Anaga Mountains

The Anaga Rural Park covers the jagged northeast peninsula of Tenerife, a series of sharp ridges and deep ravines carpeted in ancient laurel forest. This is the wildest and least-visited part of the island — a complete contrast to the resort coasts — with narrow roads twisting along knife-edge ridges and trails dropping steeply into hidden valleys where small farming communities persist with no road access.

The main trailhead is near Cruz del Carmen, where the visitor centre provides maps and information. Popular routes include the trail from Chamorga to the lighthouse at Punta de Anaga, and the path through the Bosque de Anaga forest to the village of Taganana on the north coast. The driving route along the ridge road (TF-12) offers extraordinary views in both directions — north to the Atlantic and south across the island toward Teide. Allow at least half a day; a full day with a hike is better.

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A story
The Anaga mountains at the northeastern tip of Tenerife preserve the oldest surviving laurisilva — the ancient subtropical laurel forest that once covered much of southern Europe and the Mediterranean before the ice ages. This forest survived in the Canaries because the islands were never glaciated. Walking through the Anaga in mist feels genuinely ancient: the trees are draped with lichen and moss, and the forest floor is a tangle of roots and ferns.