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...

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...

The sacred mountain La Fortaleza

La Fortaleza, La Gomera's sacred table mountain just south of national park's forest near the island's former capital of Chipude, was once an important ritual site and later served as one of the last strongholds of the indigenous Gomerans against the Spanish conquerors. Seen here from the east (Mirador de Igualero) at sunset when mists often drift across the top. The Spanish word la fortaleza means strength, toughness or fortitude, but also translates as fort or fortress.

A similar view of La Fortaleza photographed in daytime. The mountain rises to 1.231 metres asl (over 4.000 ft) and the remote hamlets of Erque and Erquito lie in the deep valley below.

The ancient stone alignments and original religious sites on top were mostly destroyed by the Spanish conquistadores and what remained was further severely disturbed in the 1980's by a group of German esotericists who rearranged the stones and rocks they found to create spirals and other formations according to their own convictions. This happened before the site had been properly investigated and documented by archaeologists and consequently it could not be brought back to its original state. So there's no need to revere what you find there as it's not authentic, bar the rocks themselves, and there's also the addition of a modern Christian cross.

Above is a view of La Fortaleza taken from the western side about a kilometre from Chipude, with the village of Pavon, on the road to La Dama, at its foot. From there the table mountain top can be accessed via a slowly ascending winding path (signposted). However, the final ascent is demanding and not suitable for those suffering from vertigo. Bear in mind that you'll also have to climb down the same route as there is no other path back. In the past years some steps were hewn into the rock face that made the clamber up a bit easier, but you'll still need both hands and feet to do it. The spectacular views from the top are the reward for those who make the climb. As the late Tim Hart wrote in his excellent 'La Gomera - A Guide...' (ISBN 0-9547989-0-2): ''...to the top, where you feel as if you are on a giant altar to the god of the sky, as did the Guanches, and they called him Arahan''.

There's a petrol station and also the Bar Los Camioneros close by on the road to La Dama should you need to refuel, or indeed pre-fuel to muster courage and 'fortaleza' for the ascent.

Finally some rain yesterday

Yesterday up to lunchtime it was mostly sunny, but then within a short time it began to rain moderately and the rain continued for more than two hours. The image below shows people still enjoying the beach when the rain started to come down the valley.

This morning in Valle Gran Rey the skies are blue and the sun is shining, but a warning for heavy showers is still in place. 

Yesterday's rain was moderate here, but other areas had heavy rain and the mountain village of Chipude on La Gomera recorded 30,4 mm. Some areas of Gran Canaria got even more again with Cuevas del Pinar accumulating 55mm yesterday. 

The outlook is for the weather to improve, with just the occasional scattered shower expected next week - see top of sidebar for up-to-date details

Temporary road closure

The road connecting the mountain villages of El Cercado and Chipude will be closed until Friday December 5th 2014, and again from Tuesday Dec. 9th until Friday Dec. 12th during daytime hours due to road works and resurfacing. At night it will be open to all traffic. A signposted detour through the national park is available. The main bus line which connects Valle Gran Rey with the capital San Sebastian de La Gomera usually passes through these villages but will have to use the detour as well. Intending passengers will be brought from the two villages and all the bus stops along this road to the nearest alternative bus stop by a shuttle service when the road is closed.

Fiesta and more fiestas

Below are some impressions of the current main fiesta on La Gomera. This one is dedicated to the 'Virgin of Candelaria', the patron saint of the Canary Islands. Here on La Gomera it is celebrated in the mountain town of Chipude, the capital of La Gomera in olden times (now San Sebastian is the capital). Chipude boasts one of the nicest and oldest Christian village churches in the Canaries. This fiesta is one of the local highlights of the year and thousands flock to Chipude for the week-long celebrations. The photos below were taken in the afternoon heat - it really gets going much, much later when the cameras are forgotten and it continues until the 'wee' hours. By the way, this wasn't the only fiesta this weekend on this small island of just over 20.000 inhabitants and many more fiesta will be celebrated over the coming weeks and months. How do they survive all the fiestas over the year(s) ? Fiesta goers need two things: A flexible liver and a lenient bank manager - or vice versa.

Church of Chipude decorated for the fiesta

I'm a drummer,too, and I'd
love to be treated like this.
Red carpet and all... 

Pace yourselves, boys - it is still too hot

First dancers have more room, later on it'll be crammed

Backstage VIP gossip