Timanfaya National Park

Today we re-visited Timanfaya National Park, or what they call ‘the volcano’ locally. It’s funny how years dim the memory, please read on.

My memory was that it should be visited, shouldn't be missed and is the highlight of the island of Lanzarote.

While the latter is probably true, after today’s visit I’m not so sure about the other two things.

You need to pass the visitor centre on the way to the peak, it’s a typical tourist trap complete with souvenir shop and some information about the island and more pointedly the volcano.

Thankfully it's also FREE to enter. You can save the Euro's for the part that is next.

According to what I read, lava gushed from the core of the earth for a good 30 years in the early 1700’s, but has been dormant since.

The landscape has been converted into something resembling the moon and @bingbabe started on her conspiracy theory that in 1969 Armstrong and Aldrin landed in fact on the surface of Lanzarote.

However that topic is for another day. We quickly left the visitor centre, the most exciting part of it being some crazy looking motorcycles that arrived while we were there.

Just a few more kilometres closer to the peak is the entrance. There were a dozen cars in front waiting to go in, and the cost was 12 EURO’s each.

As we passed the gate @bingbabe spotted a sign that said 60 minutes.

I was hoping that meant leave within 60 minutes due to the over abundance of tourists but audibly groaned as we turned a bend and I saw the shocking truth.

The line of cars was huge, and it was 60 minutes before we got to the front.

I am a person who hates queuing and would rather turn around, but as we had paid I could hardly do that.

TIP: If you travel by coach or taxi then they will both safely sail past all the fuming motorists and don’t have to queue.

Taxi’s simply dump their passengers and leave while the coaches have a separate area to park.

I could see what the problem was and that was parking spaces. There are not enough, and the ones available are on ridiculous gradients.

If you car’s handbrake is dodgy then your going to end up in the lava fields.

There is a restaurant at the peak and I’ll be reviewing that separately as we did eat there.

For your 12 EURO’s you get the views, the wonderful air, the pits and lots of tourists.

I’m generally not one for touristy venues, and simply wanted to relive what I saw 18 years ago in 2002 when I first visited.

This pit is an open one which a couple of blokes throw what looks like tumbleweeds down it.

Where they get them from I don’t know. It’s not like the landscape has an abundance of this things hanging around.

Poking them down the hole, starts a fire and the audience back off too many oooh’s and aaah’s.

It’s a decent trick enhanced by them throwing some water down the same hole which makes a cracking sound.

The views from the top are good but it’s a very barren landscape one looks out on.

The Atlantic Ocean can be seen in the distance with waves crashing on the west coast of the island.

Another hole in the earth has a grill positioned over it where you can toast your bread if that’s what you desire. I saw no people selling loaves so that was a no go.

As we were about to leave an organised tour agent was picking up these ashes from the ground with a shovel and adding a few to everyone’s hands in this ring.

They were obviously hot as many were dropping them with audible ouch’s, some of the blokes tolerating the burns and wheals appearing on their hands in an attempt to look 'manly.'

Maybe I was expecting too much but I found this particular attraction a little lacklustre, much preferring the abandoned villa we happened upon on the way back to Costa Teguise.

Like the restaurant that’s another story in itself. I guess me and safe tourism no longer mix as well as they used too.