The diabolical Hell Canyon
The diabolical Hell Canyon – Barranco del Infierno
Since I have a small faible for waterfalls and really want to see at least one on any trip, we spontaneously went to “Barranco del Infierno” (English: “Hell Ravine”) on Friday, 29 August, to hike to the falls from there. Since 2004, an admission fee has been introduced for this tour, and the maximum number of visitors is limited to 300 people per day in order to protect the environment.
The trail to the waterfall and back is 6.3 km long and has a vertical drop of 200m – therefore, an easy path to end our journey with. Since there are some overhangs on this tour, we had to wear helmets.
The first three-quarters of an hour, we walked in the blazing sun and the vegetation looked desert-like. There were plenty of cacti, rocks, sand – and more cacti to see. Contrary to the walk through the Masca Mountains, we hardly spotted any lizards. After 45 minutes we arrived at a shaded area where the vegetation abruptly changed – plants, ferns, palms and trees all grew here – very impressive!
The waterfall drops about 80 meters in depth, with the amounts of water it carries depending on the season. It certainly does not hold up next to the Niagara Falls, being more of a trickle – considering the conditions on the island, however, it has plenty of water. 😉
On the way back we noticed the red cactus fruits and wondered if they might be edible. We did not deliberate long, picking an overripe fruit and simply having a go at it. Sucking out the inside, we found – it was actually pretty tasty.
It was yet another beautiful hike with impressive flora and fauna, that I can recommend to everyone.
Translation from German: Serena Nebo
