Hike Review

islandmomma's review

Not Yer Average Tenerife Experience

Rating:

•  see comments »

Tenerife is full of surprises for those who want to find them, and hiking here is a delight, though it can be hot in Summer.

However, it isn't Summer, and last Sunday found my friends and I heads down against wind and rain! There was a high wind advisory out from midday Saturday to midday Sunday, but it hadn't been noticeable in the South of the island.

We had left the South around 8.30 am in a balmy kind of sunshine, though my early morning walk on the beach had been chill, the day had been quick to warm up, and I quickly shed my layers, only to replace them as we climbed the roads towards Santiago del Teide in the North West.  Through that village and over the hilltops, with stunning views back into the valley, but no place to stop on the winding, narrow roads, sadly, because there were some marvellous photo ops!

We stopped at a local bar just before Erjos to drink hot, milky coffee to warm us up, and nibble "truchas".  Though I have lived here some years now, these were new to me, friend pastry filled with almond paste.  Absolutely to die for and gotta be laden with calories.....but we needed the fuel!

Just before El Tanque (which is where the photo on my profile page was taken, at an exhibition of Guanche life -more of that another time), we took a narrow road up to Erjos, a tiny village, this day shrouded in mist.  The rest of the clothes and more were rapidly put on as we stepped out of the car, and crossed the road to the beginning of the walk, which, happily, in view of the weather, dipped down into the valley and through woods, which protected us from the worst of the weather.  I was lucky to be in company with a new friend, who, actually does this kind of thing for a living! He made it all much more interesting, pointing out plants and wildlife I hadn't been able to identify before, or had even noticed.  In places the trees allowed glimpses of the coast below, near the historic and pretty  city of Garachico, but the driving rain and cloud soon robbed us of the vista again.  We walked for about two hours, along a woodland path which, had it not been for cactus and other more exotic stuff might have been in the English Lake District.  We met few, other walkers, so we had that lovely sensation that the world, just for a little while, was all ours.

Driving back to the South I had the experience I've had so often here, as if I was time travelling almost.  The climate changes so quickly as you drop down the mountains, in way less than an hour we had gone from waterproofs, two sweaters and boots, to skinny tops and sandals as we enjoyed wine on a friend's azotea (roof terrace).