Gravel tour around the island of El Hierro

The island of El Hierro, without disparaging its sisters in the Canary archipelago, is my favourite. The crudeness of its young volcanic relief has made its occupation and human uses very special and characteristic. It is a UNESCO World Geopark since 2014 and an annual destination for divers, hikers and more and more adventure cyclists.

This route takes you around the entire island. Along almost 115 kilometers and 3,500 meters of positive elevation gain, this route will reveal the secrets of the westernmost and southernmost island of the archipelago.

Doing the entire Route in a single day is feasible, although hard. A very good idea may be to divide it into two or three stages so that you can calmly enjoy all its corners, visit the towns and let yourself be cared for by its people and traditional foods.

The first part crosses the island to the west, passing next to the San Juan volcano, then through the town of Valverde and finally next to the Montaña Jamones volcano, until reaching the La Peña viewpoint. From there, heading south, the itinerary follows the edge of the massif until beginning the descent towards Los Llanillos.

After a spectacular journey along the coast, you will ascend again until you are over 1,400 meters high, to then descend again towards Taibique and visit the viewpoint of Las Playas.

From here the last part of the Route awaits you: the descent to the coast to Timijarique, the port of La Estaca and the return to the airport.

The island of El Hierro enjoys a privileged climate that allows you to enjoy this route practically all year round.

My recommendation on the bike: wide and reinforced tires. The type of volcanic terrain that is so recent makes many of the sections on the road especially abrasive for our tires.