La Gomera, for holidaymakers to Playa Las Americas and Los Gigantes in South Tenerife, is the large but little-known island behind which the sun sets in the western sea. Little has changed there since we rented a primitive but beautiful house on its verdant terraces in 1981. The roads are new - they surpass 90 per cent of roads in Ireland - and the island can be more easily reached. There is an airport now but, from South Tenerife, it's quicker by boat. The terrain has always been, and still is, Gomera's great protector against foreign incursion. Once, it sheltered the original Guanche inhabitants from the Spaniards, who took a century to conquer this island only 35 km in diameter but rising to almost 5,000 ft. There is still Guanche blood in the veins of its 17,000 inhabitants.
For holidaymakers seeking a break from "packaged", high-rise Tenerife, crossing to Gomera for a day-outing or a few nights stay provides a taste of an older, simpler Canarian world. San Sebastian, the port town, has a gentle, "colonial" quality. Cars can be rented cheaply and buses radiate to all points, making it a good place to stay. In the tower by the sea - the first building ever raised on the island - Christopher Columbus dallied with the Condessa Bobadilla, the island's mistress. Later, before setting off to "find" America, he heard mass in the town church, still extant.
The scenery of Gomera is awe-inspiring and unavoidable. To go anywhere, one must ascend, and the roads are full of dramatic views. The roof of the island is Garajonay National Park, a World Heritage Site of vast, uninhabited cloud forests. Deep, green ravines (barrancos) fall away, broadening and opening onto the sea. The island is a walker's paradise. Few motor-routes existed until the 1950s and there is a legacy of well-laid paths descending into the high-sided barrancos, each a world unto itself, the sides terraced with small fields of maize, mangoes, guavas and citrus, the valley floor spread out in banana plantations. Small, white houses, reached by paths, dot the terraces. Wild flowers abound, the air smells of herbs, and there is perfect peace.
For sea-goers, to lie back on the sundrenched decks of a large, old ferry-boat that takes visitors on day cruises around Gomera is a top-quality experience. The ferry leaves Vueltas, in Valle Gran Rey, each morning at 10.30. From breakfast coffees and fresh bocadillos, the food is a nonstop buffet, as if the crew thinks passengers haven't eaten in weeks. The care taken with it, and the shy courtesy with which it is presented is a special charm of the trip.
The boat is perfect for the visitor, broad, big-bellied and 70 feet long, with two decks and provision for sun or shadow. It moves at a leisurely pace. Captain and crew are friends and family. They work hard, cook, and sing, and watch the sea to show us birds, fish, dolphins, whales. The commentary, delivered by the bearded guide, Regulo, is in good English and German, witty, educated and erudite. There is music - Antonio plays the guitar and sings lovely sentimental Canarian songs, praising their beautiful islands. No wonder. Across the blue water rise magnificent hills, cleft with deep valleys, green as Ireland, terraced with plantations, dotted with old red-roofed houses and white farms.
We sit on deck; the weather is like the most glorious Irish summer day, 80 degrees Fahrenheit, with a mild sea breeze. We follow a pod of dolphins, roller-coasting ahead; they seem, like ourselves, exhilarated with the joy of the day. We pause off tall cliffs, stratified like candy bars, and at the Los Organos rocks, giant basalt organ pipes, like a super Giant's Causeway. The PA system blares out the Brandenburg Organ Concertos. Regulo grins mischievously from the bridge.
We swim off the beach of a remote valley, with an old tomato-packing station at the edge of the sea. The remoteness of these farms is striking. They seem like an idyll, austere in their loneliness, yet sensual in the warm weather. We swim in the heavenly blue sea. Parents allow their children into the deep water. The crew stands quietly on watch, and there is nothing to fear in this sea.
Now, the main meal, a stew made with fresh bonito caught as we go. The Canarian seas are rich; open decked line-fishing boats come home with 30 fish, each 30 kilos, aboard. Shearwaters skim the waves; an osprey flies from its nest atop a high cliff. The captain comes around with a coffee pot and glasses, followed by the big, bearded sailor with a bottle of cognac to add a kick.
The boat can circumnavigate La Gomera, 24 km in diameter, in four hours. But, there's no hurry and great value for money. We arrive back at Vueltas at 6.30pm. No dinner this evening. For £25, we've had sun, sea and sangria, and all we could eat!
Getting there
The port for Gomera is Los Cristianos, beside Playa Las Americas and 15 minutes from Tenerife International Airport. Car ferries make five returns daily, 80 minutes each way; jet foils (45 minutes) make four returns. Daily planes from both Tenerife airports, from Gran Canaria, etc. Car rental costs about £20 a day.