| Pico de Malpaso |
|
|
|
|
|
Our third day on El Hierro. Today we cross over the island, over its highest peak, the Malpaso at 1500 meters. Usually, the people who do this trek take the taxi from El Pinar to the Cruz de los Reyes. From there, it's only a small climb to the top of the Malpaso. |
|
|
|
| We think taking a taxi and
starting at the Cruz de los Reyes is for sissies. We're tough, so we'll start
at the beginning, in El Pinar. A wise decision, otherwise we would have missed
the climb through the forest, the tree with a tap, the large map of El Hierro
and the great views. As soon a we get higher than 1100 meters, these views are history. This is the level where the clouds are, so from here on we can't see further than 20 meters. When we're almost at the top, we are blown to the top by the wind. And we're still in the clouds, so the promised views of La Palma are not for our eyes. |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
| From the top of the Malpaso, we have to descend 1500 meters; our next hotel is in Pozo de la Salud, at sea level. The first part of the descent, the clouds are very dense. It's not easy to see the path; we're very happy with the markers every 5 meters. | ||
 |
|
 |
|
A bit further down at the
West side, we walk through a forest. As you can see at Leon's hair, this is a
very wet forest. And sometimes we can't walk because
of the trees lying on the path. There are disadvantages to less visited places
as well.
|
|
| We have to descend all the way tot the level just below the clouds, before we get to a place where it's warm and dry enough to have lunch. From here, we can see again. Sometimes we even have great views. But we still can't see La Palma. |
|
At 700 meters, at a place called Piedra del Rey, we can see today's destination, the Balneario Hotel in Pozo de la Salud.
|
|
|
It's still a long way down, but we manage to do it. We think we have earned our sauna and jacuzzi ! |
|
|
