Pico Birigoyo and Montaña la Barquita from Refugio El Pilar and return via PR-LP 16 — circular

After our tour of the island yesterday, we set out today with a fantastic blue sky, fresh wind and a cool 12° C to hike a bit on La Palma's volcano route. We started at the hiking car park of the Refugio El Pilar at an altitude of almost 1500m. First we walked through a pine forest with Canary Island pines and then after about 100 meters of altitude we reached the tree line. Now the view of the Pico Birigoyo (1807m) was clear. After just under half an hour we had reached the summit. From here, under a deep blue sky, we could see the mountains of the Caldera Taburiente in the north as well as the peak of La Palma's youngest volcano, the Tajogaite. It and the lava fields that reach down to the sea were created during an eruption phase that lasted from September to December 2021. Very impressive! And also a little scary! The hike continued over the mountain "Montaña la Barquita" (1809m) to the GR131 hiking trail (Route of the Volcanoes), which leads from the north of the island to the south. We stayed on this path until the junction just before Pico Nambroque. From there we made our way back to the starting point at El Pilar. We soon reached the tree line. After a long lunch break in the forest, we hiked the last few kilometers downhill to the parking lot. This hike today was simply indescribably beautiful and we are already looking forward to more great impressions.

If there is a scale of the 10 most beautiful hikes on La Palma, then this one definitely belongs on it. The views from Pico Birigoyo and the challenging path to get there are simply great! Hard to top. But - as always a but - you need to be well rested and have some stamina for the climb, it's really tough (in some places it's over 30% increase) and the rest is just enjoyment. And the sun has to be shining, ideally when you're above the clouds. The descent is then not so exciting, but relaxing.

✅✅✅✅☑️ Nature ✅✅✅☑️☑️ Sightseeing features ✅✅✅✅✅ panorama ✅✅✅☑️☑️ Field/Forest/Meadows/Paths ✅✅☑️☑️☑️ Refreshment stop/rest area ✅✅✅✅☑️ Variety Under normal conditions, the tour offers a fantastic view of the east and west sides of the island. Calima is currently bringing a lot of Sahara dust with it. Flora and fauna along volcanoes is also very interesting to observe 👍 amazing what grows there 😯

The last hike in 2022 begins in EL PINAR on La Palma. The first half is always through the forest on forest roads, later it gets much nicer on single paths with great views. Unfortunately, visibility at the top was very poor due to fog. It's good to have warm clothes with you. I wish all hikers an eventful 2023!

Very nice tour that differs from the general one. Tour that everyone is running!! Because of that, it's nice to be alone. for yourself on the way!😊👍

The morning started - after breakfast - with a view of Santa Cruz beach and then continued to http://www.maroparque.es/ A very nice and non-commercial animal park. Then in the early afternoon up to the El Pilar hiking area. If you have left the cloud layer between 800 and 1200 m altitude, the sky is only blue. El Pilar is at 1500 m altitude. Unfortunately, my hiking companions from the day before yesterday left again today, so that I was alone on this beautiful route. Only one hiker came towards me. Fantastic views. Dense pine forest. Fantastic peace, except for the chirping of birds... 😄 El Pilar is also a leisure area with playgrounds and barbecue areas. Here I saw some groups having a good time... barbecuing, playing guitar and singing...

This year our first tour from Refugio El Pilar. And that in typical La Palma weather: sun - fog in constant alternation, until the sun finally gained the upper hand on the way from the Llano de Mosca up to the Pico Nambroque (LP 125 and then GR 131 Ruta de los Volcanos). The view above the clouds was great, but unfortunately not of the Caldera de Taburiente, as there were constantly large clouds hanging over the upper Aridane Valley. The huge crater of Hoyo Grande is spectacular and is also very interesting photographically. On the way back to the Refugio we met a few hikers with whom we were able to chat about La Palma until we reached our destination. A successful and entertaining hike.

A dream when the weather is nice 😃 On the way back you could experience live how the Canary Island pines capture the moisture of the trade wind clouds and bring it to rain.