Table of contents
A hike around La Florida – Canary villages and dense pine forests
Map
This hike on Tenerife, which takes you in a large circle around the hamlet of La Florida, is extremely varied. It takes you through the dense pine forests of the north below the Teide.
view to the coast and Icod de los Vinos
But in between, you’ll pass through green fields, flowering gardens and small villages. And, of course, you’ll also cross wine-growing areas around Icod.
field and flowering trees at La Florida
From time to time on this hike the view to the north coast is free. You can see the colourful houses of Icod de los Vinos, which stretch down to the Atlantic Ocean. A picnic is worthwhile in the district Valois on a small picnic place with a table under a 26 meter high pine. This is considered to be the oldest pine of Icod de los Vinos and is said to be over 1000 years old according to the latest findings.
Valois on the way to La Florida
hiking path on the street to La Florida
You will meet these pines (Pino Valois) in the district of Valois, which you will cross on your hike to La Florida. The village is named after the citizen Bernardo Valois (1663-1727), who once lived in this area, which was then called Puerto de Orotava. He was a Catholic Irishman who settled in the area around Icod during the heyday of the wine trade.
rest place under an old pine tree with view in Valois - hiking path La Florida
He is said to have been very rich and wealthy. Together with his English friend Gilbert Smith, the rich merchant bought a vineyard near Miradero de Icod. After Gilbert Smith died in 1721, Bernardo Valois inherited the vineyard. This is how the place got its name, which it still bears today.
Track circular hike close to the Cueva del Viento around La Florida
General information about the circular walk around La Florida
Starting point and approach
Small parking lot in front of the Cueva del Viento above Icod de los Vinos (not Centro Visitantes, but near the cave).
Starting point: parking at the Cueva del Viento
Arrival by car
From the north you can reach Icod de los Vinos on the island roads TF-5 and TF-342 and from the west on TF-82 and TF-366. For those who do not drive with navigation, from Icod de los Vinos there is a perfect signposting in direction to the Cueva del Viento. But while the Visitor Centre is on the Camino los Piquetes, at the first big fork after the TF-5 underpass, turn left. This is the Camino San Pablo. Continue straight ahead up this road. Behind the last houses the path turns into a road through the estate and forest. At the last houses, on the left side of the path, a steep road descends opposite. It leads to the starting point, the Cueva del Viento car park.
Arrival by bus
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Sign up nowBasically you can take the bus (Titsa bus lines 105, 106, 107, 108, 325, 360, 363) to Icod de los Vinos. You can find more information on the Titsa Homepage. But the starting point for this hike is the Viento district above Icod de los Vinos. If you travel to Icod de los Vinos by bus, you will have to hike a few kilometres to the starting point before the hike. Alternatively, you can take a taxi to Icod de los Vinos.
Time
I do not like to give general time information for hiking tours, as the times are very individual. For this tour we needed 4.5 hours with an extensive rest.
elevation profile circular hike around La Florida
Difference in altitude and distance
The difference in altitude is approx. 580 metres. The distance is scarcely 14 kilometers long.
Requirement
signposts PR TF-42 La Florida
Basically, this is an easy and easy tour for everyone to master. It runs on good hiking and driving paths and along village roads. However, because of its length, you should be in good shape.
Refreshment
There are restaurants, bars and shops in Icod de los Vinos. Possibly you will meet an open bar at the roadside, I wouldn’t rely on it. So take enough water and food with you.
Variants:
This tour can be well combined with various other hiking and circular walks in the vicinity. You will see that during this tour you will come across many signs pointing to other hiking trails. Of course, you can also combine this tour with a visit to the largest volcanic tube in Europe, the Cueva del Viento.
pine forests beneath the Teide - hike La Florida
Circular walk around La Florida
Section car park Cueva del Viento to farm behind Llanito Perera
You start your hike near the famous volcanic tube Cueva del Viento. There you will find the parking lot for the buses that take visitors from the Centro de Visitantes to the cave. If you go up the road from the parking lot to the road you came on, keep to the right. You follow the road uphill. After some time, your path turns left off the road into the pine forest. You walk through the forest for a while. Then you will see a village road and houses below you.
driveways, that lead as hiking trails through fields and fincas
The houses should still belong to the district Llanito Perera of Icod de los Vinos. Your hiking trail is now for a time the PR TF-42, which leads from La Motañeta to La Guancha. You walk along the road and after a short time you come to a bigger road. Go around this road to the left. But already after a few meters the path continues on the other side of the road. You walk along the narrow path at the edge of the forest. After a short time you will come to a larger farmhouse, which you circle on the left side below the path.
La cruz del Tronco - hiking path on the street leading through pine forest
Section house to road/road junction
Then you continue walking between meadows and the edge of the forest. To the left there are now some wonderful views of the Atlantic Ocean and the Icod de los Vinos below you. In the middle of the forest, after a while, you come across a road that you cross. The trail continues on the opposite side. Shortly afterwards you come to a fork in the road. From here you come back to the right after the round tour. But now you keep to the left. Continue on a small path through wooded areas.
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hiking path through reed to La Florida
And then you come out in the Valois district. Via a driveway and passing a house on the right you reach the small resting place with the big old pine tree. The story is described in more detail in the third section above. Follow the road and keep right at the next fork. The road turns into a hiking trail that leads you through fields and meadows through open terrain. Once again the path goes through woods. And then you are back in built-up area. You are at a kind of road/road junction.
hiking path through green and along nice villages - La Florida
Section of road/road junction to La Florida
Here you follow the road straight ahead. If a road comes from the left, stay on the main road, which you now follow for a while. You will see village life, fields, flowering gardens and wine. Don’t worry, because there is almost no traffic on the road, so you can walk in peace. After some time you come back to the wooded area. The trail is marked with yellow and white lines from time to time. You pass a road sign (La Cruz del Tronco).
La cruz del Tronco - chapel
Shortly after, there is a small church on the right. Here you are already in La Florida. At the church the street runs into another street, which you follow to the left. At the next junction keep left and then take the first right. From time to time you will also find the PR TF-42 signs to La Guancha. The rest of the trail takes you straight ahead past houses, fields and gardens of La Florida. It also goes through a small wood before you come back to a road.
hikers on their way through Llanito Perero - upper part
Route section La Florida to pine forest via La Florida
On the street you keep straight ahead again and walk past houses and gardens. The village street ends behind a house wall on a larger street that you cross. On the other side the trail continues. A road leads you past isolated houses, bushes, fields and gardens. And then you are back in the pine forest. Here you simply follow the trail straight ahead for a while. Then you come to a road on the other side of the forest. On the left above you is a large house.
hiking path in La Florida on the village street
You keep to the right and walk along the edge of the forest. There are also large deciduous trees and in front of you lies the mighty Teide behind the woods. You pass a huge clearing. On the other side of the open space the hiking trail goes back into the forest. But now you stay in the forest for a longer time. You can’t miss the path. It leads partly steeply uphill and then on small distances again downhill. You walk around La Florida in a big curve. Finally, the forest road via La Florida takes you back to Viento.
hiking path La Florida - in the background Mount Teide
Section pine forest until fork in the way back
While the first part of the hike passed through small villages and individual farmsteads, meadows and fields, the second part of the hike runs mainly through the pine forest. This is of course quite pleasant in hot weather because of the shade. Here in the forest you also pass isolated houses. But essentially you take a very long walk through the forest.
view over the dense pine forests of the north cloth to La Florida
Finally the forest opens partially and you pass individual farms and fields again. You follow this path for a very long time, which now and then leads in a large arc around individual farmsteads. Then you come to the place from where you came on the way from the left. Here you turn left. From here the rest of the way back is the same as the way out.
hiking path under big trees through autumn leaves
And finally
I hope you enjoyed this hike north of Tenerife. It really was a bit out of the ordinary. No high summit and no gorge either. But it is very varied and you get a little bit of the Canarian village life and the beautiful nature around Icod de los Vinos. We wish you a lot of fun while hiking,
Dagmar of Seven Islands
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