We saw Mt Teide today. It’s the center of a huge national
park and is about 12,800 feet high. We didn’t go all the way up because you
have to be in line by about 6 am in order to ride the cable car. You can walk
up but it takes five hours. Also, you
need to apply several weeks in advance for permission to walk the rest of the
way up to the rim of the caldera.
The most interesting thing about the trip was the large
number of observatories near the top. I wanted to take a picture but the bus
didn’t stop near there. It’s verboten to fly over the island at night because
it stirs up the atmosphere and prevents accurate astronomical photos.
Tenerife is part of Spain and is the southernmost tip of
Europe. This is the most visited national park in Europe. Many people come up
to see the stars. In the spring, it’s possible to see Polaris and the Southern
Cross at the same time.
There are four vegetation zones on the way up the mountain.
Bananas are grown from sea level to 300 feet. They also grow a black potato
that is expensive and tasty. That’s about it. The guide joked that if the
planes and ships stopped coming, they would have to live on potatoes and
bananas.
I saw eucalyptus trees and bottle brush at the next level.
It reminded me of the California Bay Area. They are chopping down the eucalyptus because
it’s not native and uses too much water.
After that, there was a regular forest of pine trees, except
they are Canarian pines. That section reminded me of the Black Forest in
Germany. Then, we were up above the tree line and into the lava rock fields.
There is a section that looks just like Mars. In fact, the Mars rover Curiosity
was field tested here.
The formation behind me is known as The Cake.
There are no large native mammals. Rabbits and goats were
introduced for hunting purposes.
