La Palma Island
After travelling south from the Island of Madeira, we arrived today at Isla Palma de Las Canarias, an archipelago about 400 kilometers off the coast of Africa, and 1,440 km from Cadiz, the nearest mainland Spanish port. Also known by several other names such as “The Beautiful Island”, or “The Green Island”, due to its exuberant forests and its extraordinary beauty. We immediately set out to visit parts of it by bus, and started at Santa Cruz de la Palma, its capital. The whole island supports a population of 80,000 inhabitants. It is orographically very interesting, with the high peaks, of “The Rock of the Boys” standing 2,426 mt in altitude. The prevailing trade winds from the high mountain range carry much water onto the eastern half of the island, creating a lovely forest of sweet chestnuts in the lower parts, and a forest of laurel higher up. The road led up to the dividing line of the central ridge, and through a tunnel, we reached the western side of the island, a typical rainshadow where the dominant plant was the Canarian Pine, in a much drier forest. On this side of the island we visited the National Park of the Caldera of the Taburiente, the remnants of a huge volcanic crater, 10 kilometers in diameter, and 20 kilometers in circumference. At its lowest point, it is 1,500 meters deep. We then visited the park headquarters and interesting dioramas, and then drove on to the town of Los Llanos de Aridane, where we had a wine tasting and goat cheese adventure. On we travelled via the return road to Santa Cruz.
Probably the most memorable plant seen today was the Dragon Tree, a huge tree in the Agave Family, endemic to this island. It can grow up to 20 meters in height! In past years, the sap was extracted and used as a red dye for cloth and oil paints. Today it is used as an ornamental plant, but is still found in the wild. Another plant that must be mentioned is the Canary Island Date Palm, endemic to this archipelago.
After travelling south from the Island of Madeira, we arrived today at Isla Palma de Las Canarias, an archipelago about 400 kilometers off the coast of Africa, and 1,440 km from Cadiz, the nearest mainland Spanish port. Also known by several other names such as “The Beautiful Island”, or “The Green Island”, due to its exuberant forests and its extraordinary beauty. We immediately set out to visit parts of it by bus, and started at Santa Cruz de la Palma, its capital. The whole island supports a population of 80,000 inhabitants. It is orographically very interesting, with the high peaks, of “The Rock of the Boys” standing 2,426 mt in altitude. The prevailing trade winds from the high mountain range carry much water onto the eastern half of the island, creating a lovely forest of sweet chestnuts in the lower parts, and a forest of laurel higher up. The road led up to the dividing line of the central ridge, and through a tunnel, we reached the western side of the island, a typical rainshadow where the dominant plant was the Canarian Pine, in a much drier forest. On this side of the island we visited the National Park of the Caldera of the Taburiente, the remnants of a huge volcanic crater, 10 kilometers in diameter, and 20 kilometers in circumference. At its lowest point, it is 1,500 meters deep. We then visited the park headquarters and interesting dioramas, and then drove on to the town of Los Llanos de Aridane, where we had a wine tasting and goat cheese adventure. On we travelled via the return road to Santa Cruz.
Probably the most memorable plant seen today was the Dragon Tree, a huge tree in the Agave Family, endemic to this island. It can grow up to 20 meters in height! In past years, the sap was extracted and used as a red dye for cloth and oil paints. Today it is used as an ornamental plant, but is still found in the wild. Another plant that must be mentioned is the Canary Island Date Palm, endemic to this archipelago.
