Arrival in Tenerife and ferry to San Sebastian.

We all met up in the Aeropuerto Sur and took taxis to the ferry terminal.

We managed to catch the earlier ferry giving us more time to relax in San Sebastian before dinner.

Agulo to Vallehermoso

A great start to the trek, as we set off towards the visitor centre above Agulo.

The steep path up from Agulo is in the shade in the morning, which makes for a comfortable ascent.

After a lunch stop we had time to look round the Visitor's Centre and its beautiful gardens, and have coffee in the bar across the road.

From here we follow a track which meanders down through woodlands and small finca farmsteads growing grape vines, fruits and vegetables.

As we approached Vallehermoso the route heads up towards a ridge with spectacular views, the path passes just below Roque Cano.

The Roque is a volcanic plug that is a local landmark above the rural village of Vallehermoso.

We arrived at Hotel Tamahucha, out home for the next couple of days, to find our bags waiting for us. The hotel is a great success, and we settle in to our rooms.

We saw statues on the way to the restaurant. For dinner ate at a local restaurant called Agana.

At dusk there is an orchestra of tiny green frogs in the stream. We went to look at them with a torch.

Circular Ridge walk from Vallehermoso

Today we would do a stunning circular walk from Vallehermoso over looking the sea for part of the way.

The weather was comfortable as we started the days walk by passing above the church and then out of the village through Finca farmsteads.

One of the farmsteads sells their produce from the garden. From there we continue onward and uphill past juniper scrublands and into laurel forest.

We made our way up the valley, before emerging on the ridge between Vallehermoso and the sea. The view was misty.

We had lunch in a secluded picnic spot.

After lunch we followed the ridge where the views were beautiful down to the sea and across Vallehermoso to Roque Cano.

After the steep descent from the ridge we stopped to swim in the pool on the sea front or just relax in the bar.

The pool was open after being renovated, and is recommended by our group of swimmers. It is a weekday so they had the pool to themselves.

Some of us visit the 'Castillo Del Mar' - a local party and music venue with ramparts that jut out into the sea.

They have a photographic exhibition and good cakes.

That evening we went out to eat in Vallehermoso.

Vallehermoso to Chipude

Our luggage minibus dropped us at 'Las Rosas', and we headed up the valley following a stream at first then up onto the ridge for a while.

We then swung upward again through the ancient laurel forests of Garajonay national park (a UNESCO world heritage site).

The route later we passed through a couple of small pretty villages within the lower altitude 'Parque Rural' zone, and crossed the head of the Valle Gran Rey where we saw Kestrels.

We reached Sonia's bar in Chipude in good time. Sonia is very efficient, and the food, service and rooms here are excellent.

Chipude to Playa Santiago

The early part of the day is in the Laurel forests, which cover the peak of Garajonay.

There are unusual weather conditions today - a hot wind and hazy sky. This is the "Calima" - a wind that sometimes blows from the Sahara.

From the peak of Garajonay, the highest point on the island at 2482m, we headed downhill toward the sea.

Roque Agando that we can see from this ridge is part of our route on the way back to San Sebastian later in the week.

Lunch was on a rocky ridge above the Benchigua valley. After lunch we head down again, towards Imada, a lovely village.

Here we sit in the sun and drink juices and coffees for a while, and book a taxi to pick us up at the bottom of the path in three hours time.

The trail continues down a barranco (gorge) where the path is a ledge naturally incised into the immense volcanic cliffs.

Flowers and fruiting cactus are everywhere around, and we meet goats on the track as we finally approach the village of El Rumbaza.

That evening once we'd settled into our shared apartments - two to each apartment, we went out to eat at El Cuevita.

This is the best restaurant in Playa Santiago and is set in a little cave on the seafront. The food is great here.

Rest Day

Playa Santiago offers swimming and relaxation that is much needed after the last few day's walking walking.

Some of us take the ferry to visit Valle Gran Rey.

In the evening we decide to eat in a different restaurant a few doors down the seafront from our apartments.

We enjoy a good meal here and are getting to know some of the local wines. We can hear Atlantic shearwaters, which nest on the cliffs above.

Playa Santiago to San Sebastian

Mesa Taxis again drop us off at the end of the road in a village called Pastrana. The route winds up through the village and surrounding finca farms with their papayas and almond trees.

Then upward into the Benchigua barranco and Benchigua village, as we rounded a spur in the valley we could see the ridge that we had descended two days earlier on our way down to Playa Santiago.

Roque Agando on the opposite side of the valley is our first goal today.

The path passes up through 850m of ascent as the vegetation changes to wild cactus, wild flowers and finally pine forest. The vistas are stunning…. again.

From the ridge behind Roque Agando we take a route down into the valley behind San Sebastian.

We pass through pine and eucalyptus forest, as well as old settlements, some abandoned during the migrations to Latin America.

Autbuses Mesa are waiting for us in Las Lajas, the first village we come to, to take us down the road into San Sebastian for our showers and our celebratory meal.

We tried a different restaurant this year, Paulo's which does very good fish and seafood, I will definitely go there again.

After dinner some of us visited the Cuban bar that stays open late in the main square.

Ferry to Tenerife

The Manchester flight left early so those on the later Gatwick flight chose to travel over to Tenerife on a later ferry, so they could sleep in and have a leisurely breakfast.

We all got home safe after our trek around the island of La Gomera!