We had read in some bedekers that Guimar hides amazing holes in the rock and that an old leat leads to them. But the lava was unused, broken, and overgrown. The Guimar windows in Tenerife are one of the most adrenaline-filled hiking experiences here.
Guimar windows
Mil Ventanas the Güimar is the name of a now unofficial hiking trail near the town of Güimar in Tenerife. The 8 to 14 km long route passes through a network of tunnels carved into the cliff surrounding the deep mountain valley of Guimar.
Approach to the tunnels
After three hours of tunnelling through the forest, orienting ourselves only by the cache GPS (long live the caches in rugged terrain), we had to plunge into an unpleasant-looking tunnel. There was no other way in.
Guimar windows
After coming out of it a shock. A set of windows carved into the rock, connected by an old levee that used to bring water to the south of the island. We couldn’t help ourselves. It was unbelievable. And dangerous.
The trail disappeared here and there, a small step alongside and…
Fortunately, we only saturated our bodies with endorphins from the incredible views. No big fall happened.
Watch your head
The tunnels are low; the first one is almost a kilometre long. Headlamp and helmet are okay. Guimaras windows will check.
We nursed those few broken heads and elbows with a well-deserved beer in the valley. We assessed that even the climb up Teide wasn’t as adrenaline-inducing as the drafts in the Guimaras windows.
