57.07 Tenerife: Mirador Cruz de Hilda - Risco Verde, another incredible experience which added a feeling of sheer joy except for the road journey.

A wonderful position in which to set oneself up for the day. The peak on the right is along the way to our destination but far too low and soon to be it. Another optimistic (lazy) moment.
An hour later, peak comes into view.
An early hurdle in the morning in a spectacular part of the island.
Loved the position and the photograph does it for us.
To illustrate the diversity of the island, we introduce three photographs from two different locales. All face toward City of Puerto de la Cruz, from two hikes close to the coast.

Love the snow for visuals, but dislike it for hiking. It's going to present a challenge and more when we head out for Teide.
Third photo appears toward the end. 

One of the narrowest roads we've experienced. Unfortunately, many drivers close their eyes when crossing the path of an oncoming vehicle. It's a dangerous situation...no kidding? On our way to reach the trailhead, we picked up a couple of hitchhikers, a woman from Azerbaijan and a Lithuanian fellow, both living in Holland. The woman wore her soul on her face, clearly an extremely content and happy person. We were uplifted.
  When we arrived back at our vehicle after the hike, two women approached me. I suppose I should have felt flattered. However, they appeared to be a little older than me, so the excitement did not last more than a nano-second. When we had arrived to begin the hike, the parking place, (side of the road), was almost deserted. Later it was buzzing. One woman had her phone out and began speaking. She was French. I understood she was intending to use an application to interpret my wise words. However, I realized quickly she wanted a ride down for her friend and herself. 

  We wondered what two women, clearly not hikers, were doing in this position, high above the gorgeous hamlet of Masca without transport back. We understand youngsters doing this but why these two. The second thing that struck me is the risk they were taking. The road, as mentioned, is awfully dangerous. One wonders why a stranger would trust another person without any knowledge of driving ability and general trustworthiness. After giving it some thought, I decided besides being a pleasure to render some assistance, it wasn't my business to wonder. Of course, avoiding a long walk will encourage many people to assume risk rather than discomfort. We are happy to report we made it down safely; neverthless, it was a harrowing experience...that is, my speaking French. 

  The question Jen and I posed to each other was knowing the state of the road, would we have undertaken the journey with that prior knowledge. 'Yes', we both agreed, provided we believed the hike was special. The experience was incredible, so it appears with hindsight, we made the correct decision. Truth be told, I don't think we'd do it again unless there'd be very few cars on the road. That's not going to happen. 

  A view from the peak.
An early morning scene above the hamlet of Masca.
On the peak. In the ordinary course, I would not stand there and show-off. I have far too much humility to do so. However, Jen refused to take a few more steps, preferring to stand on the lower section. Reluctantly, I was forced to uphold my duty and resposibility. At the lower point (only by a few feet), we ate lunch which was breathtaking (the brunch). Jen refused to look over the side. I might of used the word 'neurotic' with her. She thought I uttered another word to describe her behavior which rhymes with my choice. I think she liked what she heard...I liked what she heard, too.
Jen approaches the summit confidently.
Summoned for lunch.
Brunch peak...our chef waits impatiently.
Looking down toward the road. Wish it was a one-way.
  Jen always maintained, still does, that when she's in her eighties, she would like to continue re-reading the blog to relive the glorious times of adventure. Makes sense. In order for the wish to materialize, one needs to record the events in text and graphic form. Ideally, the quality, too, should reach a decent standard to maintain interest. Add in a more important facet which is obvious, but often taken for granted, one ought to survive. Nothing like considering the odd few facts here and there. 

  We have been on this quest for the last, close on thirteen years, the Hike-about ‘business’. I thought of summarizing the first 3 weeks of our experiences on Tenerife, but for those occasions already committed to paper…er…electronic files. Ideally, this should provide some flavor of the island. We have hiked on many islands, perhaps Crete was the most satisfying to-date. I forget myself. Hawaii provided incredible opportunities when I reconsider. Mauna Loa, Haleakala and Mauna Kea, just for starters were top-class adventures. Crete provided terrific hiking opportunities, cultural education, entertainment and an introduction to Greece, being our initial stopover. 

  Perhaps, a cultural highlight was when we stayed in Hora Sfakion. The aparthotel owner, Mr. Stavros, provided a few moments of pure joy. One afternoon, we were returning from a hike while Mr. Stavros sat on a chair outside the restaurant in a vest, a 'wifebeater', and summoned us. He probably said something to the order of 'so you think you are big deals because you have the big hike'. We both thought that it felt like standing before a mafia boss as he 'took us down a peg or two'. We loved it. Thereafter, whenever we passed Boss Stavros, our minds played out a godfather scene and a smile creased our faces. I should not use the word 'crease' when referring to Jen...she might be sensitive. Perhaps, two creases crossed my face, while Jen appeared to be amused. We had other opportunities with the boss, too.

  "You listen to me, son. You go tell your boss I'll make hot water when it suits me. In fact, you play me wrong and I'll
make matzos ball soup from your body parts."
'Yes, Mr. Stravros, sir.' (This is a job for an editor. As usual, subject's unaware of a lurking photographer.) (Extract from original 2016)

"Very good, Sir, Mr. Stavros. Will that be all?"...and we're the paying 'guests'.

When we arrived in Tenerife, we were excited to be in Spain again (we left in September 2022). However, although our expectations were high, our knowledge of that which awaited us was low. Jenni had undertaken considerable research, as is the norm, but we had no practical knowledge. As an aside, what one accumulates on the adventures, the travel, is useful in all other countries. However, the intimate knowledge of a p!ace with the various nuances requires focus and a quick absorption of such knowledge. In Spain, remember the siesta period, for starters. 

  Our early impressions remain intact after 3 weeks. Unfortunately, the less ideal aspects dominate the list as in this context, I focus on them. For the natural, sparsely inhabited areas, we love them. I repeat: Love them. Fortunately, we follow what makes sense to us and therefore, focus on those regions. Therefore, negatives become less important. What's surprising is the size of the Island of Tenerife. It's not some partly developed piece of land in the middle of the ocean. Rather, at times, one can be forgiven for thinking one is in Barcelona or some other major city. The large cities of the island, particularly viewed from mountains, look like metropolises. If one needs another reason to support the metropolitan feel, the aggression of the drivers will be most convincing. They take the gap at every opportunity, come out of every nook and cranny and presume one can stop on a tickey…a Euro, allowing for inflation. 

  Whenever one is without access to or visuals of the ocean, one loses the perspective of being on an island. Fortunately, we overlook the ocean from our apartment. Another negative is the island, particularly the cities, which is an obvious point, are densely populated. Therefore, we avoid them whenever possible. The road system is incredible; the ingenuity of man and the Europeans specifically, makes one wander in wonder and awe. Nevertheless, most roads are narrow; in some places they are really narrow making it almost impossible for two cars to pass. The traffic is heavy and even the freeway comes to a standstill at peaks. 

  While discussing the lesser aspects, I should stress again, we love the land. A real issue that should be mentioned is that driving distances to trailheads are long. It’s unfortunate. The trails are maintained better than anywhere else we've visited. However, because of the layout of the island, very few hikes are less than an hour away. Seems paradoxical that on an island, the driving distances are great while in many big cities, the reverse applies. By the way, the number of hiking opportunities is limitless. You might think that perhaps we chose the wrong area in which to base ourselves. Perhaps, but we don't think that to be the reason.  

Framing a volcano and a far less volatile lady, Mount Teide and Ms. Tidy.
The island is part of Spain. It is clear that one is in Spain. From our experiences on the mainland, we don't perceive any differences. We've come across many European visitors, a few with holiday homes locally, many English and Russians as well. Clearly, it's an ideal tourist destination, providing many activities, good weather and a wonderful atmosphere outside the cities (opinion, of course). The youngsters probably go crazy for the city life. We would think most ‘normal’ people enjoy the cities. On the trails, generally, we find manners lacking, which is the fault of the hikers, not the culture. It's a pity. Probably the friendliest of the nationalities are the Germans as well as the most dominant, not suprisingly. 

  Over the years, we have found the Europeans to be avid hikers. In addition, they are invariably the oldest and arguably, the strongest. Of course, many youngsters cover the slopes. It seems a mountain to Europeans, is no different from a flat piece of land. If it's vacant, build a house, a farm or an hotel. We love that spirit. We've never met so many Dutch people as in Tenerife although we traveled via Amsterdam which probably had a few more. It does make communication a little easier using Afrikaans although they are probably being polite. 

  Our landlady has left us to ourselves although she communicated frequently in the opening days. She was excited to have us. Not because of who we are but rather, she'd never had guests staying longer than a few days. Six weeks made us special. Heck, one takes one's popularity however it develops. 

  The hiking is grand, mostly magnificent. The views are spectacular. The scenes are unique. No matter how many places we have visited, trails negotiated, Tenerife provides a meaningful experience. The views invariably allow the hiker to understand the relationship of the ocean and coastline, water to land, the mountainous rugged beauty, amazing trails and paths on, around and over the mountains. The hamlets built into the mountains, all enhanced by varying weather patterns, are another fascinating aspect. Mount Teide, its ever-present mass on view when clouds permit, gives the viewer an added treat. One could explore the land over a lifetime and not see it all. 

  To summarize or emphasize the paragraph above, when we reach a trailhead, whatever the mood, it becomes enhanced as we step forward and absorb the surroundings. Once we begin to really get going, although the trails are rated as 'challenging', one is transported into another realm. It goes without saying, there are many occasions when one feels stretched and weary. But that's the game, that's life, thankfully. A little rest and one recovers fully. Thereafter, the feeling cannot be beat. Later, the feeling dissipates awaiting the next opportunity, but the memory of it remains indefinitely. It's a heck of a system. It's dynamic. To maintain the 'highs', to regain the feeling of the previous occasion (day), a person has to repeat the effort of that occasion, at least. Of course, there are no guarantees but that too, is the system. 

  Santiago del Teide from the peak. It's where we dropped the French women. Well, not dropped, literally.
Cheers, 

Jenni and Jeffrey 

The world provides us with incredible joy as we witness a multitude of varying scenes each day...thank you!The Atlantic Ocean is angry.