Maspalomas, or the Sahara of the Islands.

40 km from La Garita, sand dunes stretch as far as the eye can see, made of scorching golden sand that could have come from the Sahara.

These dunes are sometimes so immense that climbing them becomes a tedious task. Especially in just sandals, the trek took nearly half an hour under the blazing sun.

A quick aside: these dunes, which cover nearly 400 hectares, remain a mystery.  Numerous theories have been put forward regarding the origin of this sand. But the one that seems most plausible to me is that it comes from the Sahara. In research conducted by the University of Las Palmas, they noted that no written historical records or maps mention this sand until the 17th or 18th century—a period corresponding to the great earthquake that shook part of Europe, specifically Lisbon. This earthquake was so violent that it caused more than 10,000 deaths and triggered a tsunami that traveled from the European and Moroccan coasts all the way to America. Researchers believe that it was at this time that sand carried from the Sahara was deposited in the southern part of the island…

Of course, our original plan was to go to the beach, so knowing that the ocean lies beyond these hills made the hike a bit easier.

Imagine our surprise when we arrived at the beach! It was a mix of nudists, topless sunbathers, and non-nudists. It was pretty funny. We walked around a bit to make our way through the crowd and find a spot to settle down and go for a swim.

The water was a little cold with small waves, but so refreshing. I felt rehydrated after the walk through the desert. 

After two hours on the beach, a sunburn was starting to set in; it was time to leave this magical place after our first day in the sun.

The walk back across the desert seemed longer than the walk there. 

After dropping our things off in the car, we walked along a sort of seawall that must have been more than 50 meters above the beach—a walk that took over an hour. So we stopped at a cocktail bar to enjoy the splendid view. 

Finally, we made it back home and had dinner at a local restaurant, El Galeon, where we enjoyed an excellent meal after this beautiful day.

See you tomorrow, dear readers, for the next installment of our adventures.

Ninve.