Blogs from La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain, Europe

Sunday 28th January Today we are on the island of La Palma, we docked at Santa Cruz around 9am, it was quite hazy and on our panoramic tour the guide explained that the haze is due to the Calima, a meteorological phenomenon that occurs when fine sand and dust particles from the Sahara Desert are lifted into the atmosphere and transported by prevailing winds. Our first viewpoint stop the haze was still apparent but it was a lovely view and we learnt a lot about the growing cycle of the dragon tree. The island is very green with palms everywhere and at this time of the year the blossom is out. We had a stop viewing the volcano and the blackened path of the lava flow that had decimated the area. After lying dormant for half ... read more

Here we go. ...... For those who don't know, Sean, Sarah and I have packed up our home and possessions into the "COW", shipped the truck and Cleo off to Grandma and Grandpa's, (along with anything else we couldn't quite fit), Oliver to Amber's, Hayden off to Taiwan (lol) and left Lindsay and Julia in the Big T.O as we take an adventure to the Canary Islands, Spain. Why you might ask? Well for one, why NOT? We have been toying with this idea for the past few years, knowing we would wait until the kids were all out of the house, but the opportunity presented itself 4 years early and we said what the heck. It helped that Sarah was on board and willing to leave high school behind her for a year and start ... read more

Hi, I am coming to Carnies for the first time since 1970, still backpacking, I need to know local transportation, cheapest way to get from island to island. It will be a shot to my system, to see all the changes. In La Palmer, I hiked into and lived in the Caldera, on a ranch. Does anyone know anything today about the Caldera, for that matter where best to go for a backpacker. Tim... read more

Sunday 20th December, 2015. La Palma After breakfast we went ashore. It was absolutely tipping it down. We sploshed our way down the quay to the cruise terminal where we found 3 car hire places - all closed as it was Sunday. We asked at the cafe and were told that they might open at 10 am or maybe when the ferry came in. We decided to go and see what was happening in Santa Cruz. It was still raining heavily and we found a small flea market just outside of the port gates. All the stalls were selling a load of second hand tat. The town was closed (Sunday) but the tourist office was open. We went inside and the helpful chica inside called a car hire company for us. It was 38 euros plus ... read more

It was a long, winding and steep drive from the coast. We passed through different levels of vegetation and the clouds before reaching the island summit. The Roque de Los Muchachos is 2,426m high. The scenery is spectacular. The whole island can be seen and the distant islands of Tenerife and La Gomera. The jagged cliffs around the edge of the Caldera de Taburiente are very impressive. Our guided walk today with Natours walking group followed a route up and down along a section of the mountain peaks. There were numerous photo opportunities. There are several international observatories to study outer space and the stars in the night sky. The air is so clear and there is minimal light pollution in La Palma so this wonderful location is ideal for the stargazers. The day visit to ... read more