El Roque Nublo - the landmark of Gran Canary

It is a memorable landmark of Gran Canary - the Roque Nublo! Due to its gigantic dimension and its eye-catching finger-like shape, the Guanches believed that this impressive monolith had magic potency. They called it "Rock of the clouds" or "Holy mountain" and realised ritual acts at its foot. Archaelogists discovered, that the mountain plateau of the Roque Nublo was one of the most important sacrificial altars in honour of the god of the sun to the ancient Canarios.

From the geological side of view, the whole rock of the Roque Nublo is of one single piece of basalt. Just like the neighboring smaller "Rock of the frog" Roque Rana it develped due to volcanic activities and the solidified lava in a former volcanic vent.
Due to weathering over thousands of years the volcano doesn´t exist anymore, but its solidified lava makes the second highest point, after the Pico de la Nieves, on Gran Canary.
Located in the middle of the alpine mountainscape in the centre of Gran Canary, the Roque Nublo isn´t hard to find. You can already spot it from far away because the complete surrounding is towered by this 70 metres rock needle.

It speaks for the singularity of Gran Canary, that after visiting Roque Nublo, you can have fun in the sun, swim in the Atlantic Ocean, experience the lively activities of the tourist areas or go for a walk along the coolibah trees and laurels.
We also recommend you to hike through the pine woods, along the so called "Monk rock", the Roque Fraile, to the Roque Nublo. Enjoy the beautiful visibility on the valley near La Culata and over the volcanic Caldera with Tejida. Also climbing the "Rock of the clouds" is allowed.
A trip there when the sun sets and the Roque Nublo appears in a mystical orange-red light, certainly is a sleeper.