We got a tip about Tamadaba Park from the locals, along with the most beautiful canary restaurant in Artenara and the iconic road around the Canary Grand Canyon with the landmark Roque Nublo. Before that, however, we discovered the photogenic crater of the Galdar volcano.
Caldera del Galdár
The clouds are already below you, the views and UV rays beyond expectation—time to invest to strong suncream. There is a hiking trail around the entire volcano that you should follow. I know a photo from above will suffice for most hikers.
La Cilla, Artenara
If you wander into Artenara, have lunch or at least a local Tropical beer on the terrace of La Cilla. From the rock terrace, the entire Roque Nublo Park opens up like a great movie. It’s all the more pleasing that coffee and beer are cheaper in this amazing place than in Bratislava. 🙂
Artenara
The small town of Artenara looked unusually new and modern to me. There are four main reasons to visit Artenara:
- The La Cilla restaurant
- The Cross of Christ above it
- The views of Tejeda from the Artenara transmitter
- The gateway to the upper levels of the Tamadaba Wilderness Park
Tamadaba Park
Tamadaba Nature Park spreads in the northwest of the Gran Canaria. It extends into the mountain ranges and on the coast. Above, near Artenar at 1400 m above sea level, and below, on the wildest cliffs of the sea between the towns of La Aldea de San Nicolás and Agaete. Since 2019, Tamadaba has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has become part of the sacred mountains of Gran Canaria. Apart from one closed campsite, the purest nature and the most amazing views, you won’t find any civilization here. Nothing. Nature at its most crystalline.
Unesco protected zone
Tamadaba Nature Park is one of the most pristine areas of the island and, thanks to its forests, is also a biosphere reserve. Tamadaba has one of the best-preserved pine forests in the Canary Islands. The smell of the Canarian pine makes us want to find more and more reasons to stay longer.
When we see rock lookouts and rocks hidden among the trees, we say Czech Switzerland or Dečín rocks. So ten times multiplied.
The highest point of the park is Pico de La Bandera, with an altitude of 1 444 metres. We wanted to avoid it, but in the end, it didn’t work out. We had to explore that bunker.d.
The Llanos de la Mimbre is an iconic viewpoint. The spectacular view of the coastline of Puerto de Las Nieves, Tenerife and La Aldea de San Nicolás from the Mirador del Balcón is an almost iconically kitsch photo from Gran Canaria. If you want to go to the balcony, you must go to the end. 🙂
Trekking the Tamadaba is not technically or physically demanding; you’ll cover 400 vertical metres at the top. Except for the gorge section on the rock… that will be hard on the head.
Camp Llanos de La Mimbre
The huge campsite was empty at the time of our visit. Perhaps covid, fires, globalization? We don’t know. And it’s a shame. The complete infrastructure for camping is slowly crumbling. Yet it’s the only civilized place in the vast expanse of the mountain range. It is unfortunately surrounded by a locked fence.
I love camping
As I get older, I’m finding the magic of camp more and more. The camper lifestyle is far from commercial “all-inclusive” resorts. The differences are more than just in amenities and price. But also they have different contact with nature. And it’s where other people meet. More active, more immediate, more easy-going. More in touch with nature and values such as freedom, independence, and leisure, which I increasingly profess.
Our hostess is a receptionist at an exclusive “all-inclusive” resort in Puerto de Mogán. She routinely encounters guests bored for days, lying on the beach, eating, drinking and always demanding some attractions and animations—best from a sun lounger. Doing so would take their breath away with Cruz de Mogán or Azulejos de Veneguera 4km above them.
Canarian Stelvio
Apart from the upper floors, the reserve stretches along the coast from La Aldea de San Nicolás, next to Andén Verde below the cliffs of Mirador del Balcón, El Risco, Faneroque to the beach of Guayedra in Agaete.
The lower coastal part of the reserve can be reached from Agaete via the new tunnel to La Aldea, which replaced the old GC2 cliff road. You will say well done and too bad. Locals say the tunnel eliminated 342 curves and cut an hour off the drive on the 16km stretch. 🙂 I hope the Canaries keep this road at least as an iconic cycle route. After all, keeping those serpentines above the sea for regular traffic is unprofitable due to weathering and rocks constantly coming loose and falling.
If you like adrenaline and a travel experience, definitely take the serpentines between Agaete, La Aldea and Veneguera before those roads are permanently cancelled and replaced by highway tunnels. They are no match for the Stelvio.
If you like adrenaline and a travel experience, definitely take the serpentines between Agaete, La Aldea and Veneguera before those roads are permanently cancelled and replaced by highway tunnels. They are like the Stelvio.
