Parque Nacional de Garajonay

Alto de Garajonay

The Parque Nacional de Garajonay is located in the center of the island of La Gomera. During the period that we were on La Gomera we visited this national park several times. We did some great hikes, among other things. One of these hikes was to the Alto de Garajonay, the highest point on the island of La Gomera. Another hike went to the area around El Cedro, a very green area that definitely resembles rainforest. Read in this blog about the national park, the Alto de Garajonay, the El Cedro area and our hikes in the park.

The Parque Nacional de Garajonay covers an area of ​​more than 10% of the island of La Gomera. In 1981 it was declared a national park, making it the fourth and youngest national park in the Canary Islands. Since 2012, the park has been designated a Biosphera Reserva by UNESCO. These are areas that aim, among other things, to preserve biological and cultural diversity.

The national park is 3.984 hectares and the territory extends over various municipalities of La Gomera. It covers the center of the island and certain parts of the north. The landscape of the park is vulcanic in nature and consists of basalt and pyroclasts. Due to the humid microclimate, large areas are very green and the park has beautiful flora and fauna.

The minimum height of the park is 650 meters above sea level, in the village of El Cedro. This part of the national park is mainly characterized by the very moist forest of varied evergreen species. Laurisilva is a wonderful example of this, it mainly occurs in a humid microclimate. This is caused by the moist sea air that rises in the mountains and actually develops a kind of horizontal rain. In the 6 weeks that we were on La Gomera it became more and more cloudy almost every day during the day at height in the mountains.

Forest fire tracks

When hiking through the national park you still see the tracks from the 2012 fire

In August 2012, La Gomera was unfortunately hit by a major forest fire. After five days, the fire had spread and also hit the national park. If you walk through the park and climb up to the Alto de Garajonay, you will clearly see the traces of it. The fire destroyed more than 4.000 hectares of the island and nearly 750 hectares of the national park in two weeks.

The national park takes its name from the highest peak on the island, the Alto de Garajonay. This is located almost in the middle of the island. The funny thing is that when you look at La Gomera from above it appears to be in the shape of a citrus press. From the center, the ridges and barranco’s run as if it were a juicer to the sea.

The Alto de Garajonay is easily accessible. If you come by car, you can park in the Pajaritos car park. This is located along the GM-2 road at the intersection with the CV-13. From here you can hike to the Alto de Garajonay, which is about 5km there and back with a height difference of 126 meters. The last part is a bit steep but doable. We would recommend this trail for the average hiker. If you want to walk less you can drive the GM-2 a little further west and then drive close to the top and walk the last part. However, we chose to walk a longer part and make it a really nice hike.

Alto de Garajonay

The last part of the hike to Alto de Garajonay is a bit steep but very doable

A week earlier we had planned this too, but we had really been bumped by the rain. Halfway through it really started to rain and it was not much fun and unwise to continue. A week later it was a clear day and we chose the route that approaches the Alto de Garajonay from the west. This is the official circular trail 18 on La Gomera. It starts in Chipude and goes from there to the Alto de Garajonay and back. The length of this route is almost 14 km with more than 600 vertical meters. That is a tough trail, but we found it really doable. At the start it was clear and cloudless but when we got close to the top it became a bit cloudy again and we did not have a completely unobstructed view. But at least we had a view over large parts of the island and towards Tenerife. At the top of the Alto de Garajonay is a marker that this is the highest point on the island and there are good views in all directions, weather permitted. We have been up there for half an hour and it was nice and quiet. We ate our sandwiches and took pictures. Then we walked back.

El Cedro

The area around El Cedro in Parque Nacional de Garajonay is very luch and green

Another beautiful hike we did in Parque Nacional de Garajonay was to El Cedro. This is a very green area in the national park and it is located north of the Alto de Garajonay. El Cedro is also accessible by car, you can park at the picnic area. This is located at the end of Calle El Cedro. This is a side road of the CV-14, this is a connecting road between the GM-2 and the GM-1. Here too we chose to hike a long way towards El Cedro. A frequently used trail is the linear trail 8. This starts at Reventon Oscuro along the CV-14 road where you can also park your car well. From here you walk about 6km with 300 vertical meters to the tiny village of El Cedro. There is a picnic area and a small campsite, which was closed when we were there. If you hike this trail 8 towards the north, it actually gets greener around you every second. The area is best known for the enormous amounts of watercress, but there are also countless tree species, moss and ferns.

Chorros del Cedro

The waterfall was dry but still very worthwile to visit

We chose to hike a bit further from the picnic area on a mountain path along the barranco. A few kilometers further you have a view of the Chorros del Cedro, a waterfall. We knew it was dry but still wanted to see it with our own eyes. The waterfall was indeed dry, but the extra piece we hiked along the barranco was great. You have a beautiful view of the steep mountain walls and the deep ravine and at one point you see Hermigua in the north in the distance in the barranco. In the end we hiked more than 18 km and got a great impression of El Cedro.

Barranco views

When hiking through the barranco at El Cedro you can see Hermigua in the distance

The hikes to Alto de Garajonay and El Cedro are fine examples of what there is to see and do in Parque Nacional de Garajonay. But there are many more beautiful hiking routes to be found on the official website about hiking in La Gomera. And for the less enthusiastic walkers, many of the special places in the national park are also reasonably accessible by car. When you go to La Gomera take at least a few days to explore Parque Nacional de Garajonay well, it is more than worth it.

Look for more photo material and information about Parque Nacional de Garajonay on our Instagram posts and on our Polarsteps page!

Ella & Geert.