It’s turnover day as well as Ed and Cathy exploration day!  We are up at out early – as usual – cards switched out at security as we leave the ship, and we’re off.  The cruise terminal is undergoing construction, so there are only temporary tent structures, similar to Civitavecchia.  Not a problem really, except we have to try to find Cicar rentals for our car.  A helpful security guard tells us we can find Cicar at the end of the pier, so off we go.  Unfortunately, there is nothing at the end of the pier.  Hmmmm.

Across the street is the huge mall and a tourist office, where we head.  The office opens at 8:30, but there is a guy there already so we go inside and ask if he can tell us where Cicar is located.  He tells us he will be open in 5 minutes and can talk to us then.  Ok.  Thanks.  Helpful.  Not.  As we exit the office, across the street is a man waving to us showing us his tie (which is the traditional Cicar colors/logos!).  How he knew we were looking for him, we’ll never know, but who cares? 

He’s set up on a bench with a bunch of contracts and a credit card machine.  We had missed him because there are a bunch of people standing around with luggage, obviously waiting for rides, but blocking him from our view.  Contract signed, keys in hand, he tells us in pidgin English that the car is in the garage (go to blue car, go right – there’s a blue car parked at the entrance of the garage!), to leave the keys in the car on the visor when we’re done.  Ok! Now the hunt is on for the car.  He didn’t really say where in the garage, so we begin our wandering, eventually finding the car location in a section reserved for Cicar. All’s well.

We’re out an on our way in no time.  Since we have experience with garages now, we know to hit the information button and tell the attendant we have a rental, and poof, the gates go up and we hit the road on our way up into the mountains to explore and hike.

I had originally plotted out 3 different options for today, just in case our timing was restricted because of turnover day timing. But we have all day, so we are heading up into the mountains to hike around Pico de las Nieves, the highest peak in Gran Canaria.  As advertised, the road there is an adventure in and of itself.  We go from crazy, crowded beach resort areas to unadulterated nature areas, passing little towns on narrow lanes along the way.  It is absolutely beautiful. Plus the views are stunning!  We can’t really take pictures – because we can’t really stop on these little roads, but as we rise higher and higher, the views down toward the coast are spectacular.

After about 45 minutes we enter into the mountains proper, with pine tree forests towering over us on each side of the road.  Our destination is El Roque Nublo, considered the geographical landmark with the greatest symbolic value on the island. There is a short trail leading to these volcanic formed rocks and we figure it will be good to get out and do some fresh air hiking before we hit our long stretches of sea days on our sweet, but little, ship.

Unfortunately, we miscalculated on the weather, or at least just didn’t really think about it.  While it was a balmy 74 degrees at sea level, we’re now at 5,000 feet and it is no longer balmy…..or 74 degrees!  More like cloudy and 60 degrees – or maybe even less, the car doesn’t have a temperature read out, so we’ve no idea.  We just know it’s pretty chilly up here for shorts, short sleeves and capris.  Oh well, in for a penny, in for a pound.  We’re hiking!

Passing through the forest, you can see tons and tons of trails everywhere.  This would be a great place to spend days hiking.  We also pass through a huge picnic area with tons of tables, a toilet (we’ll definitely be hitting that on the way back) and stone grill structures.  Too bad we didn’t think to pack a lunch, this spot would be perfect for a picnic lunch. Ah well, next time. 

We find the parking area at the trail head easily enough (thank you AllTrails app!) and have the prescience to back the car in (explanation later).  Crossing the road, we come upon a caravan all set up with tons of snacks and bocadillos for sale.  Excellent business opportunity!  So smart – and now we do have an opportunity for a picnic lunch after our hike.  Perfect! With our lunch plans now solidified, we happily hike off into the sunset.  Ok, not the sunset, more like the cloudy morning.

Up, up, up we go.  What is described as an “easy” trek in the information I found, is more moderately challenging than easy!  It’s up almost all the way, over uneven rocks, gravely little trails and through pine tree forests.  It’s absolutely an awesome hike!  With views and vistas that are spectacular – from overlooking the caldera de Tejeda and the little towns and houses that populate the terraced slopes to Galdar on the coast, some 32 kms away. 

Scrambling over rocks and hauling ourselves up stone steps, we make it to the top, right next to the rocks.  Amazing!  You can see forever up here, and the rock up close is huge and majestic.  Fantastic.  So worth doing – and the bonus is that we’re warm now after all this climbing!  No jackets required.

Exploring the top of the cliff area, we try unsuccessfully to get over to the rock itself.  We’ve seen people up there, but we can’t really see an easy way over to the base of the rock.  Fortunately, another couple is trying to do the same thing.  The guy makes it over there as the girl picks her way around the rocks heading there.  She calls over to ask if it is worth it, and he calls back that there isn’t anything special over there, same views.  She’s cute and tells him, ok, come back now!  Sounds like a plan to us – we’re not risking our ankles over same views.  Thank you fellow hiking couple.

After taking our fill of pictures and just soaking in the views, we reverse course and head back downhill.  A much easier walk, except, oh my!  The people!  There are tons and tons of people hiking up the trail.  When we were on our way up, we probably passed 4 or 5 people coming down. And then at the rock there were only about 8 or 10 people.  Now?  There will be 50 or more.  It’s like a bus just let out or something.  Yikes!  As we say, timing is everything!

Successfully making our way back down to the carpark through the crowds, we pick up two chorizo and cheese bocadillos, a package of locally made Almendras (almond) cookies and fresh squeezed orange juice.  Literally squeezed right in front of us while we waited.  And served in a neat plastic cup (that doesn’t have a lid, so we have to carefully hold it as we drive to our pre-selected picnic spot!). 

Back at the car, ay yi yi!  Here the prescience comes into play.  When we arrived there may have been 10 cars, now?  There isn’t a spot to be had, probably 40 cars are parked everywhere, in spots against the back wall, parallel parked next to the front wall and generally just stuffed anywhere possible.  Backing in makes our lives so much easier!  Even getting over the huge potholes filled with rusted and sharp rebar (pray for our tires please!) is easier.  Until we get to the exit of the car park.  There are 2 cars parallel parked so close to the exit that we can barely squeak by – we almost had to pull our side mirrors in, ala Crete!  Honestly!  Fortunately the #1 driver easily navigates the bad parkers and makes it out on the road without a scrape.  Phew.

Then it is back to the picnic spot with our spoils for a lovely lunch in the middle of the pine forests.  The bocadillos are great – huge, too much bread actually! – with cheese and this chorizo pate that is spread ½ inch thick on the bread.  Delish.  Combined with the cookies, our OJ and a ship Coke Zero, we have the perfect Spanish picnic!

Finishing our lunch, we hit the restroom, which is amazingly clean and nice – I’m a very happy girl – and then decide to hike a little more along a trail that is running through the picnic area.  The direction signs indicate it heads toward the lookout over Pico de las Nieves, and AllTrails shows it is mostly uphill, so we decide to just walk a bit until we hit the uphill portions, then turn back. 

It’s a lovely little jaunt through the pine forest.  Easy walking on a wide pine tag covered trail.  We don’t get very far before the trail turns sharply uphill, making us turn back toward the car, but with a little sortie into the forest to explore a huge refuge building that is locked up tight, and a little unused trail that will probably get us totally lost out in the woods.  Turn back. Turn back!  The last thing we want to do is get lost in these woods!

On our way back to the car, we explore the forest bed for these huge pine cones we have seen people carrying.  One hiker had a massive cone cradled in his arms as he hiked up to El Rogue Nublo.  Driving to the picnic area we watched as a woman collected tons of them in her arms, and then had to swerve around a car stopped in the middle of the road, the driver collecting the cones in a massive bag thrown over his shoulder.  Obviously a commodity!  We scour the pine needles and find a few great examples, choosing the best one to take back with us to adorn our cabin until we toss it in Cape Town.  But as we make our way down the trail, we start to think:  Do we really want this in our cabin? What if there are bugs? There is some sort of cocoon on one of the branches, do we really want to take that risk? The answer is:  Nope!  So the pinecone is left in its natural environment – which is definitely for the best.

Major decision made, we hop back in the car and head down, down, down toward the town of Las Palmas.  On the way we try to take photos of the vistas, but it is just too hard to get decent shots.  A few here give you an idea; you really had to be there.

Close to the highway, we stop at a gas station with the friendliest attendant.  I swear. He was so nice, barely spoke English but helped us with our Spanish. Even told me “Numero Seite” so I could tell the clerk inside the pump number.  So sweet.  And double bonus, it is a BP station – and we have our BP Punto card, so yay, more points!  For what…..who the heck knows?  It is more of a matter of pride now, especially since I forgot to get the free Chollo that we won for just registering.  Haven’t got a clue what it is because chollo means “plum” or “easy job” or “bargain” in Spanish.  Oh well, we’ll never know now. Although I’d love to try to use the card when we get home.  That’ll get some looks!  LOL.

From there it is an easy drive back, and not anywhere near as confusing as on the way out of the city.  We get a little turned around at the garage though, since we came out the exit only lanes, we’ve no clue where the entrance is.  So, we circle the mall and find it easily enough, grab our ticket and then go on a scavenger hunt to try to find the area to park the car.  Another big circle and we successfully leave the car right where we picked it up – calling the main Cicar number to tell them we left it there – because we think our guy told us to leave the keys in the visor, but we want to make sure somebody knows the car is back and ready.  If it is stolen, it’s not on us!

We’ve still got plenty of time left before all aboard, so we go wander around town, which isn’t all that interesting.  Lots of shops, restaurants, etc.  We do decide to have an afternoon beverage and settle into a cute little café called La Venta de Souza for a vino blanco and the cana with pincho special. Perfect afternoon snack of Boquerones (which are surprisingly good anchovies) and beer and wine.  Can’t ask for more.

Next we hit the ATM, then head to the mall for grocery provisions, hitting the HiperDino supermarket where every crew member from the other 2 monster ships (MSC, Aida) docked here are shopping.  Oh, the carts.  Priceless!  We buy entirely too much crap, but hey, we’re stocked up for our “crossing” and beyond, so don’t really need to shop more.  Which is probably a good thing considering we don’t really know what we could possibly buy in Senegal or The Gambia!  But we’ll soon see.

Back aboard, we start our normal routine – gym (trying to ignore the incessant annoyance of the raffle giveaway), pool bar where the sail away celebration is going on (so at least we get to see Roel and Dejana), then to Discoveries bar before dinner where we finally meet Mae, Roel’s wife, who works the bar there.  Then back to table 4 where we have a new waiter, Datu, but still the lovable Gilzin as our assistant waiter.  Later we hit the Living Room for a private performance by Back on Traxx, the great Filipino band.  Seriously, we are the only 2 people up there for quite some time!  So much so that the band’s lead singer comes over to chat with us, asking our names, what bands we like, etc.  A tale of 2 cruises!  That’s for sure.

Putu is up here as bartender now, Dan is still here too, which is nice.  The band strikes up and Mavia says she has her first request of the evening for Adele from Cathy and David.  David?  Have no idea how she converted Ed into David, but now David it is!  We are cracking up, but don’t dare tell her yet.  Finally, a few more people arrive, so it isn’t just a private concert – doubt there will be anymore 2am nights up here!  Much to Dan and Putu’s joy, that we can tell you!

The band’s done with their first set, we head back to the cabin and all’s right with our world tonight!  Tomorrow?  We check out the new passengers and see what a sea day will bring!