Teno Alto is a small village on a high plateau in the Teno massif, at the north-west corner of Tenerife. The walking up here is open, moderate and quiet, and the village itself is the point as much as the route is.
The oldest part of the island
Teno and Anaga are the two ends of Tenerife that existed before the middle did. They are the island’s oldest volcanic massifs, separated for millions of years, later joined by the eruptions that built Teide between them.
That history is visible. The ridges are more deeply eroded than anywhere else on the island, the ravines are sharper, and the settlements are small and isolated because the terrain never made anything else practical.
Cheese, and why it survives here
Teno Alto keeps goats and makes cheese from them, which on this island is more unusual than it sounds. Most Canarian agriculture consolidated around bananas and wine on the wetter, more accessible slopes. Up here, on a plateau reached by a single winding road, grazing remained the sensible use of the land.
If the chance comes to buy some, take it. It is the reason to stop in the village rather than walk straight past it.
Weather, seriously
Our hosts’ note is about layers, and it is the practical heart of this walk. The massif sits directly in the path of the trade winds, so cloud builds against it and burns off repeatedly through the day. Sunshine and cold mist within the same hour is the normal experience, not bad luck.
Take a windproof layer even if you leave San Marcos in a t-shirt, and do not rely on the view being there when you arrive.
Getting there
About forty-five minutes by car from the apartment, heading west past Garachico and then climbing. The road up is narrow and slow. Drive it in daylight.