – imagination can run away with you here :-). The variety of vegetation on the hillsides was remarkable and so many wild flowers were out, many of which we only see in late summer, if at all. Most noticeable were the ‘dying swans’ of Echium which grow all over the island.

The next day was the scheduled day off. I knew I had to get some new footwear if I was to continue with the organised walks so I go the bus into Santa Cruz and bought a pair of HiTec walking trainers that were a full size bigger than I usually buy. They were cheap, costing me 50 Euros which included 3 pairs of socks. I had a walk around Santa Cruz which has some nice alleys , squares and drinking places such as the Calle Real, the main cobbled street, but I was not in the mood for exploring.

Santa Cruz is the capital of the island but not the largest city which is Los LLanos on the western side. It is positioned on an old lava flow that emanated from the volcano easily visible to the south of the city. It only has a population of 15,674 in 2018, so about 2/3rds the size of Douglas. The total population is 81,863, which is slightly surprising given that so much of the terrain is inhospitable. Santa Cruz does have one very strange claim to fame. Every 5 years it holds an event called The Descent of the Virgin of the Nieves, when there is a peculiar dance performed, called the Dance of the Dwarfs. Grown men over 6ft tall assume costumes of bishops then go into a shed and come out as dwarfs, with enormous triangular hats, and do a polka!! They don’t just do it once, but over and over again, all through the night. There is another annual tradition called Los Indianos, where all the locals dress up in white, men in posh suits and ladies with their parasols and straw hats, and talcum powder is thrown all over the place. Quite how or why these traditions have emerged is a deeply kept secret, but it does make one wonder what other plants might be growing on the island. If you are interested in visiting Santa Cruz there is a Naval Museum, churches with fine architecture and some interesting houses on the front.

I had wanted to visit Los Llanos as it has an archaeological musuem, so I boarded the no 300 bus, paid the driver 2,60 Euros and off we went up and over the hills and through the tunnel to the other side of the island. I hadn’t a clue where to get off the bus, but I was fortunate in that I spotted a road sign to the museum so hopped off at the next opportunity. This is definitely worth a visit. I think it cost 4 Euros, but I could have had a pass for only a little more which would have given me access to other museums elsewhere. Of course, it explained about the volcanic construction of the island, but it also talked about the shepherding way of life and there were various artefacts and a few old bones to examine. I spent about an hour there before wandering around the rest of the town.

The west of the island has a totally different feel to the east which is more humid. As you come down the long windy hill into Los Llanos you cannot help but notice the vast number of cream-coloured greenhouses that look very much like low level warehouses from above, and it lends it a commercial feel. The greenhouses protect the bananas which have become a large part of the island economy. They are very dense bananas and relatively small, compared with the ones that are imported to the UK. Formerly the main product was sugar cane.

Los Llanos itself contains several roads that stretch uphill like boulevards, with established trees in the centre. It is quite a bustling town and has a happy feel to it, with cafes in the centre where tourists and local mingle. In one of the streets there are 11 Indian Laurel and Royal Palm Trees that were imported from Cuba, and indeed these are the symbol of the city. They are very dramatic and beautiful. Although not the capital city which is Santa Cruz, Los Llanos is bigger, with a population of 20,171 in 2018. It appears to be a sprawling city as other smaller towns are very close, such as El Paso, but each has its own identity. Los Llanos is unlikely to claim the capital spot as it lies 325 metres above sea level so cannot compete with Santa Cruz for trade in quite the same way.

Having done my city tours, I got the 300 bus back, but managed to get off at the hospital and change to the no 35 which stops outside the Parador. I had enjoyed my day. I managed to wear in my new boots without causing any more problems to my toes and I was all set then for out Day 5 Walk which was to be an absolute treat, walking about the largest and highest volcanic crater on the island – and I shall tell you about that, tomorrow.

La Palma, Canaries – January 2020: Day 2 – Cube de la Galga Ravine and Coastal Walk to San Andres

The title makes it sound as if this is an easy walk, but this was the hardest walk of the week. It started with quite a long coach journey before being dropped off in the middle of nowhere in the Parque Naturel de Las Nieves. This time I opted for the ‘harder’ walk and it certainly was harder than yesterday. After a brief level start we then climbed steeply up a rocky path for 400 metres through a most attractive laurel forest. I have been having trouble with a persistent but low-key cough for weeks and the steepness and difficulty of the climb made breathing difficult, especially as some of the walkers insisted on a fast pace, which basically I ignored. I never see the point of walking at speed on a holiday, where the idea is to see the views and imbibe the magic of the region. As yesterday, but for different reasons, the path was often slippery and a tumble was only the next footstep away if care was not taken.

The laurel forest only exists between 500m and 1200m, so that shows the height we started at! It doesn’t lend itself to wonderful photographs except for the specialist, but the sun played around between the trees and there was a cooling draft that was very acceptable. Beneath the laurels are lower ground hugging plants such as tree heathers so the whole forest is a very pleasant mix of greens and where the sun can really break through wild flowers grow near the paths. The forest only exists because of the trade winds, which allow a cloud forest to develop bathing the forest in moist air. We reached the Mirador de Somada Alta,at 790 metres. which is just a viewpoint and a resting stage, then we continued more of less contouring before turnwards eastwards and returning to our starting point. I cannot emphasize enough the beauty of walking through these remote woodlands and they make a fine contrast to the banana plantations below and the bare volcanic rocks above.

From here we followed well made paths down to La Galga, where a platter had been prepared for the walkers in a local restaurant. There is a wonderful viewpoint of the Barranco de la Galaga here at the Mirador de la Galga, tucked behind the local church, and an equally impressive view in the opposite direction down to the sea.

You can see how rugged and tricky the descent and ascent might be into the first ravine. We then followed a local path on the side of a hill which had been terraced for growing crops, such as wines, bananas, avocados, oranges and lemons. The lower terrains are covered with smallholdings.

Reaching the coastpath GR-130, the path undulated and made various twists and turns before we encountered our first major Barranco, which are steep-sided ravines, sculpted by water – hard to believe considering the tiny amount of water that falls in La Palma. They would originally have been faults in the lava flows which are then corroded by water.

The first ravine near Los Galguitos (though the village was not visible from the path) was the steeper of the two, with a narrow rocky path to negotiate in both directions, before we were able to continue contouring all the way to next ravine near Llano de Pino, which looked as if it would be daunting as at this point we reached sea level. But the ascent was much easier with intermittent level sections and with a few rest stops we soon reached our destination of San Andrés. This is a very attractive village with a beautiful central area around its imposing church, and lots of bars.

This was a varied and interesting walk, so different from the day before and different from anything else we would do. It was very exhilerating if demanding and we enjoyed a very welcome drink in the bar before getting the coach home

Distance: 8 miles (13 km); Total ascent 1700 ft (510m); Total ascent: Approximately 3,000 ft.

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