GR131 Canary Islands: Day 23, Wednesday, February 4, 2026
Pension La Cubana, where we stayed overnight, is an old 19th-century building in the heart of Santa Cruz de La Palma. It has three floors, but unlike the buildings in San Sebastián, the structures here are much taller, making it seem small by comparison.
We ate breakfast on the tiny third-floor balcony, watching and listening as the city woke up. People moved through the narrow, cobblestone streets below, and the occasional delivery van arrived with goods for the small shops. My eyes kept drifting to the bakery directly across from us.
I considered racing down there before breakfast while waiting for Inger to finish in the bathroom, but I managed to resist. Instead, I made her some coffee while I waited. Yogurt and cereal were ready on the table by the time she finally emerged. Oh, and the coffee, of course.
The plan today is to take the bus to the southern tip of La Palma and then hike northward across the island. There will be a lot of elevation gain on this island—we’ll be climbing to over 2,400 meters (7,874 feet) above sea level—and I’m both excited and uncertain about how long it will take us. I hope we can make it in four days, but five is probably more realistic.
Once we were out on the street heading for the bus, we naturally stopped by the bakery and tucked some treats into our packs. It’s always nice to have something sweet while hiking.
The #200 bus left the city at 10:15 AM. There was a transfer along the way, but since it was with the same company, we tried to buy tickets all the way to Faro. The driver, who naturally only spoke Spanish, explained that wasn’t possible. We paid for this leg of the trip and sat down while our packs were stored in the luggage compartment.
The bus ride, which was supposed to take 35 minutes, took nearly an hour, and I was nervous we wouldn’t make the connection. We arrived just two minutes before the next bus was scheduled to leave. Feeling a bit stressed, I asked the driver where I could find the #23 bus. He explained—both verbally and with his hands—that this was the bus.
Then he asked us to buy tickets. We tried to pay by card, but the reader wasn’t working, so I had to dig into my pack for cash. While I was at it, I checked the bus number; it had already changed from 200 to 23.
After nearly two hours of travel, we arrived at the lighthouse at Playa del Faro and began our hike at 12:15 PM.
There are many young volcanic mountains on this island. The nearest one, Volcán de Teneguía, had spewed out black lava that flowed all the way down to the sea. Everything out here by the lighthouse consisted of black lava. Fortunately, the trail had been cleared, so our shoes mostly made contact with volcanic sand.
We started at sea level and began climbing immediately. Even in the black lava, there were actually green patches of plants that managed to find enough nutrients to grow.
After gaining 700 meters (2,297 feet) in elevation, we reached the village of Los Canarios. This will be the only village we pass through on this island, so we did our final provisioning there. It was afternoon, so we also took the opportunity to eat dinner before continuing the hike.
The trail climbed steeply, and we kept a steady, slow pace to save our muscles. We’re going to need them over the next few days.
Finding a tent site in this volcanic landscape is a challenge. I had checked the map beforehand to find areas that weren’t as steep, where there might be some hope of camping.
After passing 1,000 meters (3,281 feet) in elevation, we entered a pine forest—the area I had scouted out.
Incredibly, we found a spot there. It’s a really nice site with a soft floor of pine needles. We waited until an hour before sunset to set up the tent.
It’s very windy, and that’s supposed to continue over the coming days. I’m curious to see what it will be like once we get even higher and the forest ends.
Today’s Stats:
• Distance: 10 km (6.2 miles)
• Elevation Gain: 1,020 meters (3,346 feet)
• Current Camp: 1,038 meters (3,406 feet)
• Status: No cell service.