Gran Canaria, you surprised me!

Volcanoes and mountains, what’s not to like

Volcanic mountains and canyons in Gran Canaria close to heading down to Maspalomas, February 2023

I had a great time during my visit in Gran Canaria. When I booked my flight I didn’t know what to expect. I just wanted to get away from shovelling snow for a while, experience a warmer climate. The Canary Islands are a well known destination for europeans escaping the winter and enjoying the beach. It hasn’t had a reputation for being the most adventurous destination in my circles. But, I was so wrong. The Island is so much more than beaches. It has beautiful volcanic mountains and canyons. Volcanoes on islands seems to be a theme in my travels nowadays. I love both Bali and Iceland even though the climates are very different.

Roque Nublo in Gran Canaria is 80 meters high. Here I photographed it from Pico de las Nieves, which stands 1949 meters above sea level. And in the distance you can see Tenerife, another of the Canary Islands.

So while in Las Palmas – which is a lovely city and has beautiful nature, great restaurants, good swimming and surfing – I decided to take a bus tour to explore the island. First I thought I would rent a car, but the public communications on the island are good and inexpensive furthermore, there are many tourist companies offering very price worthy tours of the island. One thing I’ve realised is that taking a bus tour with a local guide is one of the best ways to get to know a place. The guide tells you so much more than what is usually said in tourist guides and you get a personal presentation of the place. You also get the chance to be present in the moment and not having to care about driving and such. On Gran Canaria, since I’m afraid of heights, I wouldn’t have been able to drive. The volcanic mountains are high, like Pico de las Nieves that’s 1949 meters above the sea level. We were so lucky when the bus got to the top that it was a clear day and we could both see Roque Nublo, which is a 80 meters high rock, and also Tenerife which is the next island. And, my fear of heights doesn’t seem to apply in this place. It was just that I was surprised when the bus started climbing up the first mountain. I hadn’t realised that we would be going on winding roads up and down mountains all day. But, I wasn’t afraid, the roads are very good, and our driver Barbara had been driving buses on them for 39 years so I felt safe. Also, when the scenery is this beautiful I kind of forget about how high up we are.

Close-up of Roque Nublo, seen from Pico de las Nieves. You can see the tiny hikers next to the rock to get an estimate of the size of the rock.

I was absolutely mesmerised by Roque Nublo and took millions of photos of it. The rock is 80 meters high. When I looked at my photos I noticed that there are many hikers next to the rock on the photo. They look smaller than ants. Seeing the details in a photo is also a reason why you shouldn’t rely on your mobile phone alone if you want to take good photos. My phone would never have captured the hikers next to the rock, and I’ve wouldn’t been able to fully understand how high the rock is.

You can hike between the two mountains. Or go by bicycle, or by car. We met many cyclists on the road between Las Palmas and Maspalomas. It must be a good exercise to bicycle in those mountains. I even saw the Czech national team having lunch at the same restaurant as we did. And I’ll probably do another post about this trip in the mountains since our tour was so packed with stops. Along the road there are many campsites where you can put up your tent for the night, or just stop and have a barbecue since there are fire places and tables set up. Camping and trekking is a big thing in Gran Canaria. So, there’s so much more than beaches to the island.

I knew so little of Gran Canaria, the original inhabitants of the island was Berbers that came from Africa and lived in caves in the mountains. On the photos you can see little holes in the mountains, those holes are caves. Actually it’s the same in Iceland, up until recently people lived in caves in the volcanic mountains there too. A bit harsher climate tho. Nowadays the caves in the mountains on Gran Canaria are sought after properties, partly because the climate in the caves since it’s cooler than in regular houses and also because you can expand you cave almost as far as you like. you can have a mansion in a cave in Gran Canaria, wouldn’t that be something! This is a fact that really surprised me, I did not know that people still lived in caves and that they are attractive accommodation. Since I’ve been in Morocco a long time ago and visited Berber villages I recognised much of the scenery. It’s like when my grandparents emigrated from the north of Sweden to Michigan, they went to a place that looked very similar to what they were used to from back home.

Volcanic canyon close to Las Palmas on Gran Canaria where a family used to live on the bottom. The ruins of the houses are still visible at the bottom. And one of the sons in the family didn’t even leave the canyon for the first 80 years of his life.

This was the first stop on our trip and just when I did realise that I might faint during the bus rides. My fear of heights is a bit strange, it’s just when I’m in manmade vehicles, or on constructions, or roads that I’m afraid. If I’m standing on the ground or climbing myself it’s not a problem. But, as I said. I enjoyed the bus rides and was extremely grateful that I didn’t have to drive myself. This is one big canyon where a military family used to live on the bottom of it. Since the soil is volcanic it’s also very fertile, and the family could grow most of the food they needed. And, one of the sons in the family didn’t leave the canyon until he was 80 years old. Quite the opposite of me then, but it looks beautiful down there, and maybe one day I’ll find a place where I’d like to stay and not leave at all.