Category: Spain – Canary Islands

Another cool day here in the Canary Islands, but it’s a travel day – so all the better to wear your heaviest clothing! We had a double flight – one hop from Fuertaventura to Tenerife, then a second over to La Palma. Very impressive – we were just over 2 hours from arrival at FV airport to leaving the airport in LP!

However, finding the road into our BnB was another story. This is the steepest island in the world – and we fully believe that! The address for our accommodation was not unique, and we ended up climbing a seemingly endless maze of vertical roads before finally getting a better link from our hostess. In the end our place was not in such an inaccessible maze – although still tricky.

The effort was worth it. It is very different landscape here – lush and green. The AirBnB we are staying in is a finca (farmhouse) from 1898. Th animals lived down, the family up. But it has been very sympathetically modified with good electrics and plumbing. So much character in both the building and the contents. It would be a wonderful place to stay for a longer duration – especially if the weather was warmer. Michael thinks we should make a deal – he’ll work on improving the wifi reception in exchange for a discount long term stay. I can easily envision sitting poolside and enjoying the gardens. The fruit trees (not sure of the name!) have lychee like fruit but they are sweeter and orange coloured. We ate our share. Celia was very nice and extremely helpful – even when we needed to call her back to have the downstairs bathroom light repaired.

After settling in, we headed to the Parilla de las Nieves, the nearby restaurant around the church square, for a late lunch. I had grilled rabbit, M&D had goat; Dan’s with lots of garlic, Suz had calamari. We shared an avocado / tomato salad, manchego & ham and papas arugulas with mojo. All was quite good, but we were pushing their closing time for lunch so service was a bit off.

The plaza was very pretty with the church, Nuestra Senora de las Nieves (Our Lady of the Snows) providing a lovely backdrop. Inside the church were the carved wooden ceilings again as seems traditional here in the C.I.’s. It was also unique with red fabric wall hangings on the walls and over some of the windows. Not to mention the ‘house cat’; can’t say I’ve ever seen that before!

Then off to our mandatory HiperDino pit stop for the standards – this time including ice cream bars (that would be Michael!). So after the predictable card games and an non-conclusive discussion of what to do to tomorrow, that ended another day.

[Show slideshow]

Our last full day on this island and there is still so much to see that we jointly agreed to skip an island hop day trip over to Lanzarote – save that for next trip :-)! Today we headed back to the Museo de la Sal (salt museum) which was a bit underwhelming unfortunately. It only just opened in 2018, so perhaps they just need to perfect it.

This is an actual working salt mine at least – but as it is mid winter, it is currently not in use (our luck). The salt is supposed to be better when it initiates through the ‘blow holes’, or at least starts off frothy although no explanation as to why? The salt pans are quite aesthetically pleasing though with the varying textures and colours in each box as the natural gravity flow and sun baking effect takes you from water filled down to salt filled. It must look much better when in actual use – right now there are in disuse and need a cleaning before the new season starts.

The basil salt and thyme salt were quite nice, but expensive. We expected that we could purchase in the grocery store for much less, as we could with the cheese. But alas, we skipped the buy and never were able to find the salts in the shops. Opportunity lost!

Next off to the historic town of Betancuria – built in 1404 as the original capital of the Canary Islands. It was an interesting little town, but the church and tourist info centre were closed, so we sat and “enjoy”ed a cold beer on an even colder day. So off to the other favourite haunt (apart from beer drinking), HiperDino to pick up some aloe vera cream, Mojo sauces, and Suz got her much sought after gofio.

Then a quick stop by the local town of La Oliva to ‘the best pizza shop in the islands’ where we picked up 3 to go – 1 ham, 1 seafood, 1 pica pica which together with salad and wine rounded out a great dinner back home. And then we had to pack for next day travel – so unlikely as it seems another day to bed without cards!

[Show slideshow]

It’s now Monday, February 18 and having given my knees and feet a day off, it’s time for another hike! This time we used google earth overhead views to pick an interesting caldera which was very black and circular.

The first entry point to the trek indicated that the path was closed for bird mating season. Back down the road we stopped at a small shop / tourist spot and bought some cheese, bread, chorizo, and honey rum for our hike. When we asked the lovely lady at the shop about the hike, she pointed us to an entry point across the road. This entry point merely indicated to stay on the path – so we left our car and headed off well stocked.

This turned out to be one of our best hikes ever. We hiked in first across a rubble wasteland where the path was difficult to find at times. En route, we came across a lovely largish blue egg which had been compromised. And then up to the top of the caldera where a symbolic swig of honey rum and some delicious cheese jump started our trek. The route around the caldera was pretty sketchy; I should highlight not due to the honey rum, just plain out a very narrow path with steep drops on both sides. We had a challenging time figuring out the route around at times, having to dip into and out of the top edge to find a navigable path. One of my most invigorating hikes for sure!

Once we hit about the 90% done mark, we stopped for a lunch and as we were wrapping up, we noticed a ‘police’ car drive in – quite interesting and raised our wonder as to the reason; then it sounded the siren – which further piqued our interest and had our attention as to what emergency???; then the driver got out and waved at us; we promptly gave energetic return waves, but at which point we wondered if the lady in the shop was concerned about our welfare??? But alas, no one was concerned for our welfare – rather it was concern for the birds. It turns out we were hiking in an off limits area! From the end of January through to August the birds – buzzards – are breeding. They are protected, endangered and unique to this mountain. As per the ranger, there are many, many volcanoes we are free to hike – BUT NOT THIS ONE! He was very passionate about his cause, and we attempted to explain that we truly meant no harm – and that the path entry did not indicate closure – only to stay on the path – and that the woman at the shop indicated it was open, but he was quite agitated. So he escorted us down and luckily we were spared any fines or arrests. Quite the added memory to our days adventure.

But one hike is never enough. So our next stop was the Dam at Penitas. A bit of a challenge to find, with more nerve racking driving for Dan, and several spots with goats hillside. It was well worth the effort to get there though.

We started on what looked like private property, but opened up to the topside of the dam with what appeared to be quicksand. But firm testing confirmed it was capable of supporting lots of weight. It turns out the dam was from 1940-ish. At the time it enabled farming in the valley but the dam didn’t continue all that long due to the rapid collection of silt which filled in the reservoir. There is a wonderful chapel down the valley past the dam wall – which itself was fantastic. Here there were some nesting birds (not buzzards!) including a pair of ducks. The colours of the rocks down the valley walls were vibrant and changing in the late sun – I am hopeful that Michael was able to capture them.

Once again we took advantage of the burned calories and headed for a major meal. This time to La Horna – in Villa Verde near our BnB. SO MUCH MEAT!!! The starter of croquettes of Iberian ham (pigs are only acorn fed) was like butter. I had goat stew, and the others shared an Iberian pig platter for 3 (should have done 2!!!). The stew was good, but the pork platter was amazing – the platter had potatoes, red peppers, sausages, 3 cuts of pork; ‘between the ribs’, neck and ‘breast’. We also had shared desserts and wine and coffee. As is common at the nicer restaurants, our meal was followed with free house liqueurs – this time a house secret. We think perhaps honey or agave rum with cream and cinnamon on top. Despite being our largest bill yet at 120 Euro (or $90Cdn per couple all in), it was very reasonable considering the feast!

[Show slideshow]

Finally a museo day – this trip has certainly been more about the landscape than the culture so far, so time for some attention to the human aspects.

First stop was at some of the older, better preserved windmills. One was an actual mill used to grind grain, the other was used to divert water to the fields. What appeared to be a private observatory was also next the second mill. There are many abandoned buildings – both in the countryside and on the outskirts or even in towns. One flavour seems to be abandoned subdivision ‘shells’. We are guessing that an economic downturn left 1/2 of the homes unsold and the developer(s) walked away. Many seem to be abandoned farmsteads. Such were the ones near the mills. It would be interesting to know how long they have been empty. There are signs of wallpaper on the walls and rudimentary wiring, but no clear indication of whether it has been 10 or 50 years. Mike found a dog skeleton curled up in the corner of one – photo below.

Our next stop was the cheese museum – Museo de Queso Majorero. It was very informative, although a bit ‘dry’. It is a fairly new museum, and if they are smart they will include real goats and actual cheese-making to the exhibits. Although Dan did enjoy milking the plastic doe… The cheese-making was also shown through videos. We ended up purchasing some of the gofio-coated (local grain made from corn and more) curado (aged). The other traditional coatings are pimenton (Spanish paprika) or olive oil. All are very nice cheeses – although double the price to buy here than in the grocery store. You pay for the certification.

The Majorero goats are quite unique and are coveted world wide for their voluminous milk production. The exporting of these goats is big business. It’s surprising they are able to stand given the size of their udders! They have been bred for many centuries – they came here from the African mainland around 500 BC. The herding dogs that are used are also unique to the island – the Perro Majorero which is now rare and efforts are being made to sustain the breed.

Before we left the museo, we spent some time in the gardens around the museum – beautiful cactus and other plants. Unfortunately the cafe was closed on Sundays, so off for a ‘quick’ lunch. It was a Sunday which is the day for leisurely family lunches here. We know that now…. We found a very popular local spot but our quick lunch turned into 2 1/2 hours. Although the food was good and we had a little room in our bellies, we didn’t even order coffee or dessert as that could have meant another hour or two! In the end, it was so late that we missed the salt museum – hopefully we can capture it another day.

Instead Dan and Michael took us on a hunt for Hitler – or at least u-boats to the very south of the island. It is SO different there! Full of resorts and groomed walkways and gardens with colourful plants and shops galore. Many Germans here – perhaps a carryover from the WW2 days when the island was ‘secretively’ used as a u-boat port. Many rumours that Hitler had a fortress hideaway nearby – Villa Winter – as per the ‘Hunting Hitler’ reality TV show. Mike and Dan had their radar out 😉

We watched a lovely sunset along the ‘u-boat’ beach, picked up some groceries including a very adventurous goat milk liqueur. Finally the 96km trek back with Dan still holding the wheel 100% for which we are all endlessly grateful!

[Show slideshow]

We headed for the hills! Off for 2 hikes up volcanoes. First to the taller one with a deep cauldera. Although the volcanic rocks are hard and sharp, the built ‘path’ was a necessity – it is extremely difficult to walk across the landscape. Once at the top, it would have been great to hike around it, but the winds were crazy and it was not well traveled. So we did a bit of the top, but turned back.

There isn’t much life here – lichens are the most significant plant life. However, the introduced squirrels are adorable and have adapted quite well. Once you stop walking, the ground starts to move as they come scrambling from everywhere and nowhere. We only fed them on the ground, but one German woman had them climbing all over her. Luckily they are very gentle.

The route down took us past some abandoned huts – probably from goat herders. Again, we could see rock walls through the landscape marking where plots of land end, and probably less successfully to try to contain the goats.

Next off to a natural cave – there are many here due to the nature of volcanic landscape. Then to our next hike which had fewer people this time; we came across perhaps 25-30 on the first one.

The route up was quite steep around one caldera and at the summit you were looking down into another one which was directly along side. The hike further along the sadde led to a 3rd cauldera. Each one was unique – one severe and round with mounds on the bottom, one blown out the side, and the third less pronounced.

The hike down took us near a gravel pit and a garbage dump – both on the outskirts of town. So strange to have such stark landscape next to population.

And I must mention the cyclists here – pretty much all on mountain bikes with fat tires and seated upright. They are engaging in serious cycling – long high hills on winding roads with long downhills and tight turns with vehicles sharing the narrow roads. Much to strenuous and nerve wracking for me thank you!!

Finally a well deserved meal back in El Cotillo – this time we ordered more sensibly. Once again an octopus dish was the highlight – this time caramelized with sweet potatoes – sooooo good! The building is actually the oldest in the village and was once a fisherman’s home. It has been very sympathetically restored – with one of the overhead lamps made from an inverted yucca trunk.

One last mention – yes, with all that hiking away from facilities, we are forced to use the outdoor ‘lava’-tory (sorry, pun intended).

[Show slideshow]

We made our first island hop smoothly. Binter airlines are the local experts it seems. We can check in 45 min prior to departure, board, disembark, pick up luggage and be ready to pick up our rental vehicle at the next island all in about 2 hours. Glad we decided to fly rather than ferry, especially as it’s basically the same cost.

Dan had set up our car rental with Cicar and the automatic they provided was a bit tight for the 4 of us with luggage. Luckily he managed to swap us to a manual transmission which was larger and able to hold our bags (still some on Suz & my laps!). Just as well as our AirBnB wasn’t available till 5 pm, so our bags stayed in the car while we did the tourist thing.

We headed to check out the lighthouse at El Cotillo and the town around it. The landscape here is quite different – very barren but brilliant colours in the lichen. There are stone walls built from the volcanic rubble. We had our first amazing meal at Olivo Corso- and ordered way too much food. The tapas sounded like smaller dishes, and the price was reasonable so we ordered several. All were great including the sangria, but the marinated octopus was the tops. We didn’t even have room for dessert which sounded fantastic. Great find and this ended up being the only restaurant on the whole trip which we returned to.

Next the mandatory grocery stop as we were heading to a new place. We managed to pick up all the makings for sangria including a litre of Dino Vino Tinto for .95 Euro – or a buck fifty! We also had to try the Dino Cerveza cans for .25 Euro – or about 38 cents. They were surprisingly drinkable – better than Bud Light for sure!

Finding our house this time was a minor challenge as she speaks no English and google translate didn’t quite capture the instructions accurately. But we finally figured it out and the place is great, even if it is too cold to enjoy the pool – it’s definitely cooler on this island. We didn’t need much dinner given our luncheon feast – so cheese, chorizo, olives, wine and beer along with our card games – our new basic diet!

[Show slideshow]

Happy Valentines Day! We were minimally more successful at an earlier rise and shine, so Mike went out and took some neighbourhood photo shots. After some goat kefir & leftover tortilla de papas we headed to Aguimes. Our research indicated it was worth a visit as a ‘pretty little town’. It is actually more than that – it is quite historic. Not only the central square with its church are historic, but also the ruins which have been found whenever they excavate to build. Generally they do a bit of exploratory digging and then just cover them over to preserve them. We also read about the giant .8 meter (2 1/2 feet) long wall lizards which are local to the island. They have now been introduced to the other islands. These are the largest wall lizard in the world and are very ancient. Unfortunately we never did spot any.

Next stop Arucas. The square was in full decoration mode in prep for the Carnival festivities which start here tomorrow (each town has their own schedule). We had hoped to check out the Iglesia de San Juan Bautista which is Segrada Familia like. It was certainly impressive on the outside, but unfortunately our timing was off – we arrived at 1:30 pm and it is closed from 12:30 – 4:30. Picked up a souvenir for Pat & Andrea and had a coffee to decide next stop.

So what else could we do….we decided to eat! We found a great asado (grill) restaurant which was very popular just outside of Firgas (our watercress meal). The food was delicious. We shared grilled smoked cheese, tomato & avocado with garlic (LOTS of it). Mike & I had grilled chorizo, peppers and we all had grilled chicken. For dessert we all shared huevos moles. Not as we expected, it was unlike the ones on the continent, but an interesting variation at any rate.

It was a busy day – so off to our next highlight – Roque Nublo. More hairpin, hair-raising, hairy driving for Dan who continued to be our hero on the roads. Until now, the farm fields have been covered – we assume to keep off the baking sun and to preserve moisture. But here (perhaps due to elevation) the conditions are more conducive to growing it seems – lots of tiered gardens but none of the covers. The island is small enough, and the centre is high enough, that it seems you can see the ocean even from the very centre – just amazing. I won’t even attempt a description of the landscape – check out the photos.

This place could certainly justify a couple of months visit as a winter getaway….

[Show slideshow]

Time for the beach! We were off to check out the big city on G.C. – Las Palmas. First we checked out the shopping mall – where we could have been anywhere in the world. Parking exposed us to yet another micro car for 1 person – think smart car cut in half. We headed next to Las Canteras beach – but started with a visit to Plaza de la Musica with the Auditorio Alfred Kraus. It was built to symbolize a lighthouse overlooking and protecting the city. It was under scaffolding right now, so not quite as emblematic as it could have been.

We walked the entire length of the beach ending with a reward of a nice restaurant just around the peak. They had a wide selection of fresh fish you could hand select from. In the end, we all chose the ‘all inclusive’ calamari meal- a real deal with wine, salad, dessert and main all for 12Euro.

And then finally to the beach – this time no gay or nude beach – so much more tame. The water was a touch warmer here as there is a protective reef and it is a bit shallower…but only slightly! Dan dared a swim, and Suz ventured 1/2 way in. Michael and I were less tempted and opted for a snooze on the beach. The walk back also rewarded us with entertainment from the local surf school – the surf here is ideal for learning.

After a lovely sunset we headed for groceries where we encountered the largest grocery store we have ever seen. We finally managed to find our whole shopping list – but only after perhaps the longest hike of the day. Michael figures it was about 4 Costco’s in size – sorry there are no photos! Then back for the mandatory euchre & wizard before a not so late bedtime.

[Show slideshow]

Well after a late night with a tad too much booze, we slept in a bit. So up about 8:30 and after some kefir, coffee, yogurt / granola we were off to the caves just up the road. Dan drove again, and I was more than happy to cede the role!

The local caves were a pleasant surprise. There were many sections to them, but unfortunately there was much speculation and little known fact as to how they were used. They could have been home to the royalty of the Guanches – the Canary Island inhabitants before the Spaniards took over in 1492; or they could have been the living quarters of the vestal virgins; or they could have been home to the cattle! Similarly, the carvings in the ground could be functional (drainage related), symbolic, or spiritual. As I mention, lots of speculation, with the options pretty wide open!

One of the caves was used as recently as the 1970’s by a local shepherd. You could even see where the door was installed and where he slept/rested. There are still sheep & goats kept at the base of the hills where the caves are. The plant life is also very awesome. 25 foot tall Yucca, wild geraniums and lots of tropical flowers and cacti everywhere. We even came across wild fennel growing roadside.

After the caves we went to check out the local church. We ended up with an extensive, very verbal tour of the small, plain church from the woman who seemed to be the caretaker. Suz and I only comprehended a very small fragment of her story, but certainly October 1 is the patron saint festival. There is music, dancing and even yoga in the square beside the church. It was a challenge to politely (we hope) disengage from the tour and her offer of lunch and wine (that was tempting….), but we really needed to get started on our hike for the day.

Mike had selected the hike in Barranco de Azuaje and it was a good one with lots of sites, and views, elevation change and about 8 1/2 kms long. We were pushing daylight but made it comfortably back on time. The road in was a challenge as there had been a landslide on the road just past the entrance to the hike. We actually had to pass through the closed road signs to get to our hike.

It took a bit to get going at the start of the hike as there were a few distractions. The valley had a spa hotel in the 1900’s and the ruins are still found in the bottom of the valley. We also came across 2 women who were experimenting with fabric dying using the spring water and local plants. One of the women does weaving and the other makes scarfs. One of the women runs a workshop at her AirBnB in Las Palmas. Very hippy 🙂

We had a couple of false starts finding the trail, but knew we were on the right track when we found the rope you needed to use to pull yourself up the cliffs. It was an invigorating hike with wonderful vistas all around the valley over the farms, forests and the river.

Then finally as it grew to dusk, we were off for a well deserved meal. We found a locally ‘famous’ restaurant in the nearby town of Firgas. They specialize in watercress. So we had watercress salad, cheese with watercress, butter with watercress, buns with watercress and Dan & Suz even had it in their stirfry. We even enjoyed watercress ice cream for dessert!

So back home where we all recorded our day (some on paper, some on social media, some via photos). And some ice pack for my feet and knees – so far they are cooperating nicely, but I don’t want to upset them.

[Show slideshow]

Great day and amazing weather – we had expected a high of 21 and got 27 with full sun and a light breeze off the ocean. We managed to wake on our own at 8 am – so we seem to be time adjusted just fine. We were off to the Maspaloma “Spanish Sahara” dunes and beaches today. After a bit of a struggle finding a parking spot, we figured out a spot which required us to walk thru the RIU resort to the dunes.

Another whole new experience walking into the sand dunes! Although not the Sahara, they are extensive enough to surround yourself with sand as far the eye can see. The “sand genies” or “sand ghosts” danced as the wind swirled over the dunes creating a mystic aura. Running up a larger dune required out pacing the shifting sands underfoot. And just a toe push over the edge of a precipice would start a slurry flow down the edge of the dune which continued on for minutes. Fascinating to observe and play with. Not to mention a great workout when climbing or running in them!

After a jaunt through the dunes, we headed ocean side where the water was just as frigid as yesterday. Which didn’t seem to bother the bathers along the nude beach area. We walked the length of the dunes to the next swath of resorts with a cool lighthouse building. We had lunch there and Suz and I managed to resist the cute stores with lovely Italian dresses, shorts, and tops.

The walk back exposed us to more of the nude beach entertainment – volleyball, nude bathing, sand scrubs on the beach dunes and more. All ages of nude bathers, although mostly older folks, mostly men but some women. We’ve been through many nude beaches over the years – this one was certainly the most populous. It seems the German and Brit tourists love this spot!

Next off to a proper supermercado where we stocked up on 2kg of langostinos (mini clawless lobster) and all the fixings for a nice dinner including ice cream for dessert along with snacks and more breakfast and hiking essentials. Again a real bargain at <$100 Cdn.

Back home for a relaxing dinner and evening in …. with lots of Jagermeister which was one of the bnb add-ons!. Mike wants to rise early for photo shooting tomorrow – good luck after all that ‘relaxing’! Regardless, hope to do some more serious hiking tomorrow!

[Show slideshow]