We spend a whole day exploring La Gomera by car and were amazed by the beauty of this small island. It was much less touristy than other places we have seen and it its nature was very diverse. The mountain in the middle of the island catches the clouds and in the nationalpark on the summit there is a kind of cloud forest which is very green. The valleys dropping down to the seaside are also very beautiful and look very different. Some and very green and fertile, home banana plantations and palm trees. Others look more deserted and lots of cacti and agave grow in them. It is hard to describe so I will just add more pictures.
On our way up into the fog:
View over a canyon (and crew)
For lunch we went to a traditional local vegetarian restaurant that someone had recommended to Mark. It was a very fun experience, the owner Efigenia came to each table to greet the guest and explain the menu. There is only one set menu each day and everybody eats the same out of big bowls serving 6 people, each gets their own plate and you just help yourself. She even showed us how to eat the gofio (pap made of roasted corn flour) with the spicy red sauce mojo rojo and was very thorough in her explanations!
After lunch we ditched the hike due to the rainy weather and drove town to the beach where we went for a small walk and then drove back to San Sebastian where we arrived just before nightfall.
Drive down to the beach town and back at dusk:
The next day is Mark’s last sail with us, over to El Hierro, the final island of the Canaries for our boat. We expect big winds and waves again so we prepare food. We soon get strong winds and reef the main twice. We get up to 40 knots of wind and quite consistently get winds of 35 knots, the waves are about 3 meters high but come from behind so it is quite comfortable.
In El Hierro the marina spot we have chosen is very uncomfortable with wind and swell coming from the side and the boat is pulling sharply on the ropes that hold it do the pontoon on both sides. We go to find a restaurant for our last evening with Mark and a local taxidriver makes a great recommendation. We have a nice meal and go for a walk around the main town of Valverde and dance some Salsa in front of the church while we wait for our taxi.
The next day Mark leaves, but not before he climbed the mast!
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