Caught the 0930hrs Nr303 bus from the Telmo Bus Station to San Mateo where we changed to the 1030hrs Nr 305 bus direction Tejeda
Arrived at a sunny Cruz de Tejeda around 1100 hrs and decided to start the day with a celebratory 11'venses at the Parador Cafe. This cafe overhangs the rim of the Tejeda Caldera and, with it's floor to ceiling windows, gives a superb panoramic view over the caldera.
Same shot but with different exposure so that one can see the view
... zooming in one could clearly see the 3718 meter high peak of Mt Teide 60 miles away on the neighbouring island of Tenerife
We enjoyed siting in this cafe with such a superb view so much that we decided to stay for lunch - filling the time reading our Kindles and enjoying the view
After lunch, no more excuses, we left the Parador, crossed the road, and set out on our hike to Culata - Hike Nr 8 in the Sunflower Walking Guide - below is a copy of a map from the Sunflower Guide showing he trail
Checking the route
It seems have not set the exposure correctly on the camera - the caldera looks hazier than it was - in fact it was a superb sunny day.
View to the west of the caldera with Roque Bentaiga and Mt Teide clearly visible
Roque Nublo to the right
As the total hike to Culata would, according to the Sunflower Guide only require a total of 1 hour 35 minutes, and we at this point had 3 hours before the bus was due, we decided to relax in the shade of some pine trees and read our Kindles with a wonderful view in front of us.
Time to move on
At this point, we unexpectedly came across a marked track to the right down to Tejeda - not marked in our Guidebook We kept left for Culata.
Time for another break - at a point mentioned in the guidebook as a spring - a pleasant shady picnic spot
see map below for location of this spot
Roque Bentaiga, Montana Vista and Mt Teide more or less in line
Looking back towards Cruz de Tejeda
Roque Nublo once more
Approaching the village of Culata
Culata is dominated by Roque Nublo
At 1645 arrived at the Bus Nr 305 bus stop close to the appropriately named Bar Roque Nublo in Culata - the end of a very pleasant scenic relaxed hike - our first proper hike in 2013.
Photo of the bus timetable at the bus stop in Culata
The 1712hrs 305 arrived more or less on time to take us to San Mateo where we caught the 1830 hrs Nr 303 bus back to Las Palmas
The below timetable would indicate that one could arrive in Culata at 0840hrs - could be useful if one wanted to make a long hike from here
Below are the timetables which we got from the Telmo bus station for the 303 and 305 buses
