Ferry ticket bargains

Ferry company Armas is offering tickets at discounts of 30% off and up to 45% off on all their routes, including their high-speed ferry to La Gomera, for bookings made until Monday 1st of December 2025. You can book ahead for sailings until June 15th 2026. The discount is applied in the final step of booking before you pay when you enter the discount code BLACKFERRIDAYS. Here's the link to the offer in English...

Space flight with rockoon direct from La Gomera soon

The 'rockoon', a word derived from rocket + balloon (this image and video below: b2space.com)

When I first heard about the planned launch of a rockoon (a huge balloon with a rocket attached to it) to take place in the harbour of Valle Gran Rey, La Gomera, I thought it was yet another funny tall tale or false rumour doing the rounds. But what sounds like something that I might have dreamed up for my popular annual April Fool's Day posts is in fact true and about to happen in the middle of this month.

The company behind the venture with the slogan ''taking your business to space'' is B2Space Ltd. It was founded 2016 in the UK and later expanded to Spain with the ''purpose to provide a reliable, flexible and low cost access to Low Earth Orbit for small and micro satellites'' and ''High Altitude Operations and Near Space Testing''. The idea is that a stratospheric globe carries the rocket up close to the earth's atmosphere before its ignition to leave same for space, saving lots of fuel.

Vueltas harbour (Google maps)

The next launch, planned for a ''window of opportunity between November 16th and 23rd 2025'', will be from the harbour of Vueltas in La Gomera, selected as the ideal site because of its remoteness and safety, plus I'd say the predominantly favourable weather played a role , too. According to the local press  ''this maritime environment allows to meet security requirements and obtain the necessary licenses''. Could Valle Gran Rey's little-used harbour now transition to a spaceport ? There's a couple of acres of vacant space available. Before launch, on November 14th, the company will present the system, the associated planned activities, and further details in the harbour of Valle Gran Rey. 

The presentation will take place in the terminal building (Estacion Maritima) in the outer harbour at 11:30am and is open to to the public. The launch of the rockoon is planned for Sunday Nov. 16th, if conditions are favourable. Be there to see it all, or if you fancy hitching a ride. A few space babies and space cadets in La Gomera might feel tempted to stow away and go higher. Rock on, rock-oon, next to the moon ! 

Seriously though, the above is true and the company's video below shows how they intend to do it:

Updated weather warnings issued for Canary Islands

An additional status orange warning of very heavy downpours, thunderstorms and strong winds has been issued for the western Canary Islands a bit earlier today November 12th 2025 by the Spanish meteorological agency. In La Gomera the island's government has activated its emergency plan and asks to avoid travel and to stay away from all hiking trails, walks and unpaved forestry tracks. Ravines, valley floors and low lying areas should also be avoided due to the risk of flash flooding as rain accumulations of up to 30mm in just one hour can be expected.. Same applies to the other western Canary Islands of Tenerife, La Palma and El Hierro. The warnings are valid from lunchtime today until tomorrow afternoon. Status yellow warnings of thunderstorms and wind have also been issued. A heavy swell with large waves can als be expected. Gran Canaria will be under similar warnings tomorrow only while Fuerteventura and Lanzarote will come under yellow warning (see image above). Go to the Spanish meteorological service's (AEMET) official website in English for further detail.

All this is due to a large area of low pressure, presently around 980 hPa, situated NNW of the Canary Islands and off the WNW of the Iberian peninsula, named storm Claudia.

Please be aware that there is a high risk of rockfalls, which will remain for a couple of days once the rain has cleared away and the sun heats up the wet mountainsides.

Stunning image of sacred mountain

Above a stunning aerial photograph of La Gomera's sacred mountain La Fortaleza, taken and published by ''The Piper Pilot'' on his Facebook page, where he showcases the beauty of the Canary Islands with shots taken from his aircraft. Below is an image I took some time ago. More about La Fortaleza can be found HERE...

Cinema to be demolished soon

The old, long closed cinema (image above: (c)Google Street View) in the Las Orijamas barrio of Valle Gran Rey is soon to be demolished to make room for a new state-of-the-art health centre. The plans also include the upgrade and incorporation of the adjacent senior's residence and of the existing health centre. The new healthcare facility will have 30 beds for acute cases and a further 30 beds for long-term care. The former cinema building was acquired by Valle Gran Rey's local government recently and the cabildo (island administration) has now approved the allocation of 304.000 Euros for its demolition and site works. A sum of € 8.3 million has been earmarked for the subsequent construction of the new facility, see plan below:

The Number One Bus

Linea 1 bus at platform number 1 in Valle Gran Rey's bus station (''Estacion de Guaguas'' at the bridge in La Calera), connecting the capital San Sebastian de La Gomera with the south-west and the mountain villages of Chipude, La Hayas and El Cercado. The 65 kms long journey with over 40 bus stops (depending on demand), costs just 5 €uros  and takes less than two hours. There are several stops in the national park and the bus also goes to the island's hospital. Please note that there is only the relevant bus station's departure time given and that you have to signal the bus to stop anywhere else. You also must ring the bell (the red button marked STOP) aboard just before your destination, but stops are not generally announced. Also worth noting is that a bus or coach is not called ''autobus'' as it is in Spain, but only known as a ''guagua'' (pronounced ''gwa-gwa'') in the Canary Islands. The routes, timetables and fares for the public bus company Guaguagomera can be found HERE...

Two dead and one critical after car crashes into house

Scene of the accident in Arure (Image source: Ramon Hernandez/facebook.com)

A car crashed into the wall of a building in a bend on the main GM-1 road in the village of Arure, municipality of Valle Gran Rey, on Sunday night hitting two persons outside the house.

The alarm was raised just before 7 pm and when the emergency services arrived at  the scene a man and a woman who had been in front of the house at the time had been fatally injured, while another woman, who was the passenger in the crashed car, was extracted from the vehicle alive with life-threatening injuries. She was transferred by SUC helicopter to the university hospital in Tenerife, where she remains in critical condition. Meanwhile the male driver of the crashed vehicle was transferred to La Gomera's hospital with less severe injuries.

Several people near the scene of the horrendous crash had to be treated for shock and the whole island of La Gomera remains shaken by the incident. Valle Gran Rey has declared three days of mourning and all events have been cancelled there.

Summertime is fiesta-time

...and more about fiestas in La Gomera can be found HERE...

Who's got the key for this tree ?

Heather tree near Raso de la Bruma in La Gomera's Garajonay national park, spotted recently

Video of St.John's bonfire night traditions...

...taken for/by the Canarian government's heritage teaching programme in Vallehermoso in La Gomera's north-west on Monday night, 23rd of June 2025. Note the massive bonfires all around the valley. 

There are lots of huge bonfires in every town and village all over the island on the same night with parties, music and dancing. In the video you can see ancient aboriginal traditions like the music, chants and dancing mixed with newer Christian traditions that arrived with the Spanish conquest. More about the bonfires HERE...

And then there was light...

 ...and not only at the end of the tunnel.

For many years the demand for lighting of the two tunnels below Arure down into Valle Gran Rey had been vociferous, not least after a serious accident involving a cyclist in the 625 metres long tunnel of Yorima. 

As I reported in 2020 the Canarian government had allocated substantial funds for the installation of illumination in both tunnels, but it took another few years for works to be completed, and some time ago the light came on, which I failed to report up to now. 

Many years ago when newly arrived in Valle Gran Rey, I once naively walked down from Arure to La Calera through both dark tunnels at night, trying to hitch a lift down. Nobody stopped for me as they probably thought they saw a ghost. A very scary experience for me and one to be avoided even now that the tunnels are lit, as the bit of pavement on both sides is too narrow to walk on safely, and only serves for standing on, back tightly pressed against the wall, when a car or truck thunders through the tunnel.

Canary Islands Day 2025

The Canary Islands celebrate their national holiday Dia de Canarias every year on the 30th of May with lots of activities, concerts and celebrations, read more about it here...

The 2025 programme for Valle Gran Rey (above) has lots of local and Canarian folk music and more and will take place behind the bus station (where the Sunday market is situated) and begins at 1pm.

Fatal bus crash on mountain road

Image source: diariodeavisos

A major accident on the GM-2 main road about 3 km outside San Sebastián de La Gomera yesterday morning left a 73-year-old woman dead and 11 other people injured, some seriously, when a public transport bus with 20 people on board overturned.

The crash happened at around 8:30am, when the bus veered off the road and tumbled down a slope. The authorities stated that the vehicle was operating the regular route between Alajeró in La Gomera's south and the capital San Sebastián de La Gomera when it left one part of the roadway and overturned onto a lower part of the same mountain road near and below the large statue of Christ overlooking the capital.

Scene of the accident seen from the upper part of the road. Image source: diariodeavisos

The alarm was raised at 8:42am, initiating a major emergency response involving ambulances, a rescue helicopter, police, civil defence, etc. According to the Canary Islands’ Emergency Coordination Centre (CECOES), all those injured were taken to Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe hospital, but one critically injured was later transferred by helicopter to Tenerife's main hospital.

The cause of the accident is being investigated by a team of specialists from Tenerife.

Despite La Gomera's winding and often precipitous roads such accidents are thankfully very rare, but in January 2018 another bus crashed and overturned (click to read post).

Palms as houseplants with a difference

La Gomera is home to the largest number of the endemic Canarian palm tree (Phoenix Canariensis)  in the archipelago and the species is protected and cherished. More than 100.000 specimens have been counted on La Gomera and they are also a source of income for local farmers. From animal fodder, basket making, etc., to the the famous sweet ''palm honey'' (miel de palma), they play an important part in our economy. Palm honey is not bee's honey, but the syrup obtained by first cutting the crown of the palm tree, then collecting the sweet and watery sap (called 'guarapo') that rises up the trunk and further boiling the sap down to a syrupy consistency to obtain the 'honey'. This liquid is delicious, full of minerals etc., and highly valued. A Canarian palm tree may be exploited in this way only once every five years without doing damage. Read more about palm honey here...

Palm trees may not be cut down for any reason without a permit that is almost impossible to obtain, as they are a protected species. So what do you do when you want to build a house or an extension to an existing one when there is a Canarian palm in the way ? The simple answer is you just build around it and leave the tree trunk as a feature, or as a convenient clothes hanger stand, inside your house. The gap you have to leave in the roof is usually sealed with an old truck tyre's inner tube which fits the trunk neatly and allows it to expand. 

When I first came to La Gomera I lived in a house for a while where a palm tree grew  through the centre of the kitchen with frying pans and other utensils neatly dangling off hooks screwed into the trunk. The floor was tiled right up close to the base of it as Canarian palms have a vastly spread network of relatively small roots and the palm doesn't mind being encased as long as it can spread below the foundations. There was an opening in the tiling where you could pour in some of your waste water to give it a drink.

There are a good few examples of this 'symbiosis' all over La Gomera island. Above and below are images from just below La Calerea on the main road to La Playa,  Valle Gran Rey, where a palm is neatly integrated into a building. Also note that when this road was widened some years ago all the existing palm trees had to be accommodated and new ones were planted, too:

That's why you should always heed the warnings:

This massive lump of rock fell during storm 'Olivier' which brought very heavy rainfalls to La Gomera and all over the Canary Islands. The rock above fell onto the road between Las Hayas and El Cercado, completely blocking it. In total there were about 50 incidents, but thankfully no injuries, as most people did heed the warnings. Thanks to La Gomera's undaunted, dilligent and ever-vigilant road maintenance crews all roads were soon cleared again. (Image: gomeranoticias)

Heavy rain and thunderstorms in Canaries tomorrow

 While it is warm, sunny and very dry with high pressure over Ireland, the Canary Islands can expect storm 'Olivier' with wind, heavy rain and thunderstorms tomorrow Wednesday, April 9th 2025. Status orange warnings have been issued by the Spanish metereological service for heavy downpours, which could dump up to 30mm of rain in just one hour. Thunderstorm warnings have also been issued, with falls  of hail possible, and  in the western Canaries there are status yellow wind warnings of southwesterly gale gusts. 

The warnings are valid from tomorrow and begin at different times in each island, so please click the official AEMET.ES website for more detail (in English). All warnings expire later on Thursday, but further showers can be expected over the following days as low pressure close to the Canary Islands becomes almost stationary and is forecast to dissipate only slowly.

it it advisable to be cautious over the coming days and hiking and other outdoor activities in the mountains and ravines should not be undertaken . Travel should be avoided, but if you need to drive then be very careful. Rockfalls and landslides can be expected, which might happen as a result of loosening material due to temperature changes, erosion and especially during and after rain. Don't be deceived by longer sunny intervals as the sun can add to the erosive process when rocks and soil expand in the sun's heat after cracks and crevices have been filled with debris by precipitation.

All a bit unusual for this time of the year and not great news for those on holidays in the Canary Islands, but the rain is very badly needed and wanted by locals.

Trump wants the Canary Islands too - Latest News

Will the little Canary be taken under the wings of the great American eagle (Image:hablemosdeaves.com )

After Canada, the Panama Canal, and Greenland the American president Donald Trump has now laid claim to the Canary Islands.

In one of his rambling speeches Trump has strayed again, from talking about his intent to buy Greenland to a claim much further south, namely the Canary Islands and he has revealed the following: 

''...that little group of islands, I think they call them the Canaries, a great place, much warmer than Greenland, a nice climate they tell me, no ice, and with clever people, a lot more people than Greenland, they're very important to us, too. We want those little islands and they're very important to us strategically there on that side of the Ocean. We've been looking into that, and we want to help them make a great place out of their islands again. Spain and the Europeans have ruined the place, that's not good, and they're important for our security.

Same as America, they've been taken advantage of by the Europeans for too long - a long, long time. Actually, since Columbus came. He was a great, clever sailor, but without the Canaries he couldn't do it, I mean come here and take America. So they, the Spanish, and all the European immigrants, colonised the peaceful Canaries first. They did bad things to them and we want to help them to get well again and be great again. 

They're strategically very important to us, sitting there on the eastern side of the great Gulf of America. You know, they're not even in Europe, they're in Africa, what's the term, geo-something, I don't know, but they're better off with us and so, so close to the Gulf of America. They already trade more with us than with Spain. Maybe you don't know that but it's true, so they're important to us and the other way round. When our tariffs kick in they'd do much better business with us. They'd be much, much better off...''

The American president continued:

''...and it's a great staging post, clever little Columbus knew that, too, and with lots of beautiful golf resorts. We've already got a great airbase nearby, in the eh, eh, Amores, or Azores, or something. That will help us. I mean it's massive, it really is big - you've got to see it, they showed me pictures of it that only the president gets to see - it's great, real powerful. We should, no we must have another one in the Canaries, that's important for international peace.

The Canarians really got a bad deal from Spain and Europe, who don't give them nothing but cheap tourists. I mean, imagine that, and they're poor there and no real jobs for the young people, only cleaning and serving jobs and making bananas, imagine that, that's tough, making bananas. But we'll help them build great new business and I can smell oil and other great things there. I don't know if you can, but, eh, I can. Maybe I'm a genius, but I can smell great things there, gas maybe, too. They've got cute little birds there, too (laughs), I mean the Canaries. I think that's why they call the place that and some people have them at home here, too, in cages. They even have wild Canaries in the golf resorts there, that's real smart. I'd like that in mine. J.D. is going there very soon to talk to their people and he'll find out, he'll find out. We're working real hard on this, it's become more important now, Elon says, and he's a genius. We must have, eh, help them, the little islands right there, just off the great Gulf of America.

We'll pay a fair price for that rundown place, of course, make a good deal, but maybe we have to use a little bit of force at first, too. But they've got smart people over there and like the Puerto Ricans and, yeah, the Hawaiians, too, they will see that they'll be better off with us, America. We'll give them a little time to think about it, but I'm sure in a year we'll have it all done. For sure, April 1st 2026 they'll be with us and celebrating, making the Canaries great again. Liberation day for the little Canaries this day next year, believe me, April 1st is the day ...''

    Image credit and more about the lookalike bird: washingtonpost.com           

In the wild north-west

A different view of the chapel dedicated to Santa Clara, situated above the remote village of Arguamul in La Gomera's wild and beautiful northwest.

Centenary of the arrival of a virgin and a happy 2025

 First of all let me wish you all a very happy and healthy 2025. 

2025 marks the centenary of the arrival of the Vigin de Los Reyes in the parish chapel of Los Reyes in El Guro/Casa de La Seda in Valle Gran Rey, making this year's Fiesta de Los Reyes special. As you know Epiphany on the 6th of January os the main Christmas day in Spain, when Los Reyes (aka Los Magos) bring the presents, and as the oldest church in Valle Gran Rey is dedicated to Los Reyes this is one of the most important days here. The celebrations started early in December with minor events and all culminates over the coming days with the annual procession and the ensuing fiesta (see programme below). More about all the above festivities here: https://lagomera1.blogspot.com/2016/01/main-christmas-presents-and-fiesta.html

Camino Zigzag

Above is the beginning of the popular hiking track to Arure from La Alameda in Valle Gran Rey. It zigzags up to the relatively flat plateau on top of La Merica Mountain and then leads on to the mountain village of Arure. Breathtaking views can be enjoyed all along this route which once was the main path between the lower valley and Arure, long before the road was built. Note that it is easier to go up this track than it is going down. I took this photo a good few years ago from the top of Teguerguenche mountain on the opposite side of the valley.