Breakfast improves today by virtue of a third course – chocolate. Not only is there a variety of chocolate cakes, there’s a machine with six different types of hot-chocolate. Now I’ve found this a few of the grumbles have gone away – not many but it’s a start!
Our day proper starts in 1965 – I’m not even into single figures in the year when just 6km down the road from our hotel, a company is set up making salt.
It’s a simple, tried and tested process – flood some small lagoons with sea water, and then over a period of time, as sun and wind rapidly evaporate the water, pump the progressively more salty water into the next, and top up from two higher up the chain of lagoons.
The last ones are so concentrated the salt starts to crystallise in the remaining water, which can then be scooped out with a rake, to drain and dry completely. They only do this in the spring and summer, there’s a down-season when the evaporation isn’t fast enough, but they use this time to do maintenance, salt being hyper-corrosive.
The algae which forms, being adapted to high salt, is very pink, which in turn colours the krill bright pink, and finally the flamingoes which feed on them. No birds at this time, but the pools are certainly a fabulous colour.
Nearby, a lighthouse has been converted to a small ecology exposition, where we enjoy a fascinating film showing the work of the La Palma Marine Nature Reserve, all based in the areas we have been exploring these last two days.
Moving on, we return to LP2 and head north, right back near to the area we walked yesterday. This time though, we’re below the new peak, and we’ve moved back in time to 1949, when a different kind of volcanic event took place. Unlike those of 2021 and 1971 which we’ve looked at over the last two days, which were explosions of a fairly epic scale building peaks and craters, the 1949 one which happened just 2.5km south of yesterday’s had no gas or ash, just a huge amount of hot magma oozed out of the fissure which formed, and made its way in rivers down the mountain side.
Quite apart from the devastation, the molten rock river, together with the laws of physics and fluid dynamics combined to create a natural pipeline sealed below the surface of the flow. This 6.5km long pipe has recently been transformed from a very dangerous playground for local kids, into a properly controlled and absolutely fascinating visitor experience.
Our guide is Angel, he gives us a vast amount of information about the way everything formed, before taking us down below. Many sections are less accessible, but this 250m stretch has much to show and we have a wonderful 90 subterranean minutes working our way along the pipe from the public viewing platform.
We look at all the forms of lava, how they create different patterns at different speeds, colours like white, grey, black, chocolate and textures like bubbles and Nutella are to be found.
We spend a couple of minutes without any light, to sample total darkness which is awesome, before heading back.
Compare the photo of 19/09/2021 with now – what is between the pylons, the day the eruption started and what is left aftwards!
On our return we stop in Los Canarios, the village some 2000 feet directly above our hotel. We pop the car on juice for a while, although she doesn’t really need it, and head to the nearest supermarket – birthdays need ice cream and it’s been in short supply so far.
The town is quite lovely, some great buildings and good views, down to the sea below. After 30 minutes we decide it’s time to head back home.
Imagine our surprise, after struggling to park because the hotel doesn’t have a car park, that there’s a bottle of cava waiting in celebration of my birthday. We save it until 18:00 when we have a FaceTime scheduled.
We’ve finally fixed the sub-prime dinner dilemma, it’s quite easy – just spend an extra €100 or so to get a “luxury dinner” – and so we enjoy an imaginative Waldorf Salad followed by Lobster Thermidor both served properly as food should be, instead of putting up with all that ridiculous buffet nonsense. The very delayed dessert wasn’t so good, a mediocre chocolate cake with one side very dry, but again it was served so there is a silver lining even if it’s rather tarnished.
