Lanzarote | General Hiking Overview

I thought that it might be an idea, at this early stage, to give you a general idea as to the geography and geology of the island so that when you come to try one of the walks, you know what to expect.

The island has an are of 846 km² and, dimension wise, it measures 77km from north to south and 25km from west to east.  We have two mountain ranges here on the island, in the north is Famara (671m) and in the south Los Ajaches (608m).

The island is of volcanic origin created when the continental plates of Africa and America broke up.  The major volcanic eruptions took place here between 1730 and 1736. During this time a quarter of the island was covered in lava destroying the most fertile soil that was here so it is, subsequently, not an island particularly renowned for its hedgerows, forests and meadows.  It does, however, offer some amazing scenery featuring striking colours, shapes and contrasts.  I am pretty sure that in every walk that I will describe to you there will be a volcano somewhere in the landscape as we have more than 300 on the island, but I certainly don´t plan on marching you up and down all of them, however, there are a couple of hikes that I really enjoy doing which do entail climbing to the top, but don´t worry, it´s not as tough as it sounds!

Between February and March, when we tend to get our yearly dose of rain, the island comes into bloom. From what, at times, seems to be quite a baron and dry landscape, we are suddenly surrounded by a staggering array of colours and fresh, floral smells. Grassy meadows appear overnight and wildflowers battle with each other to get the greatest share of the suns rays.  The north of the island is so beautiful at this time of year, to me, it looks like a completely different island.  This is the time when I tend to make the most of walking up there and to seize the opportunity to take photographs of this vibrant landscape before, unfortunately, the sun and lack of further rainfall takes its toll.

Whatever the weather, the walks that I will be taking you on will cover a multitude of different landscapes. There are trails through the vineyards, along coastal routes, up and around volcanic craters, through typical Canarian villages, down to beaches, along cliff tracks and there´s even a suggested walk over on our neighbouring island of La Graciosa, which is only 1km away by boat.

For all the walks that I will suggest to you, I do recommend that you wear lightweight walking boots or trainers, as you will need some ankle support. The ground underfoot is quite rocky and can be slippery at times due to loose stones and twisted ankles aren´t something I want you to incur.  Suncream is a must too, even if the sky seems overcast!  We are almost on the equator here, and the suns rays can be pretty intense. A hat is also recommended on sunny days, as burning the top of your head is extremely painful (been there, done that).  It´s also best to carry some plasters with you too incase your boots start to rub.  Also make sure you take plenty of water, as walking is thirsty work.  I do also suggest that you take a mobile phone with you just incase of an emergency,  ´better be safe than sorry´as they say.  The local emergency number on the island is 112.

So, lace up your boots, grab your rucksack and camera, and let´s go and discover just exactly what Lanzarote has to offer!

Now that you have found this page, please come further and find out about me and what I am doing here on Lanzarote.

Tags: General Hiking Overview