Cacti and Lava Caves

We used Google Maps to search the area north of Playa del Inglis for a place to explore. It showed a ravine that drew our interest. We packed our knapsack, prepared the bicycles, then headed off through town and over the expressway. There it was, a spectacular mountainous ravine. It was much more than we had expected.

Google had shown an old road going up the ravine, and within minutes, we were in another world. A bumpy washed out track heading up the ravine, and no sign of other people. For as far as the eye could see, there was a scenic winding ravine through mountains created from volcanic lava.

At times, part way up the mountain side, we could see an aquaduct used to transport water down to the town. There were actually two of them, an old one, probably built in the 1700s that had aged to the point of being unusable. After a climb up the hillside, the newer one appeared to be still a century or so old but still in use.

There were caves in the side of the mountains. These caves were a result of bubbles in the lava when the mountains were formed. Some of the caves closest to town had been inhabited at one time providing a natural shelter from the elements.

The river bed we were riding along was dry. Cacti and bramble bushes were the only forms of vegetation. We cycled and hiked for a couple of hours and finally came upon one small oasis with a small pond.

We eventually turned around and headed home, but returned the next day and ventured up a second ravine.  It was more of the same except the trail was rougher, much of it impassable on bikes, so we had to leave our bikes and hike on.

We had packed a lunch including a bottle of wine, so we climbed up to one of the largest caves to investigate and have lunch. While sitting there eating, we had thoughts of being vulnerable if there was an earthquake or rockslide. So even though the view was great and the experience unique, we didn’t waste a lot of time there.

We headed home feeling fortunate to have found such a scenic place of cacti and lava caves.

After our adventures, we slept well, except for the clickety–clack of the young Russian women’s shoes when they headed downtown, then again returned in the wee hours of the morning.

Click here for our last cycle adventure on Gran Canaria:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.ca/2012/05/ride-to-ridge.html