January 2, 2017: What Goes Up Must Come Down

Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity” 
― John Muir, Our National Parks

Max, our hiking guide, Margaret and Nikki hold the map so he can show us where we are hiking today.

Our day started today with a drive of about 90 minutes to Vallehermosa in the North of La Gomera. 90 minutes is about as far as you can go in any direction by car, and some of that is due to hairpin turns and narrow roads.  This is a peaceful small town surrounded by steep hills, palm trees, and dry zone vegetation and is the starting place of a serious incline up to a feature called El Cano.

El Cano, the distinctive rock we hiked up to.

About a third of the way up to el Cano. The village of Vallehermosa is seen below

We made it up about 3000 feet in one good slog. Those tiny white buildings you see are the town where we started. Don't ask me how we made it, but we did.

John, Andrew and Nikki take a well deserved break near El Cano.

The scenery never fails to be spectacular at every turn. The island of Gomera is predominantly a series of steep ravines that run down to the ocean.

The view on the back side of El Cano. You see el Cano on the extreme left,

The mists we see are not fog. They are sand from the Sahara.

A farmer has put up a sign giving direction and mileage to many world famous cities.

A nome trapped by a tree

We saw many gorgeous flora. Fauna is rare. An occasional lizard is about it.

Our lunch stop, the Country Farmer's Corner

The view from the restaurant--terraces in the foreground and ocean in the distance.

Paul enjoys his lunch--watercress soup, garbanzo beans, almogrote, and bread. Flan for dessert. 

We passed many terraces, some with grapes for wine, some with bananas. Bananas seem to be a big industry on this island and Tenerife. We had a lovely lunch at a small restaurant on the edge of a cliff. Lovely authentic food and the owners were really congenial. We love the local fare.

From here we hiked on to the Visitor Center of the Garonjonay National Park. This is the major park in La Gomera and the reason people come here to hike.  Although we didn't actually spend time in the park today, the visitor center had a lot of exhibits about the volcanic nature of the Canaries, which in many ways parallels Hawaii, but in an earlier time.  It also housed some very nice cultural exhibits

A great scale model of La Gomera....one ravine after the next headed to the ocean.

I was really impressed by the gardens at Garajonay Visitor Center. Many native and nonnative plant species and so gorgeous

Bird of paradise

Gorgeous bromeliad

Calla lily

Don't know this one but beautiful color

One of the nicest parts of the visitor center was the cultural exhibits, They had a standard Canarian grave scene which was like the ones we saw on Gran Canaria. There was a pottery exhibit and one about pole vaulting--which used to be a pretty standard way of travel for sheperds, but now isn't so in style. The most amazing thing was the Canarian whistling language called Silbo. It almost disappeared from the earth, but now it is a compulsory course in school. The whistling is phonetic and even in some cases understandable. But more on Silbo later....

In addition to this sign board about silbo, there was a film with examples.

From this point, we progressed on to an area of iron oxide clay soil which isn't very common in the Canaries. It somewhat reminded me of my grandparent's farm in South Alabama.  And at the end of that section of hiking was an overlook into the city of Agulo---a long dang way down.

Iron oxide in the soil

The glass floored overlook where we started and the city of Agulo below.

Needless to say, our peering over the edge to see the very steep, but well paved in stone path downward to Agulo which you see in the above photo, was a bit intimidating. It reminded me of the descent from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon that my brother and I made on a rim to rim hike about 25 years ago---vertigo-inducing and frankly frightening. But just like then, somehow we made it. But not without sore knees, hips and hamstrings. And a sense of relief at having survived to the bottom.

All our companions, including Andrew and John (along with Paul known as the disciples) are Brits except us. So we never have to suggest a stop at the pub at the end.

The Tasca bar is a place where we not only had a beer, but heard authentic Canarian whistlers explain and exhibit their languatge. I am so glad they are preventing it from dying away.

I include this to show you the glass floor observatory high on the hill at ahout 11 oclock. Can't believe we made it down in one piece!

 After a very welcome warm bath we were off to a local dinner with a Cuban couple.

Chris, a lecturer in marketing and also known as Miss Maidenhead dresses up for repast.

Max, the tour leader, discusses dishes with David (aka King David) and his lovely spouse Nikki who is a physicist. 

All in all, it was a great hike with many scenic vistas, challenging climbs and perhaps more challenging sojourns in the downhill direction.  With the addition of new lovely British friends, we feel this hike was glorious. And very tiring!

“Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.” 
― Ed Viesturs, No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World's 14 Highest Peaks

Paul's Ponderings:  This was a fairly strenuous day out hiking, with a VERY challenging route, with a huge uphill to start and a pretty strenuous downhill at the end.   That said, it's hard to imagine a better hiking day out due to the scenery and the companionship.   We have a really nice hiking group this time around.    The scenery here in the La Gomera is stunning, even if the hiking is challenging!

La Gomera is a stunning area of the world.  We had a great lunch looking over a valley to the sea with beautifully prepared Canarian food.   The bookends to the day were fabulous ascents and descents in the area.   If you get a chance, go here, particularly if you like hiking.

January 1, 2017: It's Allrighty on Mount Teide

From Ed Sheeran's song, Tenerife

Subtitle: New Year in the Old World 

Well we can't think of a better way to begin a New Year than a good long walk preferably in a place with amazing weather and we couldn't have found a better spot for that than Tenerife. Today the temperature was much warmer than yesterday, probably about 68 degrees at the beach of Medano where we started our journey. But it dropped about 20 degrees as we made our way to the highest spot in Spain, Mt. Teide

The highest peak in Spain, Mt Teide at 12,000 feet.

It's a volcanic mountain, estimated to have been formed about 20 million years ago, and after Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea, it is the third highest mountain on earth measuring from the ocean floor. It remains active. Its most recent eruption occurred in 1909 from the El Chinyero vent on the northwestern Santiago rift. We didn't see it blowing any smoke and we considered that a good thing.

There's so much to share about this beautiful mountain and our walk, so I will start somewhere, which will be unique plants. We descended from the cable car area which is near the top but was closed for use today due to high winds. There are so many plants in this scrubby Mediterranean climate..

The wealth of flora living in these natural surroundings was a key factor in it being declared a National Park. Out of its 194 listed species, 31 are endemic to the Canary Islands and 32 grow exclusively in Tenerife – that adds up to almost one third being endemic plants.

 I wish we could have seen the flowering ones in season (April or so), but I feel lucky to have seen them at all!

Eschia wildpretii. Has red flowers in season, but is still pretty bare.

Teide is the most visited national park in Spain and is a UNESCO world heritage site. The Teide National Park has a large historical value. This place had an important spiritual significance to aboriginal Guanache people  and important archaeological sites have been discovered in the park. For the Guanches the Teide was a place of worship--- they thought it was the gate of hell .

Paul standing in front of the gate to hell.

Teide National Park is complementary to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. This is mainly due to being in each of them represented the volcanic structures and forms less evolved magmas of such islands (Hawaii) and more evolved and differentiated (Teide).  We were once again introduced to the terms, pahoehoe and Aa, although the flowing lava in the Canaries is called colada and the pebbly area is called malpais, literally "bad land." 

There is a great walk in the Teide canada (not a caldera, because it isn't the base of the volcano ...although it looked like it---it's an area of the volcano that sunk) called Roques Garcia which is about a 2 or 3 mile loop around amazing huge rock formations. 

Cinchado. This scene was once on a peseta money note.

The biggest attraction of Los Roques de Garcia is the unusual shaped red rock called Cinchado. One of the most popular postcards of Tenerife is Cinchado with Teide behind, as in the photo above. Cinchado doesn’t look very impressive when passing from the road, then it almost seems like just another rock. You have to see it from close up to see its special formation.

The authorities are trying to allow plants and flowers that are endemic to the area to establish themselves so that less active visitors may see the various species without having to hike for miles. Without this vigilance there is the danger of these fledgling plants being trampled upon by the thousands of tourists that visit here every single day. The area is after all a popular tourist attraction, it suits those who don’t enjoy walking in the mountains, and it’s close to the road and has a huge parking space. The Tenerife Parador hotel is on the opposite side of the road by the little church of Our Lady of the snow.

A large rock in Roques de Garcia.

A lovely look around the canada from Roques de Garcia. There are large lava field between the near area and the peaks of the distance. The floor is predominantly black.

Paul enjoys his lunch at Roques de Garcia

Christopher Columbus reported seeing "a great fire in the Orotava Valley" as he sailed past Tenerife on his voyage to discover the New World in 1492. This was interpreted as indicating that he had witnessed an eruption there. Radiometric dating of possible lavas indicates that in 1492 no eruption occurred in the Orotava Valley, but one did occur from the Boca Cangrejo vent on Teide

The last summit eruption from Teide occurred about the year 850 CE, and this eruption produced the "Lavas Negras" or "Black Lavas" that cover much of the flanks of the volcano. You can appreciate all the black soil in Roques de Garcia.

Many high rock formations and a lot of black soil

The volcano and its surroundings, including the whole of the Las Cañadas caldera, are protected in the Teide National Park. Access is by a public road running from northeast to southwest across the caldera. Tenerife bus service  runs a return service to Teide once a day . The park has a parador (historic hotel) and a small chapel. A cable car goes from the roadside at 2,356 m (7,730 ft) most of the way to the summit, reaching 3,555 m (11,663 ft), carrying up to 38 passengers (34 in a high wind) and taking eight minutes to reach the summit. Queues can exceed two hours in peak season. Access to the summit itself is restricted; a free permit is required to climb the last 200 m (660 ft). Numbers are normally restricted to 200 per day. Because of the altitude, the air is significantly thinner than at sea level. This can cause people (especially with heart or lung conditions) to become light-headed or dizzy, to develop altitude sickness, and in extreme cases to lose consciousness. The only treatment is to return to lower altitudes and acclimatize. Several footpaths take hikers to the upper cable car terminal, and then onto the summit (with the permit). The most popular route is via the Refugio de Altavista, however these are demanding hikes requiring at least 4–5 hours of ascent.

We didn't even attempt this, but we did walk down from the cable car area at nearly 8000 feet into the canada and around Roques de Garcia. That was about 8 miles and enough altitude for me. Luckily,no one in our group was immediately affected by altitude.

Sun beginning to set over Teide canada.

It was glorious scenery and a great start to 2017. 

We then headed to the ferry port at Los Cristianos and took the ferry to La Gomera, a much smaller and less trafficked island of the Canaries. I look forward to hiking there. The ferry was about an hour long and unfortunately, in the dark. We all arrived safe and sound and look forward to discovering a new island in the morning.

And now we welcome the New Year. Full of things that have never been. ..

                                                                                                   -----Rainer Maria Rilke

Paul's Ponderings:   We did a spectacular walk on Mount Teide and around some adjacent rocks, which added up to about ten miles or so.   I can't imagine a better way to spend a New Year's Day.   The weather was perfect and the scenery was stunning.   Some of the walk was a bit intense, uphill for lengthy stretches.   It's a great group we are walking with and our guide, Max, is easygoing and low key.

We followed this with a transfer to La Gomera by boat that took about an hour, arriving in the dark.   Our hotel is near the port and we dined at a small restaurant across from it.   I had some great sea bass accompanied by vegetables.   But....we were able to start with a fave, pimientos de padron and some local cheese from La Gomera, which was a great way to go.  

By the time we finished eating, everyone was pretty beat, after a late night out on New Year's Eve, a big hiking day, and transport.   Tomorrow we start with an even bigger hike on La Gomera, with some pretty serious ascents and descents.   Our fingers are crossed for good luck!

So far our experiences on the Canaries continue to be all positive.....no reason to believe that will change.   We are told that La Gomera is more "rural" than Tenerife or Gran Canaria and look forward to seeing if that is accurate.    Keep us in mind for a long walk, with long climbs, tomorrow!

December 31, 2016: Happy Anniversary Baby, I've Got You In Tenerife

Subtitle: Medano Meanderings

The seaside village of Medano is located near the airport, but not in a noisy place. We watched the airplanes take off from BELOW us. Mount Teide, highest mountain in Europe, seen in the background.

Today, we woke up in Chafoyo in the touristy area near Costa Adeje. We went to breakfast in our hotel and heard a violinist playing the Hallelujah Chorus live. You know right then it isn't going to be business as usual.  When your breakfast is beans, mortadella, goat cheese and papaya, if you think it will be an ordinary day, you know you've lost it. Somehow, being in the Canaries always seems a bit magical.

We progressed to the hotel that was reserved for us by the tour operator, Explore! This is a UK company and I cannot say enough good things about them. I started touring with them in 1988 when I lived on a shoestring budget as a resident in New Orleans, and I never stopped. What I love about them is that they specialize in experiences:  history, hiking, beaches---whatever you are into or a combination, they run an AFFORDABLE tour with great prices, knowledgeable guides and the accomodations are secondary. I'm all for nice accomodations sometimes, but I don't travel to stay in a nice hotel. I travel to learn and experience and hopefully, to be a more understanding person.

This company also specializes in NOT selecting the obvious tourist location. Last time we travelled with them to Gran Canaria, we stayed in a small hotel in a village famous for tomato farms. This time, we are in Medano, a seaside town known for surfing and any sport involving wind and waves.

Hotel Playa Sur Tenerife. A small but immaculate location run by Germans. Very tidy near Teide!

From our arrival, we saw lots of surfers, windsurfers, and kite surfers as well as paddle boards and just some folks flying kites. Although it is obvious that there are plenty of Northern Europeans here, there are also plenty of folks that are locals.

A kite runner

We originally considered going to Santa Cruz, the big town in Tenerife, but logistically, it was a minor nightmare, so we decided to just walk around our little town and see what gives. 

A look at Medano from the Northwest. There is a nice boardwalk that we followed.

Every dog has it's day....this one was sleeping between an planter and a window at a hotel with his feet hanging outside. We let it lie.

The seafood section of Hiper Dino supermarket. The fishmonger came out and made me stop taking photos.

How we say CHEESE in the Canaries

It wouldn't be a good walk in a beach town without a gelato. Paul had a double. If I haven't learned anything else in  5 years, I have learned chocolate mint is the man's fave.

In a lot of ways, it is a typical beach town, but not as crowded and commercial as the town of Costa Adeje which teams with restaurants and bars and tourists. This is quieter and more the style of two people who appreciate beaches to some extent, but aren't really "beach" people.

Which made the next find really great. It ends up we are right next to a national nature reserve, Montana Rojas. This area does have a big mountain right at the sea. It didn't look "red" per se, but there was obvious iron ore in the vicinity based on the color of the earth and rock.  It was great walking out through these paths and observing the airport BELOW us. Also, this is one of the only areas on the island that preserves the natural dune formations.

Montana Rojas about 4pm

We decided not to walk up to Rojas since we have Teide tomorrow, but we did scale this fair hill, Bocinegro. When we got to the top, we saw a naked guy running around on the beach. Reminiscent of Maspalomas.

I think you can appreciate the red iron content here near the deep blue sea.

Thorny desert island plants. There are also many cacti here but not in this area.

Paul on a dune.

While hiking along this area, we saw several bunkers that were placed in WWII. They were pretty well disguised.  While Franco and Hitler were supposedly pretty close pals, there was interest in the Canaries from both sides of the pond, since it was strategically located. The Brits in particular were considering invasion. Last time they tried, Horatio Nelson lost an arm....

WWII bunker. The Canaries were in demand.

We really enjoyed this scenic walk next to the hotel.

Paul conquers the Canaries.

Two people who have been married for 5 years today!

 We then  had to go back and get ready for Ano Nuevo 2017 with our brand new UK friends and our guide to Canaries hiking, Max. Max is from Barcelona. 

We started out with a meal at Restaurante El Timon, a place right on the ocean with great seafood.

From here, we moved to the town square to continue the festivities. THey had a band, decorations and we were told to eat 12 grapes as the bells rang out midnight. We followed instructions.  It was a nice family celebration.

Mom, dad, and kids and even tourists in the square ringing in NY 2017

It's not really that easy to eat twelve grapes while the bell tolls....

People brought their kids out to dance in the square, and although there was some alcohol involved, there was not a big drunkfest. It was very refreshing.

We then went back to the hotel and we felt like we celebrated New Year 2017 and our 5th anniversary pretty well. They put us in Room 113 which adds up to 5.

Thanks to my sweet guy for putting up with me for 5 years. Lots of love to you always. Adventuring with my husband is the best! Looking forward to all that is ahead.

"A happy marriage is about three things: memories of togetherness, forgiveness of mistakes and the promise to never give up on each other."
                                                                    Surabhi Surendra



Paul's Ponderings:   We had a slow day out wandering up and down the beach boardwalk here in Medano.   It's a beach town, but not overcrowded.   Then we did a great hike in a nature adjacent to the hotel, Reserva Natural Montana Rojas.   It was stunning!   And included some WWII bunkers as a bonus!   Apparently it is among the last remaining nature areas of this type in Tenerife.  We could see Teide, the largest mountain, the mist behind us as well.

The weather here was pretty warm, around 70, and breezy.  The surf is pretty brisk and lots of folks were out on boards and wet suits.   It has been a nice slice of Tenerife, but our time here is limited -- most of the trip will be to La Gomera.   We thought we might go up to Santa Cruz, but it was an hour or more by taxi or bus, so we just stayed around Medano.   Next trip, when we visit Las Palmas and El Heirro, we'll fly into the "north" airport, instead of the south one that we used this time -- Santa Cruz is close to the north airport, so it will be an easy trip then and it's also a jump off point to the other two very small islands.

We also met our guide for the next few days, Max, along with the other folks we'll be hiking with.   Looks like this will be a great trip, mostly on La Gomera as noted.   Tomorrow we start hiking, with a short hike around Teide, the highest mountain on the island....then it's off by ferry to La Gomera.

We had a great New Year's Eve event on the public square....dancing, a drink or two, and lots of festivity with a live band.   There's nothing like celebrating New Year in a foreign location to open your eyes to the world.

Last, but not least, I have to point out that this is my fifth anniversary with my incredible spouse, Lou.  We've had so many adventures over the past five years (and prior) that I can't count them all.  What a great traveling and life companion she is!   This round of adventure is but the latest.   As we say at home, "the good lord willin' and the creek don't rise" there will be many more to come!   I could not have imagine five years plus ago that I'd be having these experiences with such an incredible person as my companion!