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The Geography Department |
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Tenerife 13-20 March 2007
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Tenerife Landscape - south coast Tourism - Los Christianos and the South Coast Towards Buenavista - the North West coast Teide Volcano - the National Park 1 Teide Volcano - the National Park 2 Snow
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El Teide - the first attempt 13 March
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On a gloomy afternoon, turning to rain, the caldera was reached - and the rain turned to sleet, then wet snow - and then real snow! |
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Next morning - 14 March
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The well-made road above Vilaflor passes through pine forests, still bearing the results of the recent snows. |
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As the altitude increased, so did the snow cover, until, at the national Park sign, a snow-plough passed on its way back to the caldera. By this time i had already passed one 'road closed' sign! |
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Although there was some ice on the caldera rim, the descent into the crater floor saw improving road conditions - until another 'road closed' sign at Boca de Tauce led to a change of direction. |
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The straight road toward Pico de Teide was taken, over a very rough lava field, that allowed views over the Pico Viejo cones and the latest lava flows ... not that they could be seen under the snow! |
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There were quite well-established, although stunted pine woods as the altitude bled away on the north-western side of the mountain. |
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On newer conelets the process of colonisation was clear. |
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The road resumed its fall through more major lava flows (the last being just 200 years old), and gave (centre) a view back to Teide, up a line of subsidiary conelets. |
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A selection views of lava fields, colonising woodland, and the now-white mass of Teide. |
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Returning to the mountain
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After foraging towards Buenavista del Norte, on the north-west coast and in tropical temperatures, the hope was that the snow would have melted, allowing passage along the caldera floor. |
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Pico Viejo on the western flank of Teide. |
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The road was open, and so were views of the lava fields, and the lava dyke on the right. |
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More views of the caldera rim, still bearing the overnight snow, and Teide in the centre. |
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The road to Los Roques runs in straight stretches across the caldera floor, cutting through a dyke in one place, and using wooden posts, left, to deter vehicles leaving the road. |
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Classic views of Teide flank a shot of the mineralised copper zone on the road to Los Roques, but at the time of shooting the possibility of closing upon this feature was unknown! |
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Teide, with the plain of the caldera floor, the Las Canadas depression, and Los Roques emerging on the right of the photographs. |
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Los Roques standing in front of Teide. |
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The road ascends to Los Roques, crossing a band of mineralised rock, clearly a copper-bearing green, before opening up views back over the crater floor. |
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Los Roques has classic views of Teide, and a number of maintained walks for tourists, and the view down over the caldera. |
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Los Roques car park, in front of the eastern crater rim, and, on the right |
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Two more views of the caldera floor from Los Roques. |
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From the road to el Portillo, a succession of lava flows and ash cones and, centre, a glimpse of the Teide Observatory. |
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Ash cones near El Portillo, with coverage of the groundcover of vegetation, and the caldera rim backwall. |
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Both of these photographs feature conelets near El Portillo, but the right-hand shot is a zoom-in of a fissure feature on the skyline. |
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A pair of photographs from the road in the area of El Portillo towards the Teide Observatory, showing the northern branch of the caldera floor. |
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Back amongst the pine woods in the early evening - and one last stop when a fire tower was spotted! |
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