Canary Islands

About El Hierro

Places of Interest

About El Hierro

El Hierro offers a tremendous variety of scenery: from the arid slate-like landscape and the volcanic formations of the south and west to the fertile land in the valley of "El Golfo" with vineyards and plantations in the northwest, by way of the dense pine and evergreen forests of the island's central area.

El Hierro's coasts are rocky and very steep, with inaccesible cliffs up to 1000 meters high and yet sheltering coves with natural swimming pools which beckon the visitor to take a refreshing swim in their cool waters.

E l Hierro's geological epic began around 100 million years ago, when the ocean floor began to swell up due to the unstoppable push of the earth's mantle. Finally, the earth's crust broke in a very characteristic fashion, cracking in the form of a three-pointed star.

Through the cracks began to pour the magma, which after successive eruptions and piling of one layer on another built up the island edifice until it finally emerged from the ocean, forming an imposing triangular pyramid, crowned by a volcano of more than 2000 metres in height.

The initial cracks turned into conduits for the up-surging lava which then became three mountain backbones along which numerous volcanic cones are found . As the magma cooled in these conduits, it solidified into vertical basalt walls, forming the characteristic dikes, so typical of El Hierro's geological architecture.

	However, the island carried on growing, owing to volcanic activity concentrated in the area where the three backbones meet, until a point of critical instability was reached. Thus, only 50.000 years ago, in the tiny island of El Hierro , one of Natures's most violent and devastating phenomena took place: a land-slide on a gigantic scale.

In a matter of seconds, probably set off by some tremor, a large piece of the island broke off and slid down the marine slope to be scattered over the ocean floor. Like a wound from a giant claw, the impressive amphitheatre of the valley of El Golfo ("the Gulf") remains. It is difficult to imagine a land-slide of 300 cubic kilometres, something like 100 times the volume of the Mount Saint Helens explosion.

It is thought that the tsunami (tidal-wave) thus caused must have been more than 100 metres high and it is more than probable that its effects were felt on the coasts of the Americas .

There have been a number of eruptions in recent history, including those of Tahuye/Tacande (1585), Volcan Martin (1646), Volcan San Antonio (1677), Charco (1712) and Nambroque/San Juan/Las Manchas (1949) The most recent volcanic eruption was that of Teneguia in 1971.

El Hierro has the highest density of volcanoes in the Canaries, with over 500 cones on the surface and another 300 covered by more recent lava flows. Although the volcanic caves and tubes on the island have yet to be investigated exhaustively, some 70 have been catalogued. Some of them are noted for the beauty of their stalactites or for their length; the different branches of the Don Justo cave add up to over 6 kms.

The climate of the island is determined by the interaction of ocean currents from the Saharan Bank and the Trade Winds, so it is uniformly mild. Coastal temperatures are between 19ºC and 23ºC. (On higher ground, especially in the north and east, a few degrees have to be subtracted). Throughout the year there is a moderate to strong breeze.

On the Nisdafe plateau we come across fields and meadows, whilst up in the pine forest, fig and almond trees abound.On this island too, you can make the most of the well-known Eternal Spring' climate of the Canaries, with sub-tropical vegetation in the fertile areas contrasting with the fascinating volcanic landscape in other parts of the island.Take the boat or the plane and come and visit us and discover an island you will never forget