Real Tenerife Island Walks

Autumnal Walking on Tenerife

2010-11-12T12:45:00.000Z

When you live on the island of eternal spring it can sometimes be tricky to spot when the seasons change, particularly when you have a summer like this one where calima after calima keeps the temperatures above the seasonal norms.
But anyone visiting Tenerife at the moment will spot a couple of things that are a dead give-away that autumn is upon us.
The first thing to look out for are the budding poinsettias which thrive in cultivated hotel gardens, parks and roadside displays all over the island at this time of year and can be seen growing wild by the side of the road and along country paths. In Tenerife's climate the poinsettia grows like weeds and left to its own devices [read full post]

Tenerife Walking with Children

2010-11-03T14:05:00.000Z

Ever since I first pulled on a pair of walking boots and set off down a country lane, I've realised that walking and hiking isn't, as I once thought, the exclusive domain of anoraks and middle aged dog owners. For us, the fun factor has always been top of the agenda which means that dull, route marches are given a wide body swerve and every outing should end with a beer or two in a local hostelry.

It was while answering a query last week from a customer about walking with youngsters that I realised how many of our Island Walks are actually excellent for families. It's one of the great things about walking on Tenerife that you can still find so much ' undeveloped space filled with surprises that make it the perfect environment for family outings.
Here are some of our favourites [read the full post]

Tenerife Scene of the Week an Idyllic Place to Live

2010-09-06T17:15:00.000+01:00

Depending on likes and dislikes people will tell you why they prefer to live in the south of Tenerife as opposed to the north, or the east as opposed to the west…or any variation of.

I have moments when it hits me like a crane’s wrecking ball straight to the solar plexus why I love living in the north of Tenerife as opposed to…well anywhere at the moment. I had a major one of those at the Pinolere Craft Fair on Saturday...READ MORE

Pools and Pines, A Stunning Tenerife Walk

2010-08-31T11:43:00.000+01:00

The Erjos Pools in Santiago del Teide are one of our favourite spots on Tenerife but for many a year events have conspired to prevent us from hiking them.

A couple of weeks ago we spent an idyllic weekend at the Rural Hotel Señorio del Valle in Santiago del Teide and we took the opportunity to finally hike around the Erjos Pools again and this time, to record our route for others to enjoy.

We've called it Pools and Pines and it's now part of the 'Into the Valley – Erjos to Arguayo' Island Walks. Anyone who has bought the Into the Valley Island Walks from us, either individually or as part of the All Walks offer, just email me and I'll send you the updated version free of charge.
Here's a taster of this lovely walk and you can read about it on our Walking Tenerife website.

Rural Hotel Señorio Del Valle, Santiago del Teide.

2010-08-12T10:38:00.000+01:00

The Santiago Valley nestles high above the south west coast of Tenerife, flanked by fragrant, emerald pine forests and backed by the site of Tenerife’s last volcanic eruption.
Opened in March 2010, the beautiful Rural Hotel Señorio Del Valle in Santiago del Teide is the ideal place to base yourself for one or two nights to explore the valley’s excellent walking trails... [read the full report on our new Walking Tenerife website]

Update on The Barranco del Infierno in Adeje

2010-08-09T17:30:00.000+01:00

The news about one of Tenerife's most popular walks isn't good. The Barranco de Infierno in Adeje closed last August for a bit of TLC for a month...and has never re-opened.
The Barranco was almost ready to be opened to the public in February this year and then disaster hit in the shape of torrential rains which caused serious damage.
Since then news about the re-opening has been sketchy...until now READ MORE

Walk Tenerife from El Palmar to Teno Alto

2010-07-31T10:55:00.000+01:00

This is the stunning El Palmar Valley; a secret paradise in Tenerife's north east corner. It's through this valley that the wonderful El Palmar to Teno Alto walk climbs.

You can read about the walk on our new website [...]

Discover Great Hiking in the South West of Tenerife

2010-07-27T17:28:00.000+01:00

For many, the south west of Tenerife represents the perfect holiday destination, enjoying as it does some of the longest sunshine hours on the island.
Less frenetic than Playa de Las Américas, better value for money than Costa Adeje and more rural than Los Cristianos, the coast which stretches from Los Gigantes in the west to Playa Paraíso in the south encompasses a diverse selection of resorts.
Backed by colossal cliffs, Los Gigantes is a family resort in a spectacular location where whale and dolphin watching cruises operate from its picturesque marina.
Moving south along the coast, Puerto de Santiago has great fish restaurants around its unpretentious harbour while neighbouring Playa de la Arena gets the blue ribbon award for its clean and sheltered beach.
Little Alcalá brings a Canarian/South American character to the coast and Playa de San Juan provides [read the full blog at our new site]

Walking and Hiking on Tenerife – Some Little Quirks

2010-07-20T14:26:00.001+01:00

This is connected to our recent post about trusting directions whilst walking on Tenerife. Our friend who commented about our blogs where we followed paths that took us on the road to nowhere said something else interesting that made me think.

She commented that we mentioned things that if you’ve spent a lot of time walking around Tenerife’s countryside, you hardly register. She’s absolutely spot on. Spend a lot of time hiking on Tenerife and you become very familiar with the island’s little ‘quirks’. (Read the full feature at our new website)

Why You Should Trust Directions from People Who Take Wrong Turnings

2010-07-12T17:48:00.001+01:00

A few days ago a friend who enjoys walking on Tenerife commented ‘I enjoy your walking blogs, you’re always getting lost.’

It wasn’t the first time someone had made this comment and it suddenly made me wonder about how our ‘honest’ tales of walking and hiking on Tenerife might be perceived by others, especially those who are looking for walking directions that they can trust for routes on Tenerife.

I mean, would you buy walking directions from people who tell tales of turning up old paths that suddenly fall away into an abyss of a ravine...read more at our new website.

Enjoy a Tenerife Holiday Walk

2010-07-08T09:10:00.002+01:00

You don't have to be a committed hiker or a keep fit fanatic to enjoy a holiday walk in Tenerife.

Regardless of where you're staying on the island, you'll find a nice holiday walk close by which will stretch your legs and allow you to see something other than the beach or your hotel pool during your visit.

With Island Walks, we have a whole series of suggested routes to suit everyone from the keenest of hikers to those just looking for a nice holiday walk. Island Walks cover a wide geographical spread of Tenerife so that wherever you're staying; whether you're dependant on public transport or intend to hire a car, there's a walk or two to suit... [read more]

Walking on Tenerife – Exploring the Secret North Coast

2010-06-23T18:41:00.001+01:00

We'd been more or less shackled to the computers over the last week and a half., so yesterday decided a bit of great outdoors time was long overdue.

Walking in an area we hadn't really explored before appealed and with yesterday being our wedding anniversary, and a long leisurely meal was due to be the reward for a morning's walking, we didn't want to travel too far.

A hasty bit of research turned up the usual. The official website for Los Realejos waxed lyrical about their wonderful countryside, but didn't actually provided details of walks. In the end we settled on La Matanza, scene of a great Guanche victory over the conquistadors [...] Click her to read more

Walking on Tenerife – That’s The First Time I’ve Ever Seen!

2010-06-15T17:21:00.001+01:00

Normally it’s the scenery that astounds us when we’re out exploring Tenerife’s network of trails and forest paths, emerging from dense pines, or turning a corner in a barranco to be faced with an unexpected ‘WOW’ vista. However, the other day the weather performed a neat little trick which I’ve certainly never witnessed before[...] Click Here To Read More

A Big Change to Island Walks

2010-06-10T19:05:00.000+01:00

We've decided that a nip and tuck is necessary for Island Walks. What started out as a blog has evolved to the extent that we decided that we wanted more flexibility to present information and display photographs about walking on Tenerife in a more dynamic manner. So Island Walks is moving to a brand new website - walkingtenerife.co.uk

We're currently building up the site and will continue to post walking articles on this blog as well as on the new site for the time being. But soon we're hoping to move everything across to Walking Tenerife - we really hope you'll like the change of style.

Walking Directions on Tenerife – The Chinyero Volcano – Almost Perfect Signage…Almost

2010-06-10T16:23:00.002+01:00

This week we thought we were going to have to eat our words about the lack of consistency regarding official walking signage on Tenerife when we ‘oohed’ and ‘aahed’ at the lovely brand new signs leading us to the Chinyero Volcano in the west of the island.

Admittedly getting to the actual walk had involved ignoring a signpost which suggested that the road to the start of the walk may or may not have been shut – it wasn’t – and then knowing where the actual walk began as the signposts didn’t start till we were on the walk. This sort of flawed thinking runs through a lot of Canarian thinking. You have to know that something exists, and where it exists to find out more info about it. It means that if you’re a visitor, there are a lot of things going on that you never get to hear about. Walking routes don’t just start at the first signpost.

But being already armed with this info, this potential stumbling block at the start didn’t pose a problem. To be honest, I didn’t even think about it until I started writing this. It’s something we have to remind ourselves of on a regular basis – to try to look at walks through the eyes of someone who isn’t overly familiar with Tenerife or its quirky little ways.

Anyway we set off along a new and very clear path and at every crossroads there were signs complete with distances. Okay, the angle of a couple might not have been perfect, but that’s being overly picky.

It was one of, if not the clearest marked walking route that we’ve experienced on Tenerife and was getting the thumbs up from us as the perfect walking route. This was looking like a shining example of what the future of Tenerife as a top walking destination could look like.

But this is Tenerife; where the illogical is almost compulsory. As we reached a point in the walk which was less than a couple of hundred yards from the Boca Tauce road and therefore a perfect spot for walkers to access the route from the south and south west, the path completely ignored this and continued parallel with the road before heading inland again.

Not only were there no signs from the path to the road, or vice versa, there were yellow and white crosses advising that it was definitely not part of the route.

Basically this was a walk which was perfectly laid out for people starting from the northern side of the island, but people on the southern side might not be aware it existed even though they were only metres from it. It was bizarre and I can’t quite figure out, considering the care and attention that went into signposting the rest of the walk, why there was such a serious omission at that point.

But there you go; ours is not to reason why, ours is but to do and…discover.

Walking on Tenerife – all that glistens is not gold.

2010-05-31T11:33:00.003+01:00

We often get asked about walking routes in the west by people who are planning to holiday in and around Los Gigantes. So over the past couple of weeks we’ve been concentrating on that area and trying out some walks.

We knew that there was an old trading path running from somewhere around Guía de Isora up into the hills so last week we set off to find it. We were working off information supplied by the Ayuntamiento (Town Hall) which, as usual, was reprinted on a regular basis without anyone checking if it was still current.
Consequently, the start of the route had long since disappeared, replaced by new roads and walls.

After a precipitous false start and some hesitant exploration, we finally found the route and once we were on our way, were pleasantly surprised to find that it was in fact well signed and easy to navigate. At multiple path junctions, signposts gave good directions and distances, routes were way-marked with painted stripes and there were even information boards at various points, showcasing other routes.

Having enjoyed and chronicled a lovely, rural, circular route we emerged back into Guía alongside someone’s house, at the bottom of a dead end, accessed via a series of climbs, twists and turns through housing estates, with not a single signpost to mark it. Had we been looking to start the walk from that side, we would probably still be wandering around Guía now.

That same afternoon we drove further up into the hills to do a short(ish) route at the start of which a brand new, fancy sign had been erected by the Cabildo (Island Government).
Within metres of setting off from the sign, we were unsure of which way to go, our indecision hampered by two small dogs growling and snapping at our heels. Once we’d found an overgrown semblance of a path, it split off in different directions constantly with no marker signs for guidance. Although we were alongside a steep barranco (ravine) and so our direction was pretty obvious, finding the way through was proving to be impossible.

After aborted attempts to drop down dodgy trails on the side of the barranco, we finally found our path completely blocked by two parked vans alongside a house. Re-tracing steps; trying different trails and even asking a couple of locals all amounted to nothing. We finally gave up, tired and frustrated with feet embedded with sharp seed heads from wading through the tangled mass of undergrowth.
The Medio Ambiente (Environmental Department) had clearly decided to re-open the path and had begun by putting up the fancy sign. When, or if, they’ll get round to re-claiming the path from man and nature and giving it clear markings is anybody’s guess.

The moral of this tale is that, on Tenerife, you can’t tell a walk from its signpost.

Walking routes for the south west coming soon…

Walking in the Teide Crater – It's Tajinaste Time

2010-05-28T14:53:00.003+01:00

They don't seem as though they belong. In an other-worldly setting they look like visitors from another planet themselves; their tall proud spikes standing out against the ruddy tones of the volcanic landscape like splashes of blood on a canvas.

It's easy to believe that they are extra-terrestrial visitors enjoying their annual couple of weeks in Tenerife's sunshine before heading back to who knows where.

If anyone hasn't seen them up close and personal then, at some point before mid June, it's worth making the trip up to Las Cañadas del Teide see the brief but spectacular blooming of the tajinaste plant.

Yesterday we traveled back from the south of Tenerife to Puerto de la Cruz via the crater, hoping that our timing was right and the fields of this unusual plant would be there to welcome us – we weren't disappointed.

As you drive along the roads from the southern entrances toward Mount Teide, the tajinaste aren't always easy to spot; they can behave like shy creatures, keeping just out of sight below ridges beside the road. But once you know where they are it's impossible to miss them and conveniently they come back to the same spots year after year. They also congregate around the cable car like the human visitors to Tenerife and by the time you're on the road north, they've lost their shyness and huddle around miradors (viewing areas) and stand at the side of the road like flamboyant hitch-hikers.

But it's essential to get in amongst them by foot to really appreciate their uniqueness. We must have timed it perfectly this year as the island's bees were enjoying their annual shopping trip to the tajinaste – the black spots in the picture aren't dust on the camera lens – and the air was alive with excited buzzing as I leaned in close to try to get some intimate shots of the bees on the flowers. I wasn't particularly concerned that bees were buzzing around my head; there was only one thing on their little insect radar and it wasn't me. I was able to take photo after photo without fear of getting zapped by a bee.

Visiting the tajinaste in bloom is one of those unique little experiences that makes walking on Tenerife ultra special and witnessing these amazing plants bloom in such spectacular style in such a dry, violent landscape makes the soul soar. I can't recommend it enough.

Walking on Tenerife – Those Boots Were Made For Walking

2010-05-26T14:46:00.005+01:00

My favourite boots are a pair of old Camel boots that I've probably worn about twenty times. I was completely seduced by an advert in a travel magazine which basically showed a foot resting on a log in a clearing in the jungle. On the foot was a gleaming Camel boot which looked about as at home in that exotic setting as a piece of leather, not actually on an animal, could be. I couldn't resist them.

Their first outing was to Kenya where they seemed just the ticket for exploring Tsavo East on foot. The reality though was that, as walking boots go, they turned out to be a complete bust. They might have looked the part, but just walking from the safari lodge bar to a table overlooking a watering hole with a G&T (don't actually drink the stuff, but it did seem appropriate) to enjoy sunset was enough to bring up a blister. In the end I carried them around Kenya instead of them carrying me.

Since then I've learned to choose my footwear carefully when it comes to buying shoes for practical reasons; something that when you're tackling Tenerife's diverse range of landscapes is a far more sensible approach.

Footwear for Walking on Tenerife

My number one walking boots for donkey's years have been a trusty pair of brasher's, similar to their current Hillmaster boot. I brought them from Britain with me and they've proved equal to the task of tackling all of Tenerife's terrains from the sliding volcanic scree on the way to the summit of Mount Teide to pine covered forest floors in the forests of the Orotava Valley and icy slopes in Las Cañadas del Teide.

These sort of sturdy boots are good all rounders for exploring the island on foot. But mine can feel quite heavy in the summer months when the temperature rises off the scale and boots like the brasher can make my feet feel as though they're a wee bit overdressed.

So when the temperatures rise, and the terrain permits, I tend to switch to a walking sandal. For a long time I wore a pair of Merrells when walking in summer months (between May and the end October) in areas where the ascents weren't too steep or slippery (good for coastal walks). They struggled a bit with some of the terrain, especially in the upper La Orotava Valley where a bit of dry floor ski-ing can add some excitement to trails when the forest floor is thick with pine needles. It was on one such walk that one of them fell apart mid-walk (to be fair I'd had them for a few years and they'd seen some action).
I couldn't find a suitable replacement until I spotted what looked like an almost identical pair of sandals in my local supermarket at a fraction of the price. To be honest I didn't expect much of them and tried them out on a short coastal walk around Las Ramblas in Los Realejos to see how they'd hold up. It turned out they felt no different from my old Merrells and two years later they're still going strong. They were an incredible bargain considering they cost me €2.99.

Recently I added another addition to my walking footwear stable, a pair of Quechua lightweight walking shoes. I could feel my feet sigh with joy as I tried them out for the first time on a trek last week. The temperature was hovering around 30 degrees and the terrain was more uneven than I'd expected with a couple of steep ascent/descents but the shoes stuck to the path as though they had solvent on them. After 15 kilometres my feet and the shoes were still best of mates.

The only downside was that they were so comfortable that at the end of the walk I was denied that delicious pleasure of peeling off my boots and walking socks and slipping them into an airy pair of sandals to let them breathe a sigh of relief.

It was only their first outing, they'll get the second tomorrow, so it'll be interesting to see how they hold up over the long term.

They won't be sturdy enough for the most serious walks like climbing Teide, or even the muddy Anaga paths after the winter rains, but it looks as though the brashers are going to get a well earned rest over the summer.

Organised Walks – A Bee's View of Mount Teide

2010-05-24T14:31:00.001+01:00

Here's an interesting little guided walking route – El Teide A Vista De Abeja. It's based around an area which is a magnet to bees-the Fasnia Volcano, and is as much about the flora, bees and honey as it is about enjoying the stunning scenery.

There are limited places available and a €15 fee includes transport from La Laguna. The 7 km walk takes place on Saturday 29th May; the perfect time for a walk in the crater as the tajinaste should be in full bloom.

For more information call the Tenerife Rural office on 922 531 013

Creating A Barrier Free Paradise – Tenerife's First Wheelchair Friendly Path

2010-05-24T12:13:00.000+01:00

Last week the first wheelchair friendly forest path was opened by Tenerife president, Ricardo Melchior in Tacoronte's highlands.

The specially developed path is in Agua García, next to the Barranco de Toledo, and covers a distance of 860 metres (both ways) through the forest.

It might only be a small concession to opening up Tenerife's countryside to people who may not otherwise be able to enjoy it, but it is a commendable one.

Walking on Tenerife – Into the Unkown; South West Tenerife

2010-05-21T10:30:00.000+01:00

I get excited by the thought of walking in areas that you rarely hear mentioned, so when we parked the car in a hamlet above Tenerife's south west and headed to what we had worked out would be the start of the new walking route we were researching, I had mixed emotions when we were faced with a shiny new board with information about the route.

I say mixed emotions because on the one hand I wanted to feel we were exploring territory which is generally ignored even by the island's most enthusiastic walkers. On the other it was good to see that the local council were recognising that walking on Tenerife has enormous potential and providing signs to help walkers find their way around this wonderfully diverse island is a step in the right direction.

Within a hundred yards we realised that whilst the board was a step, it was a baby-sized one. Ahead of us were three paths; none signposted. It turned out that the signpost at the start of the route was the one and only signpost along an old merchants' trail which skirted abandoned houses and terraces, with potential paths leading off in various directions along the way.

Six years ago, when we first started exploring Tenerife on foot, I'd have been flummoxed by the lack of clarity regarding the way ahead. But experience since then of not relying on signs, trusting our instincts, and learning to spot the merest hint of a path hidden by the overgrown undergrowth has made us a bit wiser. I say a bit - there are still times when Tenerife's maze of trails confound, that's when the old compass comes in handy.

As it happened we successfully found our way to our objective, a partly abandoned valley hidden in the folds of the hills without use of the compass. And to be truthful, the lack of sign posts and directions on many Tenerife walking routes adds a buzz to finding our way to places which are way, way off the beaten track.

However, visitors to Tenerife who fancy exploring its rural delights and head off along a signposted trail to find themselves faced with tracks heading in all directions and no more signposts to show the way, may not agree that 'buzz' is an accurate description of the emotion they feel at that point.

Walking on Tenerife: The Abandoned Village of Las Fuentes

2010-05-20T13:45:00.002+01:00

For me the best walks on Tenerife, or anywhere, involve routes which offer lots of interesting curios, OMG scenery moments and also have something that little bit different which sets them apart form other walks.

The route we followed yesterday fitted this criteria perfectly. As we navigated our way along a partially overgrown merchants' trail, we detoured to an old tile oven and a communal water tank which in the past was used to refresh the animals and clean the clothes – imagine cleaning your laundry next to a slavering great beast of burden.

The path also skirted the occasional abandoned house, one of which occupied an enviable spot with vistas from Alcalá all the way to the edge of Costa Adeje. We spent a few minutes exploring and imagining how wonderful it would look when fully renovated. Oddly enough the place was littered with the soles of old shoes making us wonder if a zapatero (shoemaker) had lived here.
All around was evidence of a thriving agricultural past that had been long since abandoned, possibly because of the lure of a far more lucrative income offered by the pleasure palaces on the coast below. There were rows of neat empty terraces, more eras (threshing circles) than I've ever seen in one area and old disused fountains where the green slimy puddles showed that the water of life still trickled.

We followed a cobbled trail lined by tabaiba, cactus groves and wild lavender, stopping where paths merged to make educated guesses (hopefully) at the right direction. The path undulated along gentle ravines before a completely hidden path ascended steeply to a ridge, then descended to the base of an oasis of a ravine where it disappeared into wild vines and long whispering grass.

Tracing the faintest outline we pushed the foliage apart and made or way up through a narrow ravine until we reached a point in the path where a pumice dry-stone wall bordered one side and an agricultural enclosure the other. The contents of the enclosure were covered so I couldn't see what was being grown, but it was clear that it had been tended recently; up ahead the faint sound of human voices broke the silence.
I've got to admit to my imagination running away a wee bit here and suddenly visions of Leo DiCaprio in The Beach entered my head. This was supposed to be an abandoned valley, yet it clearly wasn't. Suppose it was now a marijuana factory or something?

However rationality knocked these fanciful thoughts from my head. I've never walked anywhere that feels safer than Tenerife; the chances of being machine-gunned were remote to say the least.

We carried on toward the voices and pushed a curtain of grass aside...and there it was; Las Fuentes, an immaculate little agricultural valley hidden away in the hills.

I love those moments when you reach the highlight of a walk when suddenly one step opens up a whole new world. The Montaña Guajara walk is a bit like that. But this was a place I'd never even seen a photograph of, so it felt extra special.

A couple of old guys tending a row of vines were the only signs of life in the place. They told us that they sold their wine in Guia further down the hill and pointed out where the path continued. We spent some time exploring the hamlet before scrabbling up to an ermita high above the village where we ate lunch, drank spring water from a fountain in the village and generally just enjoyed the hot sunshine atop what must be the best viewpoint along the south west coast.

This sort of experience is what walking on Tenerife is all about.

A detailed guide of the route will be added to Tenerife Island Walks soon, that's a definite.

Walking Above the Clouds on Tenerife

2010-05-10T15:31:00.001+01:00

One of our computers has been in hospital for the last three weeks where it was being lovingly brought back to life by the guys at SITEL in Puerto de la Cruz (if you need work on your computer, these are the guys to go to).

The reason I mention this is that when we were putting the finishing touches to our new 'Hiking Highs – Walking Routes in Teide National Park' I realised that I couldn't find the most up to date photos from the last time we walked up to the summit of Montaña Guajara.

Adding the finishing touches to our Island Walks routes really means slotting the photos into place – it's one of those lovely little jobs which basically involves going through my library of photos to see which ones fit best.

One of the ones I wanted to use was a shot of Andy standing above the clouds. Looking down from above the clouds is one of Tenerife's true 'WOW' experiences. If anyone out there hasn't enjoyed the privilege, emerging above a sea of clouds is like being on a plane when it breaks through a thick bank of clouds to emerge in an intense blue, cloudless sky above a cotton wool landscape.

It's one of those moments that remind you that Tenerife is a very special place with a seemingly endless stock of magical experiences that, ironically, the vast majority of its millions of visitors never, ever witness.

Anyway I searched and searched for the image, but couldn't find it. Although I regularly back up my photos, there was one set that I had missed and which I realised lay, possibly gone forever, in the computer that was ill. This situation was a right bugger. There are some shots where it doesn't matter (towns etc), where I can just go out and get them again, but the summit of Guajara isn't one of those places where you can just nip out to to replace lost photos.

However, the computer was returned last week, pulled back from death's door Lazarus-like by the miracle workers at SITEL and lo and behold my Guajara photos were saved.

In the end I used an image from a previous walk, which I probably like better, but this is the one I was going to use.

Isn't that an incredible vista?

Walking on Tenerife – Simply Stunning Scenery from Off the Beaten Track #3

2010-05-03T12:25:00.000+01:00

For this month's Stunning Scenery shots, we're heading up into Teide National Park for two contrasting landscapes.
The first is taken above Arenas Negras alongside a small ravine where the wind has eroded the rock face, revealing its volcanic layers in shades of coffee and cream. Millions of years of volcanic activity has created layers of different types of rock and volcanic fallout which, when revealed, form beautiful patterns of marbled swirls. The best example of this layering effect is at La Tarte on the amazing route along Tenerife's spine from La Laguna to Teide.

The quick way back to the crater floor from this spot is straight down the face of Arenas Negras itself, scurrying and sliding down the volcanic surface. We call it volcano surfing and it's great family fun, if a little nervy in parts. If you fancy giving a go, follow the Arenas Negras route in Hiking Highs.

The second shot is taken on a path that leads from behind the El Portillo Visitor centre to Montaña Blanca where the serious business of ascending Mount Teide on foot begins.

The landscape here is vast and littered with volcanic debris, cones and craters, all of which just beg to be scaled so you can look inside; a temptation which is only given into once as the altitude and the soft terrain take their toll on thigh muscles.

Teide National park has many different faces and wildly contrasting landscapes depending on which area you choose to explore but the one thing they all have in common is self evident in both these shots; leave the beaten track with its coachloads of visitors and you'll soon find yourself alone with the lizards in this unearthly wonderland.

New Guide to Walking in Teide National Park

2010-04-29T16:42:00.000+01:00

Hiking Highs - a detailed guide to walking routes in Tenerife's Teide National Park is now available to buy for delivery to your email.
So pull on the walking boots, smooth on the factor 15 and discover a world of surreal beauty all to yourself.

Walking in the Mount Teide Crater – Are You Prepared for Walking on Another Planet?

2010-04-22T16:09:00.002+01:00

Our last blog was about walking in the incredible landscape of Las Cañadas del Teide, or the Mount Teide Crater. However, before you lace up your boots and head into this wonderful world, there are a few things to be aware of.

If you've never walked in the crater before be prepared for some surprises. The first is the sheer 'WOW' factor of standing in an epic landscape that is truly unique. Take the time to slowly survey the incredible terrain and the most fascinating and unlikely shapes are revealed; from surreal rock formations to rivers of knotted lava. And the colours are mind-blowing- it's hard to believe that Mother Nature could create so many contrasting tones out of just rock.

The second surprise after the vistas have stolen your breath away is that it doesn't come back...well not immediately anyway. Most hiking in the crater involves walking at altitudes which are 2000 metres plus; a height which is significantly higher than the UK's highest peak, Ben Nevis which reaches up a vertically challenged 1344 metres into the sky. The air is thin up there and although altitude sickness doesn't usually affect people until around the 2400 metre mark, there's no doubt that you can feel the effects when starting out on walks. Breathing can be just that bit more laboured until the body acclimatises, so take it easy at the start.

Another factor to be aware of is that the air is also incredibly dry in the crater. After a few minutes your lips will dry out quicker than had they undergone a Guanche's mummification process. Leave them and after an hour of running your tongue over them, they'll feel as though you're licking the volcanic landscape itself – Vaseline keeps you smooth and soft.

Shade is virtually non-existent in the crater, so don't forget the hat. In winter it might feel on the 'fresh' side when you set off, but the heat from that big golden ball in the sky will soon make itself known to you with a vengeance.

Finally, and sticking to the subject of the sun, even when there are clouds above the coast, the chances are the sun will be shining on the place where the earth holds up the sky. In fact the lower the clouds are, the more chance it'll be clear skies in the crater (here's a simple tip if you want to walk in sunshine: if you can see cloud above Teide, don't go. If you can't see Teide for cloud, it should be sunny).
Stock up with plenty of water before setting out. Ideally, fill up with some sweet spring water at a recreation zone en route and then you won't have to sell the hire car in order to be able to afford a bottle of 'agua' from the Parador café.

After that, you're ready to leave the crowds behind and travel deep into one of the most unique walking terrains you'll find anywhere...on this planet at least.

Real Tenerife Island Walks - Walking Routes in the Teide National Park now available to buy for direct delivery by email within 24 hours

Tenerife Walking Guides - Teide National Park.

2010-04-11T18:00:00.002+01:00

I seem to have some kind of timing mechanism in my head which, if it doesn’t get away from a screen and into the mountains or valleys of Tenerife on a regular basis, starts to emit a dull whining sound which blocks all creative thought.
Of course, that’s just an elaborate way of saying that I can only survive so long before going on a walk – it’s food for the soul.

We’ve been trying to put the finishing touches to our latest Tenerife walking guide – Hiking Highs;Teide National Park – but we’ve been incredibly busy for months now (yay!!) and haven’t had time to map out the final route…until last Monday when we broke free and headed up into the crater.

We’d timed it perfectly as the high cloud that’s been hanging around for a couple of days finally lifted and Teide National Park lay below her customary intensely blue sky. The last vestiges of snow on the peak are diminishing daily as the sun climbs higher and now the spring flowers have burst into bloom. This is a wonderful time of year to go walking in the National Park.

Setting off from the El Portillo Visitor centre, the large white flowers of Teide broom and the elegant indigo stems of Tajinaste Azul accompanied us as we climbed gently above the crater, the twin peaks of La Palma emerging above the sea of clouds on our horizon.

It’s an incredible feeling to be in such a surreal landscape with the sun on your back and only the lizards and canaries for company. Mount Teide was her usual, stunning best and from our vantage point we could clearly see the path that leads over Montaña Blanca before climbing steeply to the summit. Skirting the edge of a spectacular gorge of wind-eroded rocks, we arrived at the top of the Arenas Negras volcanic cone. Then we regressed to giggling childhood as half running, half surfing, we descended its black cinder face, covering a distance in 15 minutes that had taken us 40 minutes to ascend.

Teide National Park is so many things; an alien landscape; a geological masterpiece; home to a mysterious creature known as the mouflon; a hiker’s paradise and a giant playground where you can take a cable car white knuckle ride to see an archipelago in satellite mode and surf volcanoes. Where else on this planet can boast as much?

The ‘Hiking Highs;Teide National Park’ walking guide is now available to buy and have delivered directly to your email within 24 hours.

The Barranco del Infierno – Getting into Hell is Easier

2010-03-15T11:24:00.002Z

Last August (2009) we told you that the Barranco del Infierno was closed for a month for a wee bit of TLC. We also warned that a Tenerife month isn’t the same as a month in other places. Unfortunately time has proved that comment was somewhat of an understatement.

The bad news is that it’s now March 2010 and guess what? Hell’s Ravine is still shut.

Prompted by a comment on another blog I called the medio-ambiente people in Adeje to find out what was happening. Not only is the Barranco del Infierno still shut, details of when it is likely to re-open are as clear as a February day at Los Rodeos (i.e. not).

The medio ambiente person on the other end of the line mumbled something about verano (summer), but when I pressed he did a sort of soft shoe shuffle as he backed off adding ‘tal vez, tal vez’ (perhaps, perhaps).

In short, we don’t seem to be any further along since the last time I called them a few months ago.

To be fair, the torrential rains which affected some parts of the island in February, including Adeje, sent raging rivers rampaging through the island’s ravines. A lot of the work to improve the Barranco would have been destroyed, so in this case nature has to shoulder some of the blame rather than a lackadaisical approach to completing jobs on schedule (although, work was already months behind schedule before the storms hit, so they don’t get off scot-free).

Clearly this is bad news for walkers, but the good news is that although the Barranco del Infierno is a pleasant enough walk, it has become quite manicured and a bit like a hiking version of the TF1 motorway. If you’re someone who prefers their countryside a bit wilder and less populated, there are plenty of other great walks around the south of Tenerife which aren’t ‘closed for business’.

Walking on Tenerife – Instead of a Fly Drive Holiday, Try a Walk Drive One

2010-02-24T12:55:00.001Z

When we wrote Real Tenerife Island Drives and Island Walks we wrote them independently of each other. The idea for a series of driving routes came about because we were constantly passing visitors to Tenerife who had hired a car, parked in lay-bys with a map spread over the dashboard, or worse – arguing furiously. Having travelled all over Tenerife on a regular basis for research purposes, we knew only too well that a map had limited value, and if driving through towns, was virtually useless.

Similarly with walking, we started writing walking routes because, as avid walkers, the ones we had tried to use were often more likely to get us lost than get us from A to B and many were simply quite a few years out of date.

However, we never really thought of them being used together until we noticed recently that more and more people were combining buying Island Drives with one or more of the Island Walks routes and we thought, ‘what a damned good idea…why didn’t we think of that?’

I suppose it’s an obvious way of getting the most out of the drive to the walking location. The Anaga Mountains are a perfect example of this. To get the best out of them really requires exploration on foot and by car (or bicycle if you opt for the green option…and are super fit).

The terrain is far too demanding to explore in great depth on foot over the course of a two week holiday. Yet there are places that can only be explored on foot like the fishing hamlet with no roads to it near Tenerife’s most easterly tip (we haven’t written a walking route for that one yet, but it’s in the pipeline) or the merchants’ trails linking tiny hamlets (which we do have routes for).

On the other hand, the road which runs along the Anaga’s spine isn’t ideal for walking along, but it does have spectacular views over both coasts and there are some excellent viewpoints worth stopping at for some breathtaking photos to impress the friends back home.

So to anyone out there who has bought Island Drives and Island Walks, you may just have pioneered a new concept in tourism, The Walk – Drive Holiday; the perfect way to get the most from car hire on Tenerife.

The Anaga Mountains: Real Tenerife's Favourite Place for Walking on Tenerife - But What did The British Guild of Travel Writers Make of them?

2010-02-04T14:15:00.001Z

The first time we explored the Anaga Mountains we were completely seduced by their astoundingly dramatic beauty.

As we walked along narrow trails through a lush valley, where we passed a few goats then a lone cottage where a smiling old woman in a straw hat tended her flower-filled garden, a thought occurred. If you dropped someone who has never been to Tenerife (or even plenty who have, but have never made it beyond the beach) into this remote wilderness without telling them where they were, you could let them have a hundred guesses and they’d never get it right.

The Anaga’s are by far our favourite place for walking on Tenerife, but because of their location they are still too far off the tourist trail for most visitors, even those who enjoy hoofing it around the countryside on foot.

We’ve been banging about how incredible the Anaga Mountains are for years. Even the walker’s paradise of neighbouring La Gomera can’t compete with what the Anaga Mountains have to offer in my opinion. And you’ve got the added bonus of having the wonderful cities of Santa Cruz and La Laguna within easy distance. These extreme contrasts found in the north east tip of Tenerife represent the best of the real Tenerife.

But we’re biased northerners, so it was with interest that we followed the British Guild of Travel Writer’s tweets on Twitter as they swapped the surreal luxury of the Gran Hotel Bahía del Duque and other 5 Star hotels in Costa Adeje, the newest part of Tenerife, for goat trails and laurisilva forests in the oldest part of Tenerife. Here’s what some of them had to say:

“Changed my mind about Tenerife. Stunning scenery & amazing downhill walk in Anaga Mtns & rainforest. Must go back.”

“Had a fab walk in Anaga's laurisilva forest y'day. Robins and wagtails galore.”

“Magnificent walk in Anaga rain forest.”

“Loved today's walk through the beautiful Anaga laurisilva in NE Tenerife.”

“Hike in Anaga was great yesterday, particularly views of sea and village towards the end. Bit steep for some though.”

“Very impressed with the hiking in Tenerife's remarkable north.”

So there you have it, we’re clearly not alone in our views. The Tenerife Tourist Board pulled a master stroke by taking the British Guild of Travel Writers to a place where life continues much as it has done for centuries.

If you want to show visitors an area of Tenerife which is guaranteed to confound preconceived ideas, you couldn’t choose better than the Anaga Mountains.

Visions in Pink - The Almond Trees of Santiago del Teide, Tenerife

2010-01-26T14:21:00.001Z

The Santiago del Teide Valley is an uplifting place to walk at any time of the year – old farmers in fedora hats stop their backbreaking work tending fields to wave as you walk by, old women in straw hats gossip on the corners of a small hamlet and the scenery shifts from gentle agricultural lands to pine forest to bizarre volcanic formations – but in January and February it is positively magical.

This is the time when the almond trees blossom and fill parts of the valley with their delicate pink flowers. They are a beautiful if short-lived sight to behold and make exploring the area that little bit more special.

For anyone who’s lucky enough to be on Tenerife during this blooming marvelous time and who wants to discover the charms of the Santiago Valley for themselves our ‘Into the Valley’ walking route traverses much of the valley.

Tenerife Island Walks are always a real joy to put together and the Santiago del Teide Valley route was no exception. The routes which follow former merchant and Guanche shepherd trails have some moments where the scenery is so stunning it could almost knock you on to your backside. Standing overlooking the valley with the road snaking to Masca on the opposite valley wall and La Palma, La Gomera and occasionally El Hierro floating on the horizon comes as a standard 'WOW' moment on this walk.

At this time of year, the flowering almond trees are just an added bonus.

The Santiago del Teide council organizes guided ‘Ruta del Almendro en Flor’ (Almond Trees in Flower Route) each February. This year’s takes place on the 6th, but such is the popularity that it’s already full – however, it does give you an idea of around which date the locals consider it best to view the almonds in flower.

Walking on Tenerife - Teide National Park

2010-01-03T12:14:00.000Z

When your husband has insisted on buying a turkey large enough to feed a family of six and then cooked it to perfection, there’s only one thing to do the next day and that’s climb the highest peak you can reasonably get to and back before darkness falls.

So it was, with a bellyful of turkey and mince pies, that we drove to the Teide Parador last Saturday and headed off to climb Guajara, the highest section of the remaining crater wall.
We’d tried this walk before and had missed the turn off because some thoughtless hiker had chosen to take a break by leaning against the directional signpost, thus obscuring it from view. We walked all the way to the start of the Vilaflor pine forests before realising our mistake and re-tracing our steps but by then, we were too tired to make it all the way to the summit.

I’d been waiting for a chance to finally get there ever since.

It was a perfect day; the sky was the sort of blue that when you see it in holiday brochures you just know it’s been Photoshop’d, and the crater was wearing its most vivid of winter hues. The air temperature in the National Park was about 11°C and the wind chill factor was bringing it down to about 9°C but the sun was hot and within minutes of walking, I’d shed my fleece and was down to a T shirt and shorts.
I remembered the first ascent of 175 metres as being quite strenuous but then last time we did it, the crater was filled with snow and ice which made the path a bit treacherous in parts. This time, I was pleased that it only took 30 minutes to get to the ridge.

No mistakes this time, despite a couple of hikers once again resting right where the directional sign was, we turned up into the final Guajara ascent. The path was eroded from recent heavy rains and it was hard going. At times the path disappeared completely before re-emerging a few yards further on. By the 50 minute stage I’d lost the feeling in my hands and legs; my hands because the temperature was now down to an icy 2°C and my legs because they were so tired from altitude walking.

Another 10 minutes and we emerged at the summit, 2715 metres above sea level, and the whole crater opened up below us. It was awesome.
We sat on the little stone benches and ate our sandwiches (turkey – naturally) completely hypnotised by the beauty of the mountain cradled in its kaleidoscopic setting dotted with shimmering lakes beneath a blindingly blue sky.

Nowhere else on this planet can you walk in such an astonishing landscape and witness the drama of nature’s explosive past from your vantage point above the clouds. It’s a humbling experience.
But when you do it, please choose your rest spots carefully and don’t inadvertently ruin another hiker’s day…happy trails and Happy 2010!

Sunday Strolling

2009-12-20T15:41:00.001Z

The eastern coast of Tenerife is the part that every visitor sees as they whiz along the TF1 motorway from the airport to their resort, and back again. Very few visitors ever spend any time there which means that, when it comes to walking, you’re quite likely to have the whole place virtually to yourself.

Last Sunday we wanted to do a short walk with a friend of ours who lives in the south of the island. The weather had been cloudy and damp just about everywhere on the island and the forecast was for more rain so we wanted somewhere that was a) our best shot at catching dry weather b) somewhere half way for us each to travel and c) in or around 2 hours maximum with a nice restaurant in which to end with lunch.
There was just one place that fitted the bill perfectly; the Güímar Malpaís.

Starting at the little port of El Puertito, we ambled across the badlands alongside the sea amidst great swathes of tabaiba, cardón and sea lettuce. In the spring and summer, the grasses are tall and green but in winter they’re brown and wispy, rippling the landscape in the breeze.
Crossing the lava fields we headed inland to Montaña Grande and skirted the base before heading back on a different route to the fish and seafood cafes and restaurants of Puertito. An idyllic little 2 hour circular stroll with views along the coast northwards to Las Teresitas beach and Santa Cruz and southwards to the lighthouse at Poris de Abona.

And if you’re staying in the south of the island, there’s a fantastic drive that takes you to El Puertito along the old Forgotten Road so you can combine touring with walking…perfect.

Walking on Tenerife: Using Public Transport or Hiring a Car on Tenerife

2009-12-10T15:02:00.004Z

When we first travelled abroad, we used to go on all the excursions available. I loved getting to see all sorts of interesting things, but hated being herded about and eating mediocre meals.
Within a few years we dumped the excursions, bought guide books and set off on our own. If it was in Europe, we’d hire a car, if it was further afield we’d use whatever public transport was available - tuk, tuks, trains, dhows, river taxis and even the occasional elephant. Instead of simply sightseeing we started having adventures. The experience was worlds away from the world of organised excursions.

It’s probably a safe bet to assume that if you’re reading this blog and you’re interested in walking on Tenerife, you are the sort of person who enjoys setting out under their own steam whether it’s by car or by local bus (sorry, no elephant transport here, although there are camels). But which depends on personal preferences and on what areas you hope to explore when you visit Tenerife.

The bus network on Tenerife is excellent in my opinion. Although we both drive we use it regularly if we’re going into Puerto de la Cruz or Santa Cruz for a night out, or to and from the airport, or the port at Los Cristianos if we’re travelling to La Gomera. Buses are cheap and on the whole reliable and if you’re planning on walking, you can get to many good walking areas by public transport. For example, if based in Puerto de la Cruz, a regular bus service will transport you into the heart of the pine forest in the upper La Orotava Valley. If you’re in the south west around Los Gigantes, the bus to Puerto drops walkers off at the Fleytas bar where there are a number of classic routes to explore.

But, and this is a giant sized ‘but’, if you’re the sort of person who relishes exploring the most remote corners of the places you visit, the less populated an area, the less likely it is to have a regular bus service. The most spectacular route to Mount Teide isn’t on a bus route because no-one lives along most of it.

I read a post on Tripadvisor recently from someone who had been to La Gomera. He said that it was completely different from Tenerife and that it was probably what Tenerife was like before tourism. He was wrong about that. The Anaga Mountains with their tiny agricultural hamlets are exactly like La Gomera; if anything, they make La Gomera look over developed. But some of the spectacular walks there are more or less ‘out of bounds’ to someone using public transport, so for many visitors there are great swathes of Tenerife which remain ‘hidden’.

For me that’s where the car wins hands down. Hirting a car on Tenerife opens up the whole island rather than just part of it.

I Can't Buy Island Walks Because I can't Speak Spanish!

2009-12-03T12:42:00.002Z

We'd like to publicly pass on a thousand 'thank you's to J in America for pointing out to us that when she tried to buy Island Walks, the Paypal page came up in Spanish. No problem to any Spanish speakers out there, but a serious deterrent to those who aren't on best pal terms with that lovely language.

We've no idea how this happened; it was all set up in English, so some mischievous little Castilian gremlin has clearly been at work.

Anyway, thanks to J, everything is now once again in English, so anyone wishing to purchase any of the Island Walks will be able to do so without having to enrol in Spanish language courses first.

Apologies to all for any inconvenience caused by this annoying little glitch.

Guided Routes: Arico Coast and La Cueva Del Viento

2009-12-03T12:25:00.000Z

Granadilla council are organising a couple of short walks this month.

The first is from Poris de Abona to Los Abades on the 12th and costs €5. The pick up point is outside the tourist office in El Médano at 9am (returning at 1pm).

And the second is into the volcanic tube, La Cueva del Viento near Icod de los Vinos. Entry to the cave and transport is included in the €12 price and the pick up point is also outside the tourist office in El Médano, but this time it’s an earlier start at 7.30am (returning at midday).

Anyone interested in joining the walks should contact José Juan Cano Delgado on 922 75 99 95 or by email at: jjcanodelgado@gmail.com

Events on Tenerife: Walk for Life in Playa de las Américas

2009-11-23T14:53:00.000Z

We receive lots of queries about walking on Tenerife, well here’s the opportunity to indulge in something you enjoy and also do it for a great cause as donations made go to (AECC) “Asociación Española contra el Cáncer” (Spanish Association against Cancer) and (AMATE) “Asociación de Mujeres afectadas por Cáncer de mama” (Association of Women Affected by Breast Cancer).

Each year, thousands of people turn the promenade at Playa de las Américas into a pink parade in a colourful show of support for those who have been affected by this horrible disease.

Simply, register, make a donation, pick up your Walk for Life t-shirt, or pink cap and you can become a member of the pink parade.

Walk for Life this year takes place on Sunday the 13th December and the route runs along the promenade from the Mediterranean Palace hotel in Playa de las Américas to the Sally Tien Plaza, Costa Adeje.

Have a look at the Walk for Life website for more information

Good News for Tenerife Walkers

2009-11-22T16:00:00.001Z

The press invitation had quite clearly stated that walking shoes and warm clothing should be worn but it seems that for the staff of the local Town Hall, a visit from the President of the Tenerife Council was too important an occasion not to dress up for.

18th November was the 100th anniversary of Tenerife’s last volcanic eruption which came from Mount Chinyero in the pine forests of Santiago del Teide municipality. To mark the anniversary a plaque was to be unveiled at the foot of the volcano and some doves were to be released to fly over the frozen black lava that today fills the landscape.

Heeding the advice in the invitation and wearing sensible shoes and a warm jacket, I had to stifle my giggles as I watched the ‘suits’ from the Island Council and the local Town Hall trying to walk over the lava fields to where the plaque was being unveiled. Even funnier were the women, one in little white ballet-type shoes, one in gold sandals and one in high heel knee boots.
Apart from the Dick Emery type gait that they all had to adopt as they slipped and wobbled on the pumice rocks, they all had hunched shoulders and goose-pimply flesh from the distinctly nippy breeze that was blowing around the volcano.

Still, plaque uncovered and doves released, we all trooped our way back to the Casa del Patio in Santiago del Teide for the much more sedate second part of the centenary celebration.
Casa del Patio is the 17th century former home of the Hoyo y Solórzano family who used to own Santiago del Teide and it has now been beautifully restored by the Tenerife Council. Housing a permanent exhibition to the Chinyero eruption of 1909, this was the perfect occasion to officially open the Casa to the public.

It’s in an idyllic setting just behind the church in Santiago del Teide and stepping through the gates is like stepping back in time. Apart from the assorted cockerel, ducks and geese underfoot, there’s a wine museum, a wonderfully atmospheric Tasca with cheeses, hams and local wine and a rather elegant restaurant. There are also riding stables and there are plans to open riding trails locally so everyone can enjoy the spectacular scenery on horseback, the way many locals still do.
If you’re planning a trip to Masca I recommend stopping off here for an hour to wander the grounds, browse the shop and museums and sample some local produce at the Tasca.

Best of all, there’s a small rural hotel on the site which is due to be opened shortly and which will be the perfect stopover for hikers.
The trails around Santiago del Teide valley are some of the most diverse on Tenerife with terrain moving from lush, wild flower-filled valley, to pine forest and frozen lava fields around Mount Chinyero. You even move through climate zones from the humid, cooler Erjos Pools to the arid south at Arguayo. Walking these hills and valleys is akin to walking on at least three different islands.

When Casa del Patio Rural Hotel opens we’ll be able to combine a great day’s walking with a night in a stylishly rustic hotel and lunch at the Tasca.
Now that’s something to look forward to.

Walking in the South of Tenerife

2009-10-30T16:01:00.003Z

The most enquiries we get from people about walking on Tenerife are:
1) I’m staying in the south and would like some walks within easy distance and
2) do you have any walks that aren’t too long?

Well, if I was a stone, I might just have killed two birds…

This week we’ve published ‘The Old South’ which is a series of five walks set, as the name suggests, in and around the south of Tenerife.
They range from an ancient trading route which takes you through the pretty hamlet of San Miguel before heading out into idyllic rural scenery and spectacular views, to pine forests and cliff-side paths above plunging ravines with magnificent vistas over Costa Adeje.
From above barrancos to within barrancos and from village to valley, all the walks in The Old South are less than 3 hours in duration and can easily be done by any reasonably fit person without the aid of breathing apparatus!

You can buy ‘The Old South’ for just €2 or you can buy the whole Island Walks series for just €6. Every purchase gets a free copy of ‘A Captivating Coastline’ which gives you a free bonus of five beautiful Tenerife coastal walks.
Happy hiking!

Fuzzy Walking Directions – A Recipe for Disaster

2009-10-23T16:01:00.003+01:00

The term ‘recipe’ seems quite appropriate to use when talking about walking routes, especially when talking about writing walking routes.

Let’s be honest here, most walking routes anywhere have been written out any number of times by any number of people over the years. It’s very rare to find a completely ‘new’ walking route, but that doesn’t mean to say that there’s not something fresh to say, or a different approach to take.

It’s the same with recipes. Most recipes are variations on ones which have been handed down through families or recorded in cook books over aeons. But that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing new about the recipe. A dash of cumin here, a sprinkling of fresh herbs there and you’ve got something which improves on the original.

I bet you’re wondering where I’m going with this…hang on in there, I’ll get there in the end.

The recipe analogy came into my head the other day as I surveyed a bewildering noughts and crosses grid of identical looking paths heading in all sorts of directions. I’m sure from the air it must have looked like one of those ‘landing strip for flying saucers’ images from Erich Von Däniken’s Chariots of the Gods.

I was heading up to the summit of Montaña Guaza beside Los Cristianos and had reached a crossroads of paths which had me scratching my head in confusion.

You might be thinking, ‘surely if you’re heading to the summit of a mountain, it’s pretty obvious which way to go… up’.

And normally I’d agree, but in this situation I was following instructions which very clearly told me, against my better judgement I have to add, to ignore the obvious and then held me tightly by the hand until they deserted me at the crisscross of paths at which point they ran off into the distance feebly shouting ‘I’ll meet you again when the path becomes a bit clearer.’

It was like following a recipe for a curry which, when it got to the stage of adding the exotic seasonings, told you to ‘now add some spices’ but didn’t tell you which ones.

I was pretty peed off, especially as It’s not the first time this has happened with these particular ‘walking instructions’ and decided to do what Andy and I regularly decide to do when trying to work out what we think is the best walking route – follow our instincts. More often than not this ends up being our way of adding those extra tasty spices and handfuls of aromatic fresh herbs.

As it turned out the route we would have followed, had the directions not told us otherwise, was the most direct and was much, much simpler. God knows why we were encouraged to go off on some wild goose chase.

But once again this is exactly one of the reasons we are putting together a series of walking routes for Tenerife which we think are more user friendly than… well anything we’ve come across yet.

We’ve specifically designed them so that they look great and are full of beautiful photographs and interesting snippets of information about the area and what people should look out for.

However, the most important aspect of them for us is this.

Unlike the instructions we were using which basically just ignored the fact that there were paths in all directions, we want to be there holding your hand, saying ‘don’t worry; we’ll stick with you all the way, especially when the path ahead is unclear.’

P.S. Our version of which route to take up Montaña Guaza is now available as part of our new ‘Island Walks – The Old South Routes’.

Walking on Tenerife - The Medio Ambiente Are Still Trying to Kill Me

2009-10-19T15:04:00.002+01:00

I had no idea what to do. I squatted down and peered at the ground in front of me… nothing, not even the slightest suggestion of a path. I was a pine needle’s width away from putting my ear to the ground; not for any particular reason other than it looked good when Hawkeye did it in Last of the Mohicans and Aragorn in Lord of the Rings.

The forest stretched almost from horizon to horizon in front of us (well that’s what it seemed like), every inch of it looking exactly the same. Only Mount Teide dominating the horizon to the right provided an indication that at least the general direction we were going was right.

The Medio Ambiente had done it again. They’d sent us off into the wilderness with shiny new signs which kept us welcome company where the path was clear and which deserted us completely when it wasn’t. And now we were in danger of becoming lost forever… or a few hours anyway.

To be fair I can’t lay all the blame at their door. Although we were on a former official walking route, we had strayed from the new path that, for some strange reason, the Medio Ambiente now wanted us to follow.

We were in the hills above El Tanque with friends Richard, Nikki and Basil of Tenerife Dogs fame. Basil was unperturbed by this turn of events, enjoying his frolic in the forest, whereas the rest of us stared at the expanse of forest in front with expressions which must have matched those of the 300 Spartans facing the Persian army at Thermopylae.

It had started out well enough with an easy stroll along a clear path through the pines from the recreation zone at Arenas Negras. The first alarm bells should have sounded when a signpost, which had pointed the way 18 months ago, didn’t appear where it should have done. Still, there was only one clear path and we followed it although it veered away from the way we were sure we wanted to go.

The signposts along it looked shiny and new; something which would normally be helpful. On Tenerife this isn’t always the case. Eventually we arrived at a path which circled the Chinyero Volcano, not the place we intended to be at all, and decided to retrace our steps and follow another new sign to San José. The route took us back in the right direction; however, within a few minutes the path became almost anonymous and there was a severe shortage of any helpful signposts whatsoever. A strategy of fanning out like a police line looking for a body helped get us back on track and we eventually joined up with a main path beside the impressive looking black and rust coloured cone at Arenas Negras.

We followed the ‘unofficial’, but more interesting, path around the volcano through a strange landscape of scattered pines, with perfect circles of tobacco coloured fallen pine needles at their base, and uneven lava formations. The path was easy to follow and the views of Mount Teide and the peaks of La Palma breaking the sea of clouds were breath stealers.

All was well with the world until we reached the point where the path completely disappeared.

I remembered similar happening the last time we walked this route, but this time I had an ace card. There was a small campsite of wooden chalets which was right above the end of our route and which should have become visible as we walked in a straight line from the end of the clear path… except this time there wasn’t.

We stared and stared at the forest, but there were no hints to the right direction, nothing… apart from the thinnest of straws. A flattish section of the forest up a slope to our right looked vaguely familiar and sort of like the spot where the chalets had been, but even as I climbed I knew that it was more in vain hope than anything else. Sure enough I reached the top and my hopes were dashed; there were no chalets. Unsure of what to do next I wandered a few feet to a ridge to think what I was going to tell the others…and there below me was the recreation zone where we’d started.

The relief was palpable and we were able to enjoy our bocadillo lunch at the comfort of a picnic table before heading to Fleytas Bar for the most welcome of post walk beers to debate what had happened to the chalets.

This experience is exactly the reason we have written walking routes on Tenerife and this particular route will be coming your way sometime in the near future – as soon as we can figure a way out to describe a path through a forest where everything looks exactly the same.

Walking on Tenerife – The Mystery of the Adeje Troll

2009-10-12T14:02:00.002+01:00

Something spooky is going on in ‘them thar hills’ above Adeje.

A couple of years ago we spent quite a bit of time walking in the Adeje Mountains as research for the ‘Walkabout’ series we were writing for Living Tenerife Magazine. On one path we came across a particularly strange rock formation which looked like a face; a troll’s face to be exact. I took a couple of photos of it, so here’s the proof that it wasn’t simply a hallucination brought about by sniffing some toxic flora along the way (not that there was any, but the smell of curry plants at one point had been quite intoxicating).

Last weekend we returned to the area to map out some routes in more detail in preparation for our new ‘Walks in the Old South’ addition to the Real Tenerife Island Walks series and as we drew closer to the area where we’d seen troll face we kept a look out for his distinctive features.

However, he’d gone!

At first we assumed we must have missed him, even though he had been right beside the path, and the return journey turned into a mission to find him. But as we passed the spot where I was 99.9% certain he’d been, he simply wasn’t there.

Maybe he really had been a troll and after we’d published his photo decided his cover had been blown, so upped sticks and headed deeper into the forest.

Or maybe his face had simply eroded. Personally, I much prefer the first explanation. The World needs a bit of magic now and again.

Tenerife Lizards

2009-10-11T15:58:00.002+01:00

Wherever you walk on Tenerife it’s a fairly safe bet that you’ll be accompanied by lizards scuttling around in the undergrowth and playing ‘chicken’ across the path in front of you.
It never ceases to amaze me how these painfully shy creatures suddenly turn into your best mates the moment you get your butties out of the rucksack. I reckon it’s evolution; lizards have learned that the crinkle of foil or the rustle of plastic equals crumbs.

Yesterday was hike-athon day for us. Three hikes in one day, an arduous feat as my buttocks will now attest. The final hike was from San Miguel de Abona to La Centinela Mirador and as we sat on a bench overlooking the southern landscape I remembered the last time we were here. We’d sat down on the same bench to eat our lunch and within seconds lizards popped up from everywhere grabbing the crumbs we threw and disappearing back into the undergrowth with them.

One time we were hiking through an overgrown barranco in Guimar and we nearly stepped on a lizard that was peeking out from a crevice in the path. We stopped and Jack started photographing it at close range. We were amazed how confident the little fellow was. He didn’t move at all despite the close proximity of the camera lens. We must have been there for 3 or 4 minutes before I sensed that something was wrong. The lizard was actually trapped. He’d got the top half of his body through the crevice and was firmly stuck. Who knows how long the poor thing had been there and more importantly, how long he would still be there had we not come along. This was an abandoned barranco that was extremely difficult to navigate and clearly hadn’t been traversed for a very long time. In all likelihood he would have starved to death there.

Jack carefully dislodged a couple of rocks and the lizard wriggled free. For a moment he just stood there, as if he couldn’t quite believe what had just happened, and then he was off, scuttling into the undergrowth and away, already composing the narrative he would tell his children and grandchildren.

The experience gave us a warm glow, a combination of feeling really good that we’d just saved a life and mortification that we’d spent several minutes photographing the poor thing in the throes of his ordeal.
So next time you’re hiking, keep an eye out and pack some extra crumbs for the lizard life.
And if you're interested in some walking routes in the south of Tenerife, you'll love our selection of the best southern walks in 'The Old South' - only €2 including your FREE copy of our favourite Tenerife coastal walks, 'Captivating Coastline'. Buy online for delivery to your in box.

Walking on Tenerife – The Closure of the Barranco del Infierno

2009-10-08T13:09:00.002+01:00

Back in August we told you that the Barranco del Infierno was closed for a bit of a facelift.
It was estimated that the work would take a few weeks to complete.So, working on a formula specifically developed for Tenerife – take the official estimate and double it – we thought that it was time to check with the people at the Barranco del Infierno how things were progressing.

The bad news is that the Barranco is still closed. The good news is that the person we spoke to reckoned that it should be open again by around mid October. The typically Tenerife uncertain news is that he added a ‘mas o menos’ at the end.

Now we’re guessing November, but watch this space.

If the Cap Fits…

2009-10-04T15:44:00.001+01:00

I love hats. All my life I’ve wanted to own and wear hats and have spent countless hours in front of shop mirrors trying berets, caps, trilbys, cowboy hats, top hats and beanies. But the sad fact is I really don’t suit hats. So when I find one that looks okay, I tend to stick to it.
And that’s why the cap I wear when I go hiking which was once velvety black is now faded to grey, scruffy and dirty (despite its intimate knowledge with the inside of the washing machine) and has travelled much of the world with me over the countless years that I’ve owned it.

Last week I was rummaging through the various boxes of goodies in the ‘Todo a Euro’ sale at the local Al Campo supermarket and distractedly pulled a khaki coloured baseball cap from a box and put it on.
“My God,” said Jack. “That actually looks good on you.”
With a grin of delight I threw the cap into the shopping basket and went back to get one in a different colour for Jack.

When I got home I took the old caps off the rucksack handle where they permanently live and replaced them with the clean, shiny new ones.
I felt a twinge of regret as I threw the old ones into the back of the wardrobe and a slight worry that the newness of the cap would only serve to emphasise the age of the rest of the outfit.
Hmm, I fear this could end up costing me a lot more than the Euro I paid for the cap.

Walking on Tenerife – Simply Stunning Scenery from Off the Beaten Track #2

2009-10-01T17:15:00.004+01:00

We have two very contrasting areas which involve heading above the clouds for our ‘Stunning Scenery’ shots this month. The first is still an area which is relatively unexplored by visitors and where it’s possible to walk all day and have the forest all to yourself. The upper Güímar Valley is a bugger to get to from anywhere - even if you live in Güímar. This has an upside as it keeps the forests virgin and any walks feel like real voyages of discovery, but it does mean that a lot of effort to get there is required and if you’re using public transport… well, good luck.

This photo was taken near the start of the Pedro Gil route. The ruddy track leads into the pine forest and around a volcanic cone. The deeper you delve into the forest, the more remote it feels as the rocky valley walls loom overhead and any sound is courtesy of birdsong – it’s a magical and mysterious spot.

Ironically the second photo isn’t that far from one of the most visited spots on Tenerife, Mount Teide, and yet it could be a million miles away. Hundreds of thousands of people might visit the mighty mountain, but only a handful of them stray from the well beaten path where more crater treasures await the intrepid visitor. This shot was taken on the Montaña Guajara trail during winter when the sun was hot on the skin, snow lay on parts of the ground and a sea of cloud added a spectacular backdrop to the barren landscape creating a wonderfully unique scene.

Walking on Tenerife – Return to the Enchanted Forests of La Orotava Valley

2009-09-15T17:33:00.003+01:00

We never tire of walking in the La Orotava Valley – the forests are simply enchanting, the views are epic and the air has such a clean fresh quality that to breathe it feels like cleansing the lungs with purifying pine scented goodness.

A couple of friends, Richard (Life on the Reef) and Nikki (Tenerife Dogs) fancied a change from the ultra cool wind surfing scene at El Médano and suggested we meet up for a walk. And as we don’t need much persuading to put down the metaphorical pen and head into the hills for a date with nature, we jumped at the chance.

The Aguamansa circular walk is the perfect introduction to walking in the La Orotava Valley. It’s only just over two hours long and meanders through the emerald pines and below the organ pipe rock formation appropriately known as Los Órganos before heading downwards through the forest to join little country lanes on the approach to Aguamansa.

The weather was perfect for walking. At the level of the route, around the 1000 metre mark, at this time of year it’s warm without being hot. There were a few clouds around, but they were below us which just added to the visual feast of the upper valley. I always get a buzz, no matter how many times I’ve experienced it, of looking down and seeing a sea of white fluffy clouds below me. Mount Teide standing proud on the opposite of the valley, a dry and ruddy looking giant rising above the lush green forest, just adds that special finishing touch.

It was doubly pleasurable on this occasion to walk the route in the company of people who appreciated the beauty of the valley as much as we did and time passed quickly as we chatted and strolled, stopping every so often to absorb the views and marvel at the wispy lichen hanging from the trees like beards.

It’s a gentle, relatively easy walk; the only potentially dodgy bit being at the final descent where the forest meets the country lanes which is quite a steep section of about a couple of hundred yards or so. When the ground is dry, as it is at this time of year, it can add an ‘extreme sport’ element to the route and the danger of participating in a bit of impromptu ‘dry skiing’ is always a risk. On this occasion, I was the only ‘victim’ and just before I reached the bottom, my left leg shot out and down I went. Actually, my backside didn’t actually hit the dirt, but my right knee did, so Andy technically declared it a ‘fall’.

The route finished back at the little log cabin La Caldera restaurant where we replenished energy with some cervezas, Spanish tortilla, Carne con papas, papas arrugadas and fresh trout from the trout farm just down the road for under €30 whilst forest workers came and went and riders trotted by on their horses.

It is a blissful little walk which shows another, stunning face to this marvellously diverse island. It’s just a shame that the majority of visitors to Tenerife never experience it.

Organised Walking Routes on Tenerife – Walk to the Cave of Hermano Pedro

2009-09-08T15:39:00.004+01:00

Admittedly this walk isn’t going to get the lungs going or test those leg muscles, but it involves an interesting little pilgrimage to the cave of the Canary island’s one and only saint, Hermano Pedro. It’s also guaranteed to give an insight into what much of the real Tenerife is about.

The walk begins in El Médano’s plaza at 21.00 and the route to the cave takes about 45 minutes. Many people carry lanterns and bring food and drink so that they can have a nocturnal picnic beside the cave before making the return journey at around 22.45.

Okay, it isn’t really a walk as such, but it is a nice little bit of local tradition to experience.

Date: Friday 18th September

Walking on Tenerife: Organised Routes – The Almond Walk at Vilaflor

2009-09-03T15:14:00.000+01:00

This sounds like a lovely little walk organised by the council in Vilaflor. Juan Antonio, an expert in keeping old island traditions alive, is organising a harvest of the almond crop. The walk begins in Vilaflor’s picturesque square before heading into the area’s alpine-esque countryside for 5 kilometres to a charming finca where the almonds will be harvested and loaded onto mules.

Afterwards there’s a picnic in the pines (bring your own food and drink). It sounds absolutely delightful.

The harvested almonds are due to be sold at the almond fair in Aripe (Guia de Isora) on the 8th November and proceeds sent to a hospital in Guatamala which was founded by Vilaflor’s very own saint, Hermano Pedro – so it’s for a good cause to boot.

Date: Saturday, 26th September.

Anyone wanting more information should call Montse, or María José on 922 709 802 at Vilaflor Town Hall.

Walking on Tenerife – Into the Eastern Anaga Mountains

2009-09-03T15:00:00.006+01:00

Yesterday was one of those days where I turned into ‘Mr Bean does Walking Tenerife’.

We were exploring some new routes in the north eastern Anaga Mountains and by the end of the day my hat and sunglasses had blown down a barranco, I’d nearly ended up on my backside three times, I had a grazed foot, a bruised ankle, sunburnt knees and cactus spines embedded in my right leg. Andy escaped completely unscathed.

As we hadn’t been walking for some time we decided to ease back into it with what I thought would be a relatively easy route beyond Igueste.

Route details were typically scarce save for one brief online Spanish description which sort of said there’s a hard bit at the start and a hard bit at the end and that was about it…hmmm.

But surprise, surprise the initial stages of the route were clearly signposted with the walkers’ yellow and white markers.

Did I say we thought it was going to be an easy route? Anyone who knows the Anaga Mountains will know that ‘easy walking in the Anagas’ is an oxymoronic statement. Any route is going to involve lots of ups and downs.

This one was a real thigh tester. The path was good hard volcanic rock, but it snaked directly upwards and walking in the September sunshine made the ascent just that little bit more strenuous. However, numerous stops to catch the breath and glug down plenty of fluids gave us the opportunity to soak up the scenery. There was a bit of a haze, so the vistas weren’t as impressive as they would be on a clear day, but still we could see the outline of Mount Teide dominating the centre of the island and the coast all the way down to Las Galletas.

One of the things which fascinates me about the Anagas is that they are full of sleepy little villages and hamlets stuck in time and yet the island’s bustling capital is only a relatively short drive away. From our position on the hillside we could see the little town of Igueste, with its fruit trees and neat plots, and also in the distance, the ultra modern Auditorio gleaming in the sunshine – complete opposites.

The path seemed to climb upwards for ever before we eventually reached the top and almost immediately began a steep descent – what was that about a hard bit at the beginning and end? Where was the bit in between? Walking markers became scarcer and then petered out altogether along with the path at a curious abandoned lookout point called the Semiforo where there were pretty amazing views along the coast on one side and over a deserted remote bay on the other.

At this point we decided to try another route. The path became less of a path and more of a goat trail and I picked up injury number one as my heel made contact with a pointed rock (not normally a problem, but I was wearing walking sandals, so had no real protection for my foot). The goat trail climbed to an old derelict building (strangely with a brand new door) on the summit of a ridge and just as we arrived the cloud descended and the wind blew up a gale. Andy sensibly decided to stay sheltered beside the derelict building whilst I went to explore an old mirador, which is where my hat was rudely removed from my bonce, taking my sunglasses with it and thrown down a barranco by the wind. I picked up the grazed foot and leg-full of cactus spines while Andy sat blissfully unaware that I was risking life and limb to retrieve a pair of cheap sunglasses and a NYY baseball cap which was probably older than some NYY players.

Unfortunately the low cloud made the views of secret and completely remote valleys less impressive than they should have been and we headed back down to Igueste along a trail which had seemed solid on the way up, but on the way down became a slithery trail of scree. Cue three ‘cartoon stepping on marbles moments’, which Andy at least found very amusing, before we emerged back at Igueste.

Overall, it was satisfying to give the leg muscles a decent workout and it was interesting to explore a new area, but whether to include it as a walking route when we complete our eastern Anaga routes, we’re unsure. I’m still deciding if ending up with a pin cushion leg was a price worth paying.

Walking on Tenerife – Tenerife Government to Improve the Network of Paths

2009-08-27T14:48:00.003+01:00

Good news for walkers on Tenerife, I hope. The Cabildo have just announced that they are going to invest 2.3 million euros in improving 135 kilometres of forest paths and recreation zones between Los Realejos, San Juan de la Rambla, La Guancha, Icod de los Vinos, Garachico, El Tanque, Santiago del Teide and Buenavista del Norte.

It’s another step forward in developing Tenerife as the ideal walking destination and looks as though we might have to start thinking about investigating new walking routes in those areas.

You might have noticed that I said ‘I hope’ at the start, but that’s only because part of the press release talks about one of the machines which will be used which sounds like something out of the Transformers. it’s called the ‘StoneCrusher’ and everyone knows what boys and their toys are like – so I’m just hoping they don’t get carried away and it ends up more destruction than creation.

Walking on Tenerife – Simply Stunning Scenery from Off the Beaten Track #1

2009-08-27T13:34:00.005+01:00

Although it’s true that you don’t need to spend hours walking to find some of the most stunning views on Tenerife (our driving guide includes many of what we consider the best views you can get on the island from some incredible miradors) what walkers are more likely to experience are views that people who stick to their cars, or coach excursions, will probably never see.

Because much of the information and even photographs about Tenerife in print and on the web still sticks to the well worn tracks, walkers who explore Tenerife’s countryside are almost guaranteed to emerge from a forest, or over the top of a hillock and find themselves going ‘WOW’.

We’ve been walking, exploring roads and researching this island online and in libraries for almost 6 years and there are still plenty of occasions where we’ll turn a corner and stop in our tracks and one of us will announce. “Well, I’ve never seen a picture of that before”. Such was the case with this bullet shaped rock in the Anagas - spot the little houses built into the cleft halfway up the rock.Even Tenerife’s iconic Mount Teide can still surprise. Ask me 3 years ago ‘where do you find the best views of Mount Teide’ and I might have said from El Sauzal. Ask me 2 years ago and I might have answered ‘from the coast at Icod de los Vinos on a clear day'. Last year I would have probably responded with ‘Oh, definitely from the hills above El Tanque’ after viewing it from a completely new angle where the mountain seemed to rise menacingly from the pine forest rather than the volcanic landscape of the Las Cañadas crater. Next year no doubt I’ll have a different answer. But hopefully you get my point. When you’re walking in different areas, the mountain changes its aspect, revealing many faces from various angles.
It is just one of the many rewards facing visitors who take the time to explore Tenerife’s great outdoors

Every month we’ll post another couple of shots of Tenerife’s beauty spots from a walker’s perspective.

Walking on Tenerife – Favourite Refreshment Stops

2009-08-20T13:09:00.007+01:00

At Real Tenerife, we love that feeling when you come to the end of a long, immensely satisfying walk when the end is in sight and you know that in a few moments you can slip out of the hiking boots and into some soft sandals – it’s a bit like ‘skinny dipping’ for the feet. However, what’s even better is to plonk yourself down at a welcoming hostelry and order an ice cool beer as a reward.

It’s something we feel is an integral part of a really good walking package – spectacular vistas, diversity of landscape, interesting curios along the way, challenging but not soul destroying terrain, attractive flora and fauna and a cosy little bar to collapse into at the end.

We have a few personal favourites across the island.

In the Anaga Mountains, the Cruz del Carmen restaurant is a sanctuary for walkers and local forestry workers, especially when the bruma descends and chills through to the bone. We’ve found ourselves held prisoner by the ambience here for a couple of hours after we’ve finished a walk in the past - the horizontal rain outside the window didn’t help with motivating us to leave.

There are great other little bars in tiny hamlets as well, places where you feel you’re their first customer in days. In a bar in Chamorga, the owner had to break off from painting her nails to serve us. Another fave is Casa Carlos on the road which runs along the Anaga’s spine. On a clear day, the views of the lush mountains are something quite special.

Up above Santiago is one of the most popular walkers’ bars on Tenerife, Bar Fleytas. It’s perfectly placed as a starting and finishing point for exploring the Erjos Pools and the Valle de Santiago – and they have great home made almendras.

In Teno Alto the little bar is more like a mix of corner shop (not a lot of items) and bar. Grab a beer and sit on a wall in the sunshine as abuelas wander by with clumps of aromatic herbs in their hands – it epitomises the simple pleasures in life.

At Ifonche in Adeje, the Tasca Taguera is a higgledy piggeldy mix of cable drums turned into tables and vine covered terrace where bags of water hang like decorations (apparently to keep the mosquitoes away). It’s the most bohemian feeling walker’s bar we’ve frequented.

My favourite of all is the La Caldera bar and restaurant. For me it’s just the perfect walker’s rest. Log cabin exterior, chunky wooden tables and benches, a roaring log fire inside (essential for winter months when the cloud descends), fresh trout on the menu and any number of little birds like Canary Island Tits, Blue Chaffinches, Capirotes and Robins looking for easy pickings. We never go into the place before setting off on a walk as the walk would probably never happen if we did.

There are more great little places and I’m sure others have their own personal favourites. We’d love to hear about any little gems that any of you walkers out there might know about.

Walking in Tenerife – News - Barranco del Infierno Closed

2009-08-20T11:58:00.004+01:00

Anyone planning on walking in the Barranco del Infierno in Adeje in the near future is in for a disappointment as it’s closed for a bit of TLC and improvements over the next few weeks.

Nearly €362,000 is being spent on improving one of Tenerife’s most popular walks, renovating water channels and cutting back overgrown vegetation and should last about a month (just remember a Tenerife month isn’t the same as a month anywhere else).

We’ll let you know when we hear that it’s open again. Meanwhile there are plenty of other great walks on Tenerife and what’s more, the others are all free.

Walking on Tenerife – Exploring the undiscovered Eastern Valleys around Güímar and Arafo

2009-08-12T16:16:00.008+01:00

When we were researching suitable areas for the ‘Walkabout’ series of articles in Living Tenerife Magazine, we spent some time venturing into the ravines around the Arafo area.

We’d picked up some officially produced mini-guides with the usual directions which were a cross between confusingly ambiguous and outright code and went in search of routes which sounded as though they might be of interest. One of them led to a cave and formed part of a pilgrims’ route to honour San Agustín who had ‘miraculously’ saved the town from disaster after their water supply had been cut off for 5 years (you could say he took his time to getting around to helping them out).The directions sounded straightforward enough, simply head into the ravine behind the town until you reach the cave with the saint’s image. However, when we left the town the entrance to the ravine broke off into three or four other smaller ravines which the guide failed to mention. For hours we explored paths, some of which were completely overgrown and some which were little more than faint outlines. There was supposed to be an annual pilgrimage, but there were little sign that anyone had walked these ravines in years. The guides had obviously been written a long time previously.
The scenery wasn’t fantastic, it was a grey damp day which didn’t help, but the depths of the ravines held some unexpected surprises. In one ravine water galleries, roaring with rushing mountain water, ran parallel to the path,keeping us company until we ended at an abandoned miners’ camp which could have been straight out of the Yukon gold rush. Railway tracks disappeared over hills which had collapsed; mined caves led deep into the hillside and in one small building a table was set with empty plates and a seriously dusty half full bottle of wine – it was all a bit Marie Celeste and, to be truthful, a bit unnerving. We didn’t hang about long in case whatever had scared off the miners decided to return.
We continued exploring the ravines and eventually, after many wrong turns and dead ends, found San Agustín’s cave. The approach was covered in brambles, but we fought our way through and finally, triumphantly entered the cave (more of an overhang in the rock) to see the image of the saint tucked inside. Despite the route appearing overgrown, there were fresh flowers inside. Somebody was a frequent visitor. We would like to have continued further into the barranco, but the path was blocked by an impenetrable ‘Sleeping Beauty’ wall of brambles, so whatever lay ahead remained hidden to us and we turned back toward Arafo.It’s typical of the eastern valleys which are still a bit of an enigma in Tenerife walking terms. You can walk all day and never encounter another soul, even in the more accessible parts. The area isn’t really included on walking routes, yet I’m convinced there are rewards as yet undiscovered in them thar hills.

Night Walk in the Anaga Mountains

2009-08-12T15:04:00.004+01:00

The Adeje ayuntamiento are organizing a nocturnal walk in the laurisilva forests in the Anaga Mountains on the 22nd August.

I’m not sure what time it's at and whether ‘nocturnal’ means it’ll be at dusk, or in darkness as there’s no time mentioned on their website.

Is it me or are nocturnal walks a bit like watching a movie with your eyes closed? (Actually I have walked in Tenerife at night and it was spectacular, but that was on Mount Teide and not in a forest)

Prices: €8 with an Adeje empadronado, €12 without.

Contact the Casa de Juventud in Adeje for more information: Tel 922 78 18 08

Walking on Tenerife – The Masca Barranco

2009-08-04T18:30:00.006+01:00

There’s something magical about Masca. It feels as though it belongs to another time and place and it comes as no surprise to learn that tales of sorcery and humans who can change into animals are commonplace in the ancient mountains and valleys which lend Masca its uniqueness.

It’s deservedly one of the most popular tourists’ locations on Tenerife, but only a tiny percentage of visitors to the charming hamlet stray from the path and descend into the mysterious barranco which wends its way through a prehistoric landscape to the coast three hours down the line.

The last time we walked through the Masca Barranco we had to shimmy down a rope near the start of the walk; the bridge across a small ravine having been destroyed in the forest fires of 2007. It added to the sensation that we were entering a lost world and if tiny dinosaurs had emerged from the undergrowth to accompany us as the walls of the ravine closed in above it wouldn’t have seemed too fantastical.The thing that always amazes us about walking in Tenerife is the diversity of the landscape. Many times whilst walking one of us will announce ‘this is definitely my favourite walk on Tenerife.’

That's until the next walk, of course.

The truth is that it’s difficult to compare like with like. How can you compare the other worldly weirdness of Las Cañadas del Teide with the ancient laurel lushness of the Anaga Mountains, or the sweeping beauty of the pine forests in the Orotava Valley? The prehistoric drama of the Masca Barranco is just another natural feather in Tenerife’s walking cap. At some places you feel as though you could spread your arms and touch both walls of the barranco at the same time (okay, maybe if you were one of the Fantastic Four, but hopefully you get the picture). Ferns and trickling streams accompany walkers through a wonderful, if bordering on claustrophobic in places, world.

I was foolish enough to think that walking through the Masca Barranco would require little navigation. I mean you hit the valley floor and there’s only one way to go, right? Wrong. For most of the route this is the case, but there are areas where scars in the cliff face open into other narrow ravines leading to who knows where and what – mysterious places that’s for sure.
One day, if I’ve got the time and energy, I’ve promised myself I’m going to venture deeper and hopefully make some Indiana Jones type discovery – a lost Guanche tribe hidden from the outside world for 500 years, or perhaps conquistadors’ treasure buried in the depths of a cave cut into the cliffs. When you’re in the deepest reaches of the Masca Barranco these thoughts don’t seem so far fetched, believe me. So far the best I can manage is to make it to the coast and little Masca Bay, a popular stop with dolphin cruises and a pick up point for those sensible people who opt to take a boat ride to Los Gigantes rather than make their way back up the barranco.

It’s not a particularly easy walk, especially if done both ways. The path can be quite difficult on the soles of the feet in places, but it is spectacular and exhilarating and definitely one of those magical Tenerife experiences.

Walking in the Hills and Mountains on Tenerife

2009-07-28T15:23:00.005+01:00

If I had a euro for each time that I read that it can be cool during the day on Mount Teide even in summer, I’d be rich. Well I might not be rich, but I’d be able to pay for a nice meal.

It’s one of those Tenerife myths of which there are a few. It’s usually advice given by well meaning people, but where they got this idea I really don’t know and anyone walking at altitude on Tenerife in summer expecting it to get cooler the higher they climb is in for a shock.

This post is a sort of companion to a recent post about taking precautions at this time of year, but with the temperatures blowing the top off the thermometers we felt that it was important to reinforce the message that during the height of summer, the higher you go the hotter it is likely to get and it’s essential to realise this.

Last weekend we had planned to camp on the North West slopes and do some walking in that area in preparation for the next in our walking guides. Unfortunately I developed a 24 hour tummy bug and didn’t feel up to a long trek. But we headed into the area anyway to go to the splendid little Dia de la Trilla fiesta near El Tanque at around the 1100 metres mark.

It had been 30+ degrees at the coast, but as we drove higher with both car windows open and my arm leaning out of the window, the air rushing past became hotter and hotter until it felt as though someone was pointing a hairdryer at it. By the time we reached the fiesta the temperature was in the 40s and we bought a couple of straw hats to protect our heads.

Within moments, even with the hats, we were a pair of sweaty messes. At that point it occurred to us that my tummy bug had been a blessing in disguise. To walk in these temperatures would have been madness.It is incredibly hot at the moment, even for summer and most of the time you can still enjoy walking on Tenerife at this time of year as long as you are prepared. But don’t head into the hills expecting some relief from the heat or you might find that it feels as though you’ve literally stepped from the frying pan into the fire.

Walking on Tenerife – Coastal walks near Puerto de la Cruz: La Rambla de Castro

2009-07-21T15:54:00.004+01:00

One of the nicest coastal walks on Tenerife, in our opinion, is merely a hop, skip and a jump from Puerto de la Cruz and can be reached via a path behind the Maritim Hotel near Punta Brava in neighbouring Los Realejos. La Rambla de Castro forms part of the old merchants’ highway which used to link the coastal communities along the north west coast. What makes this walk special is not just the spectacular scenery, but also the incredible diversity of interesting little curios that can be found along its winding path; It acts as somewhat of a time warp and a glimpse into life on Tenerife in bygone days as well as a beautiful and not particularly difficult walk. Where else can you find banana plantations and beautiful old haciendas; drago trees and palm and Indian laurel tree groves; tunnels leading to secret coves and wooden bridges over ravines; old communal washing areas and the building which housed the first steam engine on Tenerife; a tiny pirate lookout fort and even a rock which looks like an animal?

Oh, and did I mention the views of the North West coast were simply stupendous? The last time we walked it a warden from the bird sanctuary was releasing seabirds back into the wild and paragliders were launching themselves from the cliffs to glide inches above our heads.

It really is quite a magical part of the countryside that is only now being discovered by visitors to this area of Tenerife.
The Rambla de Castro walk is one of five coastal walks included in 'Captivating Coastlines' - FREE with any purchase of Island Walks or Island Drives.

Walking on Tenerife in the Heat of Summer

2009-07-09T16:27:00.006+01:00

Driving into Santa Cruz yesterday to take our friend Jo to the bus station for her bus and ferry back to La Gomera, I noticed that the Anaga Mountains were completely clear and shimmering in the heat haze.
“This would be a perfect day for walking in the Anagas,” I said.
“Too hot,” said Jo, “unless you stuck to the forests.”

Jo lives in Los Aceviños, right at the edge of La Gomera’s Garajonay National Park; a dense rainforest of lichen-covered ancient laurisilva and Jo’s favourite terrain for walking
Wherever we’ve been walking with Jo (Britain, La Gomera, Tenerife, Greece...) she’s always embarrassed us by wearing wholly inappropriate head gear to protect her from the sun. She has never invested in a proper hat or cap for walking, on the grounds that they really don’t suit her, although how she can possibly consider a T shirt or a pair of shorts draped across her head, ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ style as a better solution, eludes me.

But for all of that, Jo’s remark about the heat acted as a timely reminder that walking on Tenerife in summer can be a dangerous business if you don’t follow some simple but critical rules.

Temperatures here are hitting 32° C by 9 o’clock in the morning, and that’s in the north of the island. By midday they’re nudging the mid to high 30s and they don’t lose their ferocity until around the 5.30pm mark. And if you’re walking at altitude, like in Teide National Park or in the mountains, then the intensity of the sun is even more magnified.

A couple of summers ago Jack and I set out on a cloudy July morning to walk in the Anaga Mountains from Chamorga to Roque Bermejo. By the time we reached the lighthouse high above World’s End (as we christened Roque Bermejo), the clouds had disappeared and the sun’s heat was merciless.
Stupidly, we didn’t refill the water bottles in the village before setting off along the interminable barranco (ravine) which would take us back to Chamorga.

With just a trickle of now hot water left between us, the landscape took on a distinctly ‘Sergio Leone film set’ look and Jack and I had visions of the lizards picking at our bleached bones. We laugh about it now, but there were some seriously dodgy moments on that return hike and we were very relieved and badly dehydrated by the time we finally made it back to Chamorga.
So, a word of advice for walking on Tenerife in summer:
Always wear sunscreen and head protection (whether you chose to go with the over-sized knotted hanky look or not is entirely up to you) and carry at least 1½ litres of water per person, refilling whenever and wherever you can.
Other than that, take your time, enjoy the spectacular vistas that will accompany you and keep reminding yourself that you’re actually on Tenerife; a Tenerife that exists only to those who choose to venture away from their resorts and see something of the real island.

Walking on Tenerife - A Glimpse of Rural Life

2009-06-04T12:02:00.004+01:00

Last week, I took advantage of the glorious weather and decided to head up to La Caldera on the road to Teide National Park to spend some time communing with nature.
The scent of hot pine needles is one of the most evocative fragrances I know. When I breathe it in deeply I get an enormous sense of well being and joy and I find it almost addictive. So any opportunity to head to the woods on a hot day and I’m there.

Strolling through dappled forest paths, almost hyper-ventilating on the delicious smell, I dropped gradually down hill to the outskirts of Aguamansa and along a path I think of as ‘Flower Lovers’ Lane’. A narrow, winding lane is bordered on both sides by allotments of rich, red earth in which neat rows of potatoes, vines, cabbages and tomatoes flourish.
Lining the path, high hedgerows are ablaze with colour; campanula, cranesbill, foxgloves, daisies, forget-me-nots, trailing geraniums, poppies and wild sweet peas all vying for attention amidst the elegant tall grasses.

Sometimes, walking on Tenerife can transport me back to idyllic days on country lanes in Britain, and dreamily wandering this lane, I could have been in Devon or Cornwall. The illusion continued as I travelled further into the heart of rural Aguamansa passing stone cottages with thatched roofs.

But then I turned a corner and the commanding outline of Mount Teide filled the skyline, its peak shimmering in the heat haze and its shoulders mantled in rich, olive pine forests. I stood to take a photograph and watched an eagle circling the fields on the hot air currents before it landed in the uppermost branch of an enormous fir tree.

On the return route I called in at the trout farm to see the rescued birds of prey and ended my walk where I began; in the hot, pine-scented forest where a cold beer on the terrace of a log cabin bar provided the perfect end to my Tenerife/Devon day.

The La Caldera to Aguamansa route has just been published on PDF and comes with a free copy of ‘Captivating Coastlines’ – the five best coastal walks on Tenerife.

Walking on Tenerife – Stunning Views and Great Photo Opportunities

2009-05-26T15:18:00.002+01:00

Every great walk should have some sensational views. The route which winds through the forest above La Caldera in the upper La Orotava Valley (Real Tenerife detailed walking route available soon) packs a real knockout punch in the stunning scenery department.

There are any number of wonderful shots to be had throughout this particular route, but one of my favourites is quite early on in the route.

Looking back towards Mount Teide, the very last two houses on the way to the cumbre puts the epic scale of the landscape into perspective. Lush verdant slopes carpeted with thick pine forest and the volcano reaching for the sky in the background.

Walking in Tenerife – If You Go Down to the Woods Today…

2009-05-26T14:51:00.006+01:00

Last week walking in the upper La Orotava Valley we passed a young German couple walking the route in the opposite direction. We said hello, or more accurately 'Buenas Tardes' (when in Rome and all that) and carried on.

About an hour and a half later, and about thirty minutes walk from the end of the route, we were stopped in our tracks by somebody shouting at us. It was the young German couple. The girl came running through the forest to join us.

“Hi again, can you help us? Do you know the way to La Caldera?” She asked.

“Err, yes…I hope so any way,” I replied, I wasn’t yet 100 percent convinced that we were definitely on the right track ourselves – there are a lot of intersecting paths in those woods. “But I thought you were going in the other direction?”

“We were,” she laughed. “But the descent looked very dangerous, so we turned back. But now everything looks very different in this direction.”

At that point her boyfriend/husband/pal joined us. He had a map in his hand. He looked at it, turned it on its side and looked at it again, then stared at the path ahead.

“We are wanting to go here,” he pointed at a tent symbol on the map.

“Can I have a look?”

He handed me the map.

It was a good map of Tenerife for sure, one of the better ones I’d seen. It had the La Caldera zona recreativa marked on it, but it wasn’t Ordnance Survey. Apart from the little tent to show there was a camping area at La Caldera, there weren’t any paths shown through the woods; the scale was far too small. As a walking guide it was useless. A one way ticket to ‘getting lostville’.

At the junction where we stood there were paths leading in four directions; none were signposted.

We pointed them in the right direction and they went off at a pace; they’d clearly had enough of their time traipsing around woods.

Tenerife is a fantastic place for walking, but even if you’re an experienced walker, you do have to be prepared. Routes can start off with clear signposts pointing to wide tracks and then, when you’re deep in the forest, the tracks and the forest floor can gradually blend into one another and signposts annoyingly go missing.

A bog standard map, even a relatively detailed one, just isn’t a good enough tool for helping people find their way around the countryside.

Walking on Tenerife: No Entry...Fact or Fiction?

2009-05-21T14:37:00.004+01:00

One of the great things about walking on Tenerife is that there are very few barriers to where you can hike. Unlike Britain where some farmers can make you feel about as unwelcome as a fox in the hen shed, the countryside here is, on the whole, a place to be enjoyed by everyone.

Clearly there are places which are off limits and common sense and ‘privado’ signs should help avoid embarrassing forays into people’s fincas, but apart from that walkers are free to explore the great outdoors…except for when there are Cabildo workers in the area and paths are suddenly blocked off.

It’s happened to us on a few occasions, the trouble is you never know that a path is going to be closed until you reach the sign telling you and that can be quite a way into the route. Take yesterday for example. We’d been walking for an hour and a half, having ascended a muscle challenging and lung busting 600 metres, before we found our progress blocked by a sign across the forest path which read “Alto! – No Pasar”.

There had been no previous warning, nada and suddenly here was a sign which was ostensibly telling us to turn back. Having come this far without any prior warning that the route was closed, we weren’t happy bunnies.

So what do you do when this happens?

Well we’ve been here before and have an idea what signs to look for to determine if it’s a serious warning, or just something designed to put you off so that you don’t disturb the forest workers doing whatever it is they’re doing.

In this case there were two things that told us that this might not be a serious deterrent to continuing:

There was no actual evidence of any forest workers in the area.
We’d passed some Spanish hikers coming the other way and they didn’t mention that the path was closed.

We eased ourselves around the path-block and continued on our way.

Sure enough, apart from a couple of bags of cement and three green forestry sacks, there were no sign of any workmen; nine times out of ten there never are, so you can come to your own conclusions about what purpose these signs actually serve. A few kilometres, and half a dozen hikers later, we came to the ‘sister’ sign warning walkers coming in the opposite direction. In this case there was no reason at all for blocking the path.

If you don’t know an area very well, it’s a difficult call as to whether you pay attention to these signs if you’re unlucky enough to come across one. The best I can advise is to apply common sense.

If there is any work taking place, there will be workmen around and they’ll tell you where you can and can’t go, but they’re never heavy about it, so most of the time it’s worth taking the chance and continuing.

Like I said, we’ve encountered this on maybe four or five occasions…on not one of those did we actually have to turn back.

Walking on Tenerife – Organised Hikes – Chinyero

2009-05-17T14:09:00.000+01:00

It’s 100 years since the last volcanic eruption on Tenerife when rivers of lava spewed from the Chinyero volcano and threatened to engulf villages in the Santiago del Teide Valley. Anyone who’d like to visit the scene of the crime might be interested in the organised walk arranged by the Tenerife Cabildo on Saturday 23rd May. Places are limited so book your passage now. The route starts in San José de Los Llanos and should take around 6 hours…as long as Chinyero doesn’t decide to celebrate its centenary with a bang.

Price: €5 (includes breakfast and insurance)

Call 922 136 715/ 922 815 705 for more information

Walking in the Teide Crater - An out of this world plant for an other-worldly landscape

2009-05-11T15:01:00.002+01:00

The next few weeks are an ideal time to explore Las Cañadas del Teide on foot. In truth any time of year is perfect for venturing deep into the incredible landscape which makes up Teide National Park and after a few minutes walking from even the busiest tourist hot spots you’ll soon find that you have the awe inspiring scenery all to yourself.

But what makes the next few weeks extra special is the flowering of the incredible tajinaste plant. On terrain as epic as this it takes something special to drag the eye away from the basaltic lava fields and the coils of pahoehoe spilling down the mountainside like dried wax. The tajinaste is more than up to the challenge. Its vibrant red spikes mock its surroundings, a loud splash of colour against an earthy canvas. It’s an alien life form in an other-worldly environment and even when you photograph it, the results don’t look real, like a Photoshop creation instead of nature’s.
And if you think I’m exaggerating, go see for yourself. You’ve probably got until about mid June to see the tajinaste fields at their best.

How to get lost walking in Tenerife

2009-05-06T12:07:00.006+01:00

Here’s a confession which might raise a Roger Moore style eyebrow from anyone thinking of buying any of our Real Tenerife Walking guides…I have become lost many times during my exploration of Tenerife’s wonderful countryside.

I’ve followed forest paths in the Anaga Mountains where the vegetation has just become thicker and thicker as the path got smaller and smaller until I had to concede that a bird’s trail through some leaves didn’t constitute a path. I’ve trekked three hours to see the incredible Paisajes Lunar only to find the path ended at an outcrop above said rock formations…so close and yet so far (a bit of dry slope skiing sorted that dilemma out). I’ve reached crossroads in the middle of the forest above Garachico where every direction looked like a mirror image of the other three. My best was to spend an hour walking through dense laurel forest to end up at an outcrop about 20 metres from where I started.

Not much of a vote of confidence you might think; however there’s another side to this story.

On every occasion I had route instructions in my possession. Some were freebies provided by the Island’s government, some were ones which I’d bought. In some cases I was following signs which basically gave up the ghost at various points during the route, in others the route had been mysteriously changed by the powers that be and I ended up on a wild goose chase. In one ‘squeaky bum’ experience, the official route I was following fell away and I was left to inch my way along a narrow water course above a sheer drop into a bottomless abyss (the imagination doesn’t help at times like that).
I have certificates for map reading, so I always take a compass with me…not that it’s always helped; on one occasion the compass icon on the ‘route map’ I was using had north in the wrong place; which I didn’t notice until I’d gone way wrong. Eventually though, I’ve always found the right route.

The point is this there’s a big country out there. The more rewarding routes sometimes have the fewest walkers and, especially where there are forests involved, finding the right path is not always as easy as it might sound.

I guess what I’m really saying is that I’ve gotten lost walking all over Tenerife so that you won’t.

Tenerife Guided Walks – Erjos Pools to Portela Baja

2009-04-22T16:25:00.000+01:00

Arona council are organising a guided walk from the Erjos Pools to Portela Baja on the 25th April. The route is classed as being of medium difficulty and is about 8 kilometres long; it should take around 4-5 hours.

It’s €10 to take part and there’s a maximum of 25 places.

Call 922 761 600 to register.

Tenerife’s Most Popular Walk – The Barranco del Infierno (Hell’s Ravine)

2009-04-21T13:48:00.005+01:00

It’s got a great name and it’s known as Tenerife’s most popular walk.

The Barranco del Infierno’s proximity to the main tourist resorts probably has more to do with it earning the title of Tenerife’s most popular walk than anything else. Lying at the top of Adeje old town, it’s easily accessed from Playa de las Américas, Costa Adeje and Los Cristianos and for that reason it attracts people who may not normally venture too far into the countryside. It’s not uncommon to see people arrive at the entrance to the walk dressed as though they were about to spend a day at the beach.

Basically the route involves venturing deep into a ravine, criss-crossing a trickling stream until it ends at a magical little grotto where there’s a small waterfall; anyone expecting Angel Falls might be a tad disappointed. Along the way it’s worth looking out for falcons, kestrels, wagtails and tiny green frogs in the little pools that run parallel with the path. The walk to the waterfall and back again takes around three hours.

There are a few factors which set this particular walk apart from hiking in other parts of Tenerife – some positive, others less so. Firstly for conservation purposes the number of walkers is limited to 200 people per day, so booking a reservation is recommended, if a bit at odds with walking most other places on the island where you can just more or less go where and when you want. There’s also a charge of €3 to enter the ravine; another unique aspect. Having a kiosk marking an entrance to a walk makes me think of the toll gate in Blazing Saddles.

The walkway itself has been nicely developed, but if you like your countryside paths to be more of a ‘walk on the wild side’, you might find it borders on being a tad manicured.

The big difference for me is the ‘kit inspection’ before you’re allowed to enter the ravine. Seeing the state of some people who turn up, I understand the safety reasons behind it, but it’s very ‘nanny state’ and it just doesn’t happen anywhere else on Tenerife.

However, saying all that, it is a very pleasant walk and the existence of streams, pools and a waterfall on the arid south coast is fascinating in itself. Serious walkers might find it not particularly challenging, but it’s a good introduction to exploring Tenerife on foot.

For me, walking the Barranco del Infierno is akin to reading an abridged version of a classic book.

Barranco del Infierno official website: There’s a downloadable pdf about the walk here.

Spring: A Magical Time for Walking in Tenerife

2009-04-21T13:40:00.003+01:00

If you happen to be staying on Tenerife at the moment, take my advice and head into the hills at the first opportunity, the landscape is ablaze with a spectacular display of wild flowers. Possibly one of the best areas to experience nature’s artistic hand is in the northwest hills around Santiago del Teide, El Tanque and above Garachico.

It’s a few weeks since we walked in that area and at that point the hedgerows and borders of the little agricultural allotments were just beginning to fill with profusions of scarlet, violet and buttercup yellows.When we travelled the road the other day there were stretches where carpets of vividly coloured wild poppies covered the verge; it was stunning and I wished I’d had my walking boots in the car so I could just park up and head off along the first path I saw.

Walking on Tenerife - San Miguel to Mirador Centinela

2009-04-05T12:01:00.009+01:00

One of the factors which makes Tenerife ideal for walkers is that, within reason, you can pretty much walk everywhere. You don’t tend to get red faced farmers jumping up and down waving sticks at you.

Camino Reales (old trading routes) and goat trails from past centuries have left a network of paths across the whole of Tenerife. Some are quite short and perfect when you want to stretch the legs, but aren’t in the mood for a 20 kilometre hike.

One of these is the camino real linking San Miguel de Abona and the Centinela Mirador in the south of Tenerife.

Armed with a route guide we picked up free from a tourist office we headed up hill to the starting point at San Miguel.

I’ve got a soft spot for San Miguel. It was the subject of our first location report for Living Tenerife Magazine and it was the place that made me realise that even in the main tourist areas in the south, you don’t have to travel far to find the Real Tenerife.

What happened next highlighted something we’d been saying ever since we started exploring this island on foot. Many of the officially produced guides are nice enough to look at, but are little more than guidelines in practice.

We couldn’t find the start of the route. There were no signpost and the directions in the guide didn’t match reality. We saw a postman so decided to ask him where the camino real was. You’ll never guess his reply…

“Hmmm, sorry…I don’t know where it is,” then he added a classic. “I don’t know this area very well.”

Talk about instilling confidence. We searched the area and eventually, after exploring a couple of back streets, settled on a road which looked promising. Within a few minutes we knew we’d chosen well. A tell tale cobbled path led into a barranco and soon we left the town behind and had descended into a barranco where the only sounds were the haunting cries of a pair of kestrels.

It was fascinating to think of the traders who had treaded this path in the past. Despite being able to see the airport and some of the modern coastal resorts like El Médano way below us, it felt as though very little had changed up here in 100 years. The path snaked past old jablé terraces and rundown cottages emerging onto a tarmac road with no signs. It took a bit of searching to find where the camino real started again near a place called La Hoya where there was a small, mostly abandoned, settlement of traditional agricultural architecture and an old tile kiln.

Just past La Hoya there was a wonderful little rural hotel. It was in a beautiful location, but we wondered how much business it would get out here. However, when you think about it though it might be ideally placed; feeling as though it’s in the middle of nowhere, yet it’s only short drive from Tenerife’s modern resorts of Los Cristianos and Playa de Las Americas.

We continued along the path until we emerged just below the Centinela Mirador. If you were starting the walk from the mirador, you’d be hard pressed to notice where it started as whoever landscaped the area around Centinela had completely obscured the path.

Conveniently placed benches below the main building were ideal for having a rest and some lunch. We tucked into our bocadillos whilst also feasting on some of the best views of the south coast you’re likely to find.

It’s a great little walk and opens up a very different face of the south of Tenerife. One note of warning; the Centinela Mirador is a wonderfully scenic spot for lunch, but the second you unwrap the bocadillos you’ll find yourself starring in a lizard version of Hitchcock’s ‘The Birds’.
The San Miguel to Centinela walk is part of The Old South Island Walks, delivered to your email within 24 hours.

Coasting Along

2009-03-24T15:56:00.006Z

When most people talk about going walking it usually involves lacing up the hiking boots and heading into the hills. Walking on Tenerife you don’t need to head inland to find great walks with views which will have your camera in a clicking frenzy.

We like to intersperse venturing deep into the hills with more leisurely strolls along the coast listening to the soothing sound of the surf breaking against the shore and breathing in the smell of the sea.

Thanks to the original Guanche inhabitants and then the post conquest settlers there are old trading routes along the north coast linking a lot of the historic towns and communities. In the south and east, more recent trails are testament to man’s determination to make a living out of even the most inhospitable places and amongst the malpaís and volcanic terrain are salt flats and fishing communities.

Personally we prefer the northern coastal walks, but then we like lush scenery and sprawling old haciendas of which there are far more in the north of Tenerife. All the prize lands were in the north, so the noblemen lived there, hence the existence of charming towns like La Orotava and Garachico and the wonderful old colonial buildings dotted all along the coast. Saying that, there are some really interesting coastal walks with wonderful scenery and surreal landscapes in the south and east as well, especially around El Médano and Güímar.

Some walks are well signposted; some don’t have any…that’s Tenerife for you. Most are in places which aren’t particularly coach friendly, which keeps them free from hordes of people and helps retain an element of seclusion and discovery.

Coastal walks are generally easy to navigate by their very nature (i.e. you follow the coastline) so detailed directions aren’t really necessary. Knowing where they begin and end, what the highlights are and what interesting curios to look out for is a different matter which is why we’ve put together a mini guide to our five favourite coastal walks on Tenerife which comes FREE with any purchase of Island Walks or Island Drives. There’s still a lot of Tenerife out there which many visitors never see.

Real Tenerife Island Walks

2009-03-17T16:46:00.006Z

Whenever we travel to a new country we always buy a guidebook. Some have been good, some have been so-so and some have been written by people who have clearly never set foot in the place. But whatever, I like to wander about with a guidebook in my hand to be able to refer to whenever I want.

The same applies to walking. Where possible I like directions to follow and, as we mention on our walking page of our Real Tenerife website, an AA walking guide to Britain was a perfect example of a great route guide. Not only was it interesting, you could detach individual routes whenever you wanted to use them.

I was reminded of this during one of the first times we went walking on Tenerife. We’d purchased a guidebook and whilst it was thoroughly researched and decently written, it was a real pain trying to get it in and out of my pocket in between checking directions and then I’d have to re-read a number of pages to find the relevant spot as routes weren’t broken down into stages.

Five years down the line we thought about this again when designing Real Tenerife Island Walks. Guidebooks are great to look at, but for the reasons mentioned, I don’t find walking guidebooks always practical, so we decided against printing a book and went for a version which people could print off themselves instead.

We believe there are a number of advantages in this design, the main ones being:

That you only ever have to carry the route you’re following.
They don’t add extra weight.
Routes are broken down into stages, so reference to where you are at any one time is quick and easy.
Sometimes up in these hills it does rain, so if your Island Walks gets rain sodden and filthy, you can simply sling it and print off another.
They’re really nice to look at (okay we’re biased), so don't take our word for it, see for yourself.

Real Tenerife FREE OFFER

2009-03-17T16:38:00.004Z

Buy a copy of the guidebook, Real Tenerife Island Drives, any Single Routes or Island Walks and receive a free copy of ‘A Captivating Coastline’ – a twelve page guide to five of the most interesting and beautiful coastal walks on Tenerife.

See Real Tenerife Island Drives for more details

Walking on Tenerife – Organised hikes

2009-03-17T10:46:00.001Z

Between February and October, the Tenerife Cabildo have included a series of guided hikes ranging from easy peasy to muscle torturing difficult in their ‘Nature and Adventure Program’. These are open to residents and visitors and cost around €12. Each walk has a maximum of 30 places. See our Tenerife Matters page for more info.

Into the Valley - a Tenerife Walk

2009-03-12T14:56:00.008Z

I’m waiting on the path for Jack to re-appear.
In the distance I can hear a great deal of rustling and the occasional muttered expletive.

Five minutes ago a large bird ran across the path in front of us and disappeared into the undergrowth, hotly pursued by Jack, camera in hand. Now I have a funny feeling that the distinct lack of stealth I can hear emanating from Jack’s traverse through the bushes is not exactly working in his favour.
Eventually he emerges.
“It was too fast for me” he sighs. “What do you think it was; a grouse, a Barbery Partridge?”
“I’m fairly sure it was Roadrunner” I reply.

Climbing out of the little hamlet of Arguayo we emerge onto a ledge which skirts Montaña de la Hoya.
8oo or so metres below us the Santiago Valley spreads its green, undulating mantle all the way to the Teno Mountain Range beyond it. Down the valley wall the road zigzags its way past the settlements of Tamaimo, El Retamar and El Molledo, while out to the west the sun is shimmering on the ocean’s surface at the resort of Playa de la Arena.
Up here, we feel like Gods. We’re standing on the edge of the world looking down on the painfully slow snake of Dinky-sized cars that are threading their way up the TF 82 behind a banana truck, and we’re smiling to ourselves at the sheer beauty of our surroundings.

All the way around the mountain the breathtaking views accompany us and we stop frequently to drink them in.

We’ve still got at least a couple of hours walking ahead of us, some of it involving hot, uphill slogs, but the memory of those views stay with us all the way, augmented by quaint villages, starkly contrasting black volcanic lava fields and meadows bursting with wild flowers, an ascent through Tenerife’s version of Helm’s Deep and the occasional fleeting glimpse of cartoon wildlife in the bushes.

This is a big walk through BIG country high above Tenerife’s southwest coast. The trail takes you through great swathes of fertile valley, the site of Tenerife’s last volcanic eruption, dense pine forests and deserted quarries, some of which now form natural pools which are a haven for wildlife and all the while, Mount Teide gazes benignly down on you while the islands of La Gomera and La Palma float on the horizon. Walks don’t come much better than this.

The Erjos to Arguayo walk is now available on PDF download for €2 and comes with your FREE copy of the best of Tenerife’s coastal walks.

Walking on Tenerife – the benefits of having a ‘Leatherman’

2009-02-12T16:30:00.004Z

I always carry a Leatherman with me when I’m out. I don’t mean just out walking on Tenerife, I mean at all times; you never know when they’re going to come in handy. They’re like the Swiss Army Knife’s meaner big brother. As Billy Conolly says, you never know when you’re going to have to get a stone out of a horse’s hoof.

Even though it’s winter here and the temperatures are in the low 20s, making it an ideal time for walking, when there’s not a cloud in the sky, it can feel a hell of a lot hotter and you get through water supplies at a disturbing rate.

We always work out where we can fill up with water when we’re out walking, so we knew that as we glugged down the last of the drops in the bottle, there was a communal fountain in the village we were approaching. Normally there’s a queue of locals filling up 8 litre bottles, but as luck would have it there was no-one, so we were able to go straight to the fountain and replenish our supplies with some very welcome sweet spring water…in theory.

In reality, the fountain’s tap didn’t have a handle. I tried to turn it with my fingers, but it wouldn’t budge; I clearly haven't been eating enough porridge or, as this is Tenerife, gofio. Now you’re probably thinking at this point that I thought of the Leatherman in my bag…wrong. We’d just hiked 20 kilometres plus under an unforgiving sun and my mind wasn’t functioning as it should have been; I completely forgot about the multi-tool in my bag which by this point was probably screaming ‘use me, you idiot’.

Thank goodness for the kindness of strangers. An elderly Canarian man eased himself off the wall where he’d been sitting in the sunshine watching my puny efforts and sauntered across to us just as a car pulled up. He said something to the driver, who handed him a pair of pliers. Problem solved.
“Muchas gracias,” I gasped as he opened the faucet and the life giving liquid poured into the bottle. “Tenemos mucho sed.”

Whether I would have remembered the Leatherman before we expired from thirst we’ll never know, but the important point is this; it’s always useful to have a Leatherman, or something similar to hand when out and about the countryside, there’s not always a benevolent local at hand to help out.

Naked Rambling on Tenerife

2009-02-12T16:28:00.001Z

I recently read a BBC report about the Swiss passing a law banning naked hiking. Apparently certain areas of Switzerland were inundated with hikers who liked to explore the countryside ‘au natural’. Personally I don’t have a problem with naked hikers. I mean the sight of people wearing hiking boots, thick socks, a rucksack and nothing else is just too good a photo opportunity to miss.

However, we weren’t expecting to almost literally bump into any of them when trudging along a goat path in the Valle de Santiago the other day. There are scores of paths across the valley and the signposting, when it makes a rare appearance, is simply not to be trusted (one of the reasons we’ve started producing walking guides). We knew that we were nearing a crucial point where a barely discernable path left the main track, but couldn’t remember exactly where. I was pretty sure it was at the end of the dry stone wall that ran parallel to us and sure enough as we reached the end of the wall, a faint track led to the right. We turned up it intending to check it out to make sure it was the right path and almost fell over a young naked couple sitting exactly where the path should be. When they saw us they grabbed for a couple of sarongs that were lying next to them and hastily tried to cover their ‘bits’.

What we really should have done at that point was ignore them (easier said than done) and have a good look around to see if it was the path we wanted. Being British, what we actually did was look quickly away (something on the horizon in the opposite direction became incredibly interesting), behave as though we hadn’t seen them and then continue walking on the path we’d originally been on.

It turned out that they had been blocking the path we’d wanted, but on the plus side we discovered another path which knocked 40 minutes off what had been a very rewarding, but also very long walk.

But here’s a tip: if you want to get your kit off in the countryside, but don’t want to become the main attraction, don’t sit smack bang in the middle of a relatively well used path.

Unfortunately, I don’t have an accompanying photo for this particular blog.

Good News at the Erjos pools

2009-02-12T16:16:00.003Z

The last time I passed the Erjos pools was just before Christmas, the sight of them confirmed my worst fears about the consequences of the serious fires which devastated the area in 2007; all of them were completely dry.

They always dried up in summer, but to see them like this in winter, especially when there had been plenty of rain throughout November and December, was tragic.

So it came as a complete surprise on Tuesday when we left the car at the Fleytas Bar, crossed the road and descended the dirt track to find that nearly all the pools were full of water and the frogs were making a right old racket.

I realise that this doesn’t mean that the pools are out of the proverbial woods yet, but maybe, just maybe means that there is some hope for their survival.

Sole-full Tenerife Walks

2009-02-07T10:18:00.005Z

“You should have brought the small notebook” said Jack in that annoying wisdom-with-the-benefit-of-hindsight way.
“ I deliberately brought this one, I prefer it” I lied, trying to squeeze the A5 sized book into a pocket 3mm smaller than A5 size as spits of rain tried to run away with the ink from my words.

When, 20 or so minutes later, the exertion of walking worked up a sweat, the waterproof became too much and I stripped down to my fleece. Now there was nowhere to put the notebook.
“I told you you should have brought the smaller one” said Jack.
“It’s not a problem” I said smugly, tucking the book into the waistband of my trousers and under my fleece so that it was both safe and dry.

The path that skirted the barranco was churned up into a slimy quagmire which sucked our boots into its deep, squelchy grasp and held them tight. Mounds of droppings betrayed the party responsible for this mess; goats, and lots of them.
As I struggled to pull each foot from the mire without falling over, the heavens suddenly opened and in that moment there was a splat as the notebook slipped from my waistband and plopped, writing side down, into the mud and the rain.
I swear, if he says one word…

We hadn’t been on a decent Tenerife walk for months. Deadlines, visitors, the impending festive season and an annoyingly debilitating bout of flu had all taken their toll on our walking quotient. So we decided last week that it was high time for some soul replenishing contact with Tenerife’s abundant walking trails and there’s nowhere quite so spectacular as the Anaga Mountains for reminding the hiking boots what they were made for.

Wednesday dawned a bit overcast but with plenty of blue patches emerging and a quick check of the web-cams showed some promising cloud breaks over the Anagas so we made up the butties, packed the waterproofs and headed off.

It’s not unusual for Cruz Del Carmen to be in cloud. At this height (920 metres above sea level) the sea of clouds are a frequent visitor and the life force of the Monteverde or laurisilva forests of Mercedes which are some of the few remaining on the planet following the Ice Age. But you can’t help but smile at a ‘mirador’ (viewpoint) where it’s sometimes difficult to see your hand in front of your face. And with the cloud comes low temperatures; the moment I got out of the car I was wondering how the Ice Age hadn’t actually made it this far.

Unfazed, I put on my waterproof jacket for the extra warmth and we set off into the forest. It had poured with rain over the weekend and the red earth was churned up nicely and sticking so that our boots got heavier with every step. But it was fantastic to be out in the dense, ancient forest listening to the silence and breathing the musty, earthy air rich with the smell of fern spores and wet lichen.

We descended through the forest and emerged, as so often happens, beneath the clouds to a much brighter day. Looking across to the Barranco de Batán, the rain was evaporating into thin wisps of cloud which rose from the forest like the spirits of those recently departed, creating a landscape that could just as easily be the Amazon rain forest as northern Tenerife.

By the time we reached the troglodyte village of Chinamada where the thirty or so residents live in houses cut into the rocks, just as their ancestors did 500 years ago, the sun had broken through the clouds. It graced our picnic lunch with its presence and walked with us all the way to Las Carboneras before once again disappearing behind the clouds as we made the ascent back to Cruz Del Carmen and a well deserved Dorada at the bar/restaurant.
The next day our legs ached with the satisfaction of physical exertion and our heads were clearer than they’d been for weeks. Tenerife is such a fantastic island for hiking; it’s nothing short of a sin not to traverse its incredibly varied terrain on at least a monthly basis.

Now if I can just prize the pages of my notebook apart and decipher the mud script, I’ll be able to share the delights of this particular beautiful Tenerife walk with other hikers.