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The famous hiking trail in Los Tilos, La Palma, is an amazing adventure. Walking alongside a very old water canal you pass through 13 tunnels of varying lengths until you reach the source of the water- the springs of Marcos and Cordero.

You start from the car park near the Visitors Centre in Los Tilos by taking a 4WD taxi to the Casa del Monte and from there the walk starts. If it is your first time to go through a narrow tunnel it can be a bit scary, but you will soon get used. With the help of your torch you keep an eye on the track - it is not totally smooth - while you walk through the tunnels and all the time you listen to the sound of the flowing water in the canal next to you. In most of the tunnels you can see light at the end of the tunnel, but some bend and not being able to see the end, makes it more exciting. The fourth tunnel is the longest with its 400m.

Every time you leave a tunnel and enter the sunlight it takes a little while before your eyes adjust. And when they do you will see one beautiful landscape after the other across the ravine.

In the last tunnel you walk in water and the water is pouring down from above like you are walking under a waterfall, which is more or less what you are.

A little bit further up from the last tunnel you'll find the springs feeding the tunnel and the agriculture down in the valley. You are now in 1400m altitude - the highest point on the trail. From now on it is downhill all the way.

The first part of the downhill trail is in the bottom of a dry riverbed. You will share the bed with huge rocks having been brought down with water in the distant past. Sometimes you walk around them and sometimes you climb over them. After a while you will leave he riverbed and the trail continues on the left side of the river, which drops fast on this stretch and soon you will notice, that the river is far below you. The trees will be mostly Canary pine, while further down you will find laurel trees. In places where the valley is wide you will have some fantastic sights across the valley.

Further down you will come to a little wooden bridge that takes you to the right side of the valley and the path is now quite wide. You are now surrounded by laurel trees and there is undergrowth consisting of ferns and even some flowers.

You will now arrive at the Espigó-n viewpoint. Stairs are leading up to the top of a rock and from there is a beautiful view of the valley.

Just before you reach the car park you pass through a tunnel so high and wide that it hardly qualifies for the term tunnel compared to what you have been through.

The trip can be done in around 4 hours, but if you want to enjoy the view and take photos you should calculate with 5 to 6 hours.

This hike is a must for hikers visiting La Palma together with the Caldera crater and the Volcano trail.

The author, Bjarne Jensen is a resident of La Palma and deeply interested in everything concerning the island. In order to spread the knowledge of the beautiful island he has created the website: mywork.name/loans/go/go.php?sid=1.holidayislandlapalma]