CAMINO DE GRAN CANARIA

 6th Nov 2025

Day 1 - Faro de Maspalomas to Tunte

A long, hot day. We were genuinely surprised to see the forest alert downgraded to green — and updated before 7 a.m., which must be some kind of Canarian administrative miracle.

We left the hotel at 7:40, walked to the bus stop and only waited two minutes. The ride to the Faro was quick, helped by the complete absence of traffic and, apparently, drivers with Monday-morning energy.

The Camino began by following the river straight through the city. Then came the glamorous section: walking along the dry riverbed under two huge concrete overpasses, before heading into the gorge. The gravel track climbed gently at first, then decided to take things more personally. Hot, sunny, barely a breath of wind — ideal conditions if you enjoy feeling like a baked potato.

Somewhere around Arenasa? Arenas? (your guess is as good as mine), Gaby opted for the bus. I carried on at my own pace, which mainly meant getting even hotter and discovering new sweat locations.

The climb into the pine forest was beautiful though — shaded, quiet, and smelling much better than I did. Eventually I reached Tunte, a genuinely lovely village. I popped out for water, then we both headed out later and ended up having dinner at a restaurant with a couple I’d helped check in earlier (Spanish skills finally justified). Great food, friendly people, and a surprisingly lively little village for the middle of the mountains.