Walking on La Gomera and El Hierro. Paddy Dillon

that walkers should learn to identify. These include bushy, rubbery tabaibal and the tall cardón, or candelabra spurge. Both have milky latex sap, as does tangled cornical, with its distinctive horned seed pods, which creeps over the ground and drystone walls. Aulaga looks like a tangled mass of spines and is often found colonising old cultivation terraces in arid areas. Aromatic, pale green incienso is a bushy plant that, with salado, grows densely on the arid lower slopes of the islands. The fragrant Canarian lavender usually grows in arid, rocky, stony areas among other scrub species. Few of the plants have common English names, but all of them feature so often that they should be learned.

      Flowers grow all year round, but visitors in spring and early summer will be amazed at the colour and wealth of flowering plants. Many are Canarian endemics, and even trying to compile a shortlist would be pointless. Anyone with a particular interest in flowers and other plants should carry a specific field guide, in English. Try Native Flora of the Canary Islands by Miguel Ángel Cabrera Pérez, Editorial Everest or Wild Flowers of the Canary Islands by David Bramwell and Zoë Bramwell, Editorial Rueda.

      Animals

      The giant lizards of El Hierro were rescued from the brink of extinction and are now being conserved

      As befits remote islands created in relatively recent geological time, the main animal groups to colonise the land were winged creatures, insects and birds. The largest indigenous land mammals were bats. Large and small lizards also arrived, possibly clinging to driftwood. The laurisilva cloud forest is home to the laurel pigeon, while the rock pigeon prefers cliffs. Buzzards and kestrels can be spotted hunting, while ospreys are struggling. Ravens and choughs are common in some places. There are several varieties of pipits, chaffinches, warblers and chiffchaffs. One of the smallest birds is the kinglet, a relative of the goldcrest. There are canaries, which have nothing to do with the name of the islands, and parakeets that add a flash of colour. The islands attract plenty of passage migrants, as well as escapees from aviaries. The coastal fringes are colonised by gulls, but it is best to take a boat trip to spot shearwaters or storm petrels, as they spend most of their time on open water. Boat trips are also the way to spot a variety of dolphins and whales.

      Once the Guanche people arrived and colonised the islands over two thousand years ago, the forests suffered as much from clearance as from grazing by voracious sheep and goats. Following the Conquest in the 15th century, the Spaniards brought other domestic animals; of these the cats had a particularly devastating impact on the native wildlife, practically wiping out giant Canarian lizards, which have only recently been rescued from the edge of extinction. The largest of these lizards are on El Hierro, while the other islands have smaller species. Rabbits chew their way through the vegetation and appear regularly on Canarian menus.

National parks

      The Canary Islands contain a handful of national parks and many other protected areas. The Parque Nacional de Garajonay is in the middle of La Gomera, encompassing the highest parts which are densely covered in laurisilva forest. The whole island of El Hierro has been designated as a World Biosphere Reserve. Other protected areas on both islands include Parque Rural (Rural Park), Parque Natural (Natural Park), Paisaje Protegido (Protected Land), Reserva Natural Especial (Special Nature Reserve), Monumento Natural (Natural Monument), and so on. Prominent notices usually tell walkers when they are entering or leaving these areas. Very little territory lies outside one of these places! There are several visitor centres where more information can be studied, and where interesting literature is on sale.

The Fortunate Isles

      Myths and legends speak of ‘The Fortunate Isles’, or ‘Isles of the Blessed’, lying somewhere in the Atlantic, enjoying a wonderful climate and bearing all manner of fruit. The rebel Roman general Sertorius planned to retire there, while Plutarch referred to them many times, although Pliny warned ‘these islands, however, are greatly annoyed by the putrefying bodies of monsters, which are constantly thrown up by the sea’. Maybe these scribes knew of the Canary Islands, or maybe they were drawing on older Phoenician or Carthaginian references. Some would even claim that the islands were the last remnants of Atlantis.

      The Gaunches, often described as a ‘stone-age’ civilisation, settled on the Canary Islands well over 2000 years ago, and Cro-Magnon Man was there as early as 3000BC. No-one knows where the Guanches came from, but it seems likely that they arrived from North Africa in fleets of canoes. Although technologically primitive, their society was well ordered, and they had a special regard for monumental rock-forms in the mountains.

      The Guanches fiercely resisted the well-armed Spaniards during the15th century Conquest of the islands, but one by one each island fell. Tenerife capitulated last of all, with the mighty volcano of El Teide grumbling throughout. Many Guanches were slaughtered or enslaved, but some entered into treaties, converted to Christianity and inter-married. They lost their land and freedom, but their blood flows in the veins of native Canarios.

      The Canary Islands were visited by Christopher Columbus on his voyage of discovery in 1492. Subsequently they were used as stepping stones to the Americas, and many Canarios emigrated. The islands were exposed and not always defended with military might; they were subject to pirate raids, endured disputes with the Portuguese, were attacked by the British and suffered wavering economic fortunes.

      The original Guanche inhabitants of the Canary Islands fiercely resisted the Conquest

      There was constant rivalry between Tenerife and Gran Canaria, with the entire island group being governed from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria from 1808, before Santa Cruz de Tenerife became the capital in 1822. In 1927 the Canary Islands were divided into two provinces – Las Palmas and Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

      The Torre del Conde in San Sebastián on La Gomera is one of the oldest remaining buildings

      In the early 20th century the military governor of the Canary Islands, General Franco, departed for North Africa to launch a military coup. This marked the onset of the infamous Civil War, leading to the creation of the Spanish Republic, and was followed by a long repressive dictatorship. The Canary Islands remained free of the worst strife of the Civil War, but also became something of a backwater. It was largely as a result of Franco’s later policies that the Canary Islands were developed in the 1960s as a major destination for northern Europeans.

      Since 1982 the islands have been an autonomous region and there have been calls for complete independence from Spain. The islanders regard themselves as ‘Canarios’ first and ‘Spanish’ second, although they are also fiercely loyal to their own particular islands, towns and villages.

Getting there

      There are no direct flights from the UK to La Gomera or El Hierro, but both islands are served from Tenerife and Gran Canaria. There are plenty of options for flying to Tenerife, scheduled or charter, from a range of British and European airports. The hardest part is checking all the ‘deals’ to find an airport, operator, schedules and prices that suit. Most international flights land at Tenerife Sur, but inter-island flights operate from Tenerife Norte. Transferring between airports can be expensive and time-consuming, and it may be easier to catch the next ferry.

      Frequent, fast and cheap TITSA buses link Tenerife Sur with Los Cristianos, and the taxi fare is reasonable. If a night’s accommodation is needed at Los Cristianos, there are large hotels that often have vacancies outside peak periods, such as the Sol Arona Tenerife. The bus stops, main hotels and ferryport are all within easy walking distance of each other. Two ferry companies operate to La Gomera: Lineas Fred Olsen and Naviera Armas. The only ferry company serving El Hierro is Naviera Armas.

When to go

      Most people visit the Canary Islands in summer, but it is usually too hot for walking. Winter weather is often good, but on the small islands of La Gomera and El Hierro there is frequent cloud cover on the highest parts, and occasional