Kike Navarro – La Palma in pictures • 35

Trail Running

—  The Transvulcania is one of the most important sporting events on the island and one of the most physically demanding in the world.

It is usually held in May, only in 2022 it was held in October. The event consists of four distances and four trail events. Almost 3,000 runners from more than 60 countries come together. Among them are some of the best in mountain running. 

The main event is the ultra marathon.

The athletes cover 75 km with a difference in altitude of more than 8,500 metres. They start before dawn at the southernmost point of the island at the lighthouse of Fuencaliente and climb the Cumbre Vieja mountain range, then enter the Caldera de Taburiente National Park and reach the highest point of the island, the Roque de los Muchachos. After this continuous climb, the route goes steadily downhill to Puerto de Tazacorte, back at sea level. From there, they make a final effort to reach the finish line in Los Llanos de Aridane. 

click to enlarge

In this last part of the climb, Kike took the photos and looked for this view with Pico Bejenado in the background. He was surprised to see some athletes still running after more than 40 kilometres of climbing. And no wonder: the first ones to arrive took a little over 7 hours, although the average is 14 hours. 

La Palma in pictures • photo series

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