Islas Canarias-Fun in the Sun or Pain in Spain?

[Scott P]

This is the story of our trip to the Canary Islands between December 15 2009 and January 2 2010. We chose the Canary Islands because we hadn’t been in the area and wanted something new. The islands were said to be very beautiful and with all the accessible peaks, I was hoping to beat my old record of 101 peaks climbed in a year (set in 2005). Kim also wanted to go somewhere warm and with an ocean as well.

The Canary Islands are off the coast of Africa, and are geographically part of Africa, but culturally and politically they are tied Europe and are territory of Spain. The islands are much more developed than the places we usually go on vacation, so a smooth sailing trip was expected. Unfortunately, many things went wrong and for the first half of the vacation, the common theme and question asked was “Is Spain a Pain?”.

The second half of the vacation went smoother. We did get to climb lots of peaks (but not as many as planned), play on the beaches, and visit some beautiful areas. We also met one of the most well known SP members, but didn't know it until after the fact.

Here is our story.

One of the summits of La Merica as seen from the east. The Atlantic Ocean is in the background.

December 15-16: Getting There

The trip got off to a rough start before we even left home! Because of an airline schedule change, we would miss our connecting flights. The airline could rearrange the schedule for two of us, but we would be stuck in Madrid for two days on the way back.

Two other of us would be out of luck, but they would try and help us get a new airline. This was done, but the other two would have to leave a day early and we would fly separate airlines. Ugh. We hoped that we would even be lucky enough to find each other.

Kim would fly with Kessler and I would fly with Shaylee. We briefly were lucky to bump into each other in Madrid before separating again.

When Shaylee and I disembarked on Gran Canaria, we found that our luggage didn’t make it. We would have to wait for the next flight to come in, but the airline promised to deliver it to the hotel. We declined and said that we would wait for it. Meanwhile, Kim and Kessler flew in and met us at the airport. All together again!

After waiting several hours for our luggage, we headed off to the hotel. After arriving at the hotel we learned that they didn’t allow more than three people (even if two of them were children). We had told the booking agency that we had four people, but apparently it was a problem. After a long “begging session” we were allowed to stay together, for a fee of$80 US. We were starting to feel that this vacation was going to be a tough one. Hopefully everything else would run smoothly.

We had a night on Gran Canaria before leaving for Tenerife the next morning.

December 17: Cuesta de la Cruz (Tenerife)

Once again our flight to Tenerife was delayed. After finally arriving in our destination (after flight and other delays), Shaylee, Kessler and I did some short hikes in the hills above Puerto dl al Cruz on Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Luckily we found our hotel on Tenerife to be much friendlier and more accommodating.

A "flower rock" on the lower slopes of Teide.

[B]December 18: Roques de Garc

[Scott P]

December 29: Barranco de Arure (La Gomera)

Kessler, Shaylee, Kimberly and I at first decided to try and hike the challenging Barranco de Argaga. It was raining and when we were hiking along the coast someone was warning people of the fresh rockfall and falling rocks in the Barranco. We returned to the Valle Gran Rey and walked up the road to the Barranco de Arure. The Barranco de Arure is a pretty, but challenging canyon that has a nice waterfall at the end. To get all the way to the falls you must climb several boulders and small ledges and cliffs. The kids enjoyed the climbs, but Kessler went ahead and while crossing the creek on slippery rocks he slipped on a rock and got a bruise on his head.

We continued up the canyon and made it all the way to the falls just in time for lunch. After eating lunch we returned back down canyon and back to the Valley Gran Rey. It was a challenging hike, but a good one.

Shaylee and Kessler on the easy part of the route up the Barranco de Arure.

Looking up the Barranco de Arure.

Falls in the the Barranco de Arure.

Slippery creek crossings in the Barranco de Arure.

December 30: Travel and Rest Day

We got up early in the morning in order to catch a ferry to the airport. The ocean was still rough and the ferry was not running, so the ferry workers arranged a ride for us. It was then flying to Gran Canaria and doing tourist stuff such as the Children's Museum.

It was this night, Kessler and Kimberly parted ways with Shaylee and I. They would leave very early in the morning (3:00 AM) to head back to the United States.

Teide from the air as seen from the flight from La Gomera.

December 31: Dunas de Maspalomas (Gran Canaria)

After riding the camels through the dunes, Shaylee and I went on a hike through the dunes from Oasis. We followed several of the trails and made a big loop hike. While the dunes are a thrill for Europeans, and were pretty interesting, but I didn’t think they were as scenic as some desert areas in SE Utah for example. Even so, the beaches are really nice and the wet sand is easy to walk on. It was our last hike of the year.

Shaylee hiking in the Dunas de Maspaloma.

Camel in the Dunas de Maspalomas.

January 1

Oh boy; it was a rough night. People were extremely loud and wanted to party, party, party. It was a wild crowd around the hotel. Getting any sleep was impossible.

We took the day pretty easy and just visited some of the parks and tourist attractions.January 2: Casa de Campo (Spain)

Shaylee and I were in Madrid for a two day lay-over and after seeing all the normal city attractions, we headed over to the Casa de Campo. We rode the Telef

[Sandstone Addiction]

Excellent TR Scott! What a cool place to visit.

[Nordschleife]

Nice TR, we're going to Tenerife next week, what's that rock you were climbing over there.
We are looking into doing Barranco de Masca, do you have any other recommendations.

[Scott P]

Nice TR, we're going to Tenerife next week, what's that rock you were climbing over there.

[COLOR=#000000]

There are many rocks like that around the Roques de Garc

[Nordschleife]

Thanks, i'll check it out