Video of a beautiful walk to an unusual water feature, a waterfall high in the mountains. This is a walk best done in the spring/early summer as the path follows the Bajante de Fyffes, a water channel that carries water steeply downhill from the falls. Because of this, the path at this time of year is lined with flowers including viper's bugloss and asphodels.
The attractive Mirador de Chirche sits above the village of the same name and gives expansive views to the coast and inland to the mountains. The terrain in this area is characterised by very rugged volcanic lava fields and although there are few notable peaks, the countryside is riven with impressively deep and wild barrancos. Leaving the mirador car park required a fleece layer to keep out the cold as the early morning mist swirled around the hills and as I climbed through the lava-fields, I was impressed by the huge amount of giant aeoniums growing in the harsh landscape as rays of sunshine shone through the mist illuminating the fine droplets and giving the whole scene a magical feel. Reaching the Galeria Tamuja, I admired the views into the Barranco Tamuja before returning to the main route and climbing to a junction with the TF-PR70 footpath. The remainder of my walk followed this path back to Chirche as I crossed the Barranco Tamuja and the Barranco del Cedro and pausing in the first of these, I enjoyed a break and sat absorbing the silence and admiring the wild and rugged scenery. Continuing, I crossed the barranco before arriving at the even more impressive Barranco del Cedro. After a steep descent and ascent, I arrived at a spectacular viewpoint looking down to the Galeria Tamuja that I had passed earlier in the walk, now far below me. Climbing out of the barranco, I reached a junction and turned downhill and followed the very steep, rocky path back to the Mirador.
Many of my hikes are recorded using an app called Wikiloc. This is a useful tool that allows you to follow walks recorded by other walkers as well as recordng your own, all on your smartphone. You are also able to send files to a Garmin handheld GPS device as well as downloading GPX files to a laptop for free. A data signal is not required if you are using a phone, just make sure that your phone's GPS is switched on (usually called 'location', or similar) and put the phone into airplane mode to preserve battery for the duration of your walk. If you want to download walks directly to your phone from the app, a small subscription is required. It is possible to check your position on a walk by checking the blue dot on the map. When you have finished your walk, simply save it and select 'private'. Once back home, you can add a description and photos before changing the settings to 'public. The app can also be set to alert you if you stray off of the route you are following. Photos and waypoints can be added to a route as you walk. My Wikiloc hikes can be found on this link
