Sunset at the Narices del Teide viewpoint

At km 3.2 of the TF-38, the road that drops from Boca Tauce towards Chío, this viewpoint, which the Park also calls Chahorra, looks straight at the slope of Pico Viejo, the Teide's neighbouring volcano, and at the vents where the park's last eruption, that of 1798, came out. It is the sunset the Parador itself recommends, a quarter of an hour by car from La Ruleta.

The 1798 eruption, head-on

What you have in front of you are the Narices del Teide (the Teide's Nostrils): the vents opened on the flank of Pico Viejo and the dark lava flows that came out of them. Behind them the Teide peeks out. From here you understand that the Teide and Pico Viejo form a single volcanic edifice and that this slope is the youngest part of the whole landscape you have seen during the day. The Park has its audio-guide point 42 at the viewpoint.

On the same bend there is an interpretive table about a lava channel, the Canal Lávico, but the Park warns that it has no official parking or clear, safe access: stay at the viewpoint.

At sunset

The sun sets behind you, to the west, and the slope of Pico Viejo and the Teide change colour in the last light. Arrive 30 to 40 minutes before sunset so you can park in daylight and watch the colour of the lava flows change. You park beside the road and there is no walking. After sunset the cold arrives quickly, even in summer: bring a coat even if it is warm down below.

Chavao: arriving on foot from Boca Tauce

If you prefer to arrive on foot, trail PNT 18, Chavao, links this viewpoint with Boca Tauce: 4.36 km each way, an hour and a half, low difficulty and free access, almost flat. It crosses an area of broom, wallflowers and codesos, beside the Cañada del Cedro, with ropy lava underfoot and the remains of the huts where the Civil War prisoners slept who built the road and planted pines near the summit. It ends at the Juan Évora Ethnographic Museum car park, which is open only from 9:00 to 15:45: if you want the sunset, do not leave your car there.

The trail 9 also ends here, coming down from La Rambleta through the Pico Viejo crater: 9.6 km and eight hours, of extreme difficulty and with a booking. It is not a walk to improvise at the end of the day.

Coming back at night through the mountains

From the viewpoint, the return to Santa Cruz via the TF-21 and TF-24 takes over an hour of bends in the dark. If you can, sleep nearby: the Parador is inside the caldera, and on the south side Vilaflor is handier, with the Hotel Spa Villalba and dinner at the Eustaquio Restaurant.