We enjoyed our time at the Hovima Hotel in Costa Adeje, where all of the staff were incredibly friendly 🙂

Something funny happened when my husband and I started talking about how to celebrate our upcoming 23rd wedding anniversary. Instead of deciding which restaurant to go to, or which show to pair it with, fairly typical in the past, we decided to take a little trip away, and completely “unplug”. What a fabulous, spontaneous decision! It was just a long 4 day weekend, which doesn’t seem all that long, but it was perfect from start to finish.

Playa del Duque is considered a premium beach on Costa Adeje in southern Tenerife, and we’d have to agree! It wasn’t crowded, it was clean, and it was beautiful. The water was so refreshing from the searing heat of the sun!

We enjoyed relaxing by the pool (but always with my hat!)

Neither one of us has wanted to take a “do nothing” break … ever! But with all of the kids away on their own vacations, we decided to try something different with just the two of us. What a wonderful time we had! We relaxed by the pool, swam in the waves of the ocean, and we sweat our way through a beautiful hike of the Barranco del Infierno.

Páraic and Dana at the start of our hike in Barranco del Infierno

The Barranco del Infierno is a nature reserve, and the hike starts at 300 m above sea level, in Adeje, Tenerife. I was rather thankful that we took a taxi to the visitor center, as the car wound it’s way up, and up, and up the steep streets! The hike itself wasn’t steep – just getting to the start of it was!

This cat was helping to enforce the “no cars allowed any further” rule

It was hot and humid (31 degrees Celsius 88 degrees Fahrenheit by 9 AM)! Reservations are required for this hike, as they wish to preserve the environment and not alter the development of the species, flora and fauna, by limiting the number of people in the reserve to 300 per day. Thankfully, our early reservation meant we were on our way by 9:15 AM, and we more or less had the trail to ourselves for most of the hike.

The view of the sea is such a contrast to the dry, desert conditions at the start of the hike.

Easy to navigate paths and great views!

It is not a difficult hike, being just 6.5 km, and the hardest part was dealing with the heat. The views were beautiful, and unusual, and the trails were easy to navigate. We were required to wear helmets, due to the possibility of falling stones. Some areas we were warned not to stop and rest at, to keep safe of falling terrain. Happy to report we had no issues!

Bailadero de las Brujas – The Witches’ dance floor

I find babies of all varieties to be adorable, including cactus babies!

Gorgeous views of the canyon walls as the sun’s rays break through.

The half-way point of the hike leads to a waterfall, and along the way you can see the difference in surroundings change from desert-like, to plush greenery and the benefits of flowing water.

These lovely “flowers” were along the desert path.

I loved this tree-like structure growing from some of the plants! They were so tall.

There were signs describing points of interest throughout the hike.

We saw so many lizards on the second half of the hike, as the sun rose higher and the trail was bathed in sun.

he blends in quite well!

definitely in the plush section of the preserve now

We even saw figs!

the waterfall area was serene and beautiful

The waterfall is more than 200m high

We both really enjoyed getting out, moving and seeing such lovely scenery. After we finished the hike, we walked down the steep streets and caught a bus back to our hotel quite easily. Well, I did feel it in my quads a tiny bit, if I’m truthful…

oh that’s just me photobombing my husband’s picture… 🙂

We’re so glad we did something different this year for our anniversary! Have you done anything spontaneous and fun lately?

In peace,
Dana