Teide National Park
At the centre of Tenerife, the Canary’s biggest island, is Mount Teide. Teide is an active volcano and the highest point in Spain, making it attractive for tourists, hikers, and thrill seekers to visit. While hiking the summit of Teide requires a permit that has to be booked months in advance and is only for skilled hikers, the surrounding areas make Teide National Park, which includes a plethora of miradors, small villages, and a wide array of landscapes. Despite me spending three months in Tenerife, I didn’t make it to Teide until my last weekend. In a way, it seemed fitting; during my first trip in Tenerife, my flatmates and I visited Teide on my first night to watch the sunset. Needless to say, the full trip around Teide National Park didn’t disappoint.
We took the route from Golf del Sur, through San Miguel de Abona, up to Vilaflor. Vilaflor is the highest village in Tenerife, and it’s a starting point for many cyclists and hikers. From Vilaflor, the sights of the infamous Teide began.
Chances are, if the weather in Los Cristianos, El Medano, or Golf del Sur, is full of blue skies and sun, then Teide — or anywhere on the island with high elevation — will be cloudy and cold. This time, however, we really lucked out. From our villa in Golf del Sur, we were able to see Pico del Teide, a good sign! It meant that skies were clear the entire way up. We weren’t sure how long the clear skies would last, but when we started our way around the park, we were still in luck.
During our descent, the clouds gradually appeared. We took the route that lead us to Puerto de la Cruz, which included thick, tree-lined roads that took us through the Corona Forestal National Park. At some point, we crossed the line of clouds and by the time we got into Puerto, it was foggy and a bit grey. This day in Teide National Park gave us all sorts of weather; warm, still air, high winds, snow on Pico del Teide, and a cloudy evening in Puerto de la Cruz.
