Activating EA8/TF-010 Roque del Conde - 1001m, 18th March 2026

 Straightforward ascent, steep at times but a rewarding summit, worth 8 SOTA points

I parked next to the start of the walking trail in Vento and followed the well marked path.

 The trail descends into a narrow gorge before climbing up steep steps to continue towards the summit.  The route was quite busy with hikers despite changeable weather (fog, wind, rain and some hail at the top - but I did get a winter bonus!).

 The summit provided plenty of space at the trig marker and the surrounding area.  With a sharp wind I chose to shelter behind the graffiti covered concrete trig block and attach my antenna to the trig point.  There was plenty of space to extend the inverted V Bandhopper antenna.

 

I enjoyed 18 SSB qsos on 20m and one on 2m FM.  With very bad weather forecasted for the following few days I went on to my final activation of this holiday, EA8/TF-0219 Rojar.

 

Activating EA8/TF-017 Montaña de Taco - 319m

 A challenging ascent to an urban reservoir, worth 1 SOTA point

 

Access to this summit looked straightforward on the map, but others had mentioned restricted access.  There were 24 activations before me so I felt this was worth trying, even if only worth 1 point!

I parked along the access road just downhill from a vehicle barrier, but access on foot was possible by walking to the right of the sign:

I walked along the road, ascending steadily until I reached the facility entrance, which was definitely impassable for hikers and vehicles:

 This was the most challenging part of the hike, needing now to scramble up the bank on the left.  There were no barriers or signs preventing this, but the rocky scrub and steep gradient made this challenging.  Once on top I followed the perimeter fence around the reservoir round to the summit

 The summit is relatively flat and I did not meet any other hikers or reservoir officials, so plenty of space and feedom to activate.  The vegetation was fairly low and thin, so easy to set up my bandhopper antenna at full height.

 I managed one 2m FM QSO, then 17 on 20m ssb inclkuding one Summit-to-summit with Fritz EA8/HB9CYX/P on Gran Canaria EA8/GC-006.

I packed up and headed back, and on to EA8/TF-014 for the final activation of the day.

 

Activating EA8/TF-009, Baracán - 1003m

 Straightforward well marked path to a cosy summit, worth 8 points

I parked early at the car park on the road hairpin on the map below and followed the green track North West.  Returning late morning the car park was very busy, and I had to ask another car to move to allow me out.  This is a popular hike and viewpoint!

 The path is easy to followand a steady ascent, getting steep for the final leg to the top.

 

The summit is identified by a trig marker, but allows little space for activation.  the slopes are quite steep and covered with bushes so setting up was challenging.  Added to that there were 3 or 4 hikers passing during the hour I was there, so I was conscious not to monopolise the trig point for too long.
 

I managed one 2m FM QSO folloowed by 8 on 20m ssb.  This was my first of 3 summits planned today, so I packed up and headed for EA6/TF-017 >>

 

Activating EA8/TF-005 Montaña del Cedro - 2265m

 A pleasant straightforward ascent and amazing summit worth 10 SOTA points

I parked at the viewpoint as marked on the map and walked south east on the road to a right hand turning through a vehicle boom and well made track beyond.

 

I followed the green track shown above (SOTL.as) to the summit.  It  starts as a vehicle track, then a right turn up a well trodden path marked with ocasional Cairns along the way, steep in parts but technically straightforward.
 

The summit is flat with plenty of space to activate and affords amazing views.  I set up my sotapole and bandhopper near the summit cairn using rocks to anchor the ends.

I had been in touch with Fraser MM0EFI who was holidaying on Gran Canaria and we coordinated our activations to achieve a summit to summit on 2m (EA8/GC-001), the first one in the log.

Two more 2m QSOs were followed by another S2S on 20m SSB with EA1EBJ/P in mainland Spain.  I then managed a further 13 SSB QSOs on 20m, including 2 S2S with Fritz EA8/HB9CYX/P and Hans EA8/HB9BQU/P both on Gran Canaria GC-010.

A very pleasant hike and summit to start the day... next on to EA8/TF-007 Cruz de gala >>

 

Activating EA8/TF-004 El Sombrero

 A long and challenging hike on a well marked path to a beautiful summit, 10 SOTA points

The hike was fairly long (2.5 hours up) and steep in parts, made particularly challenging by a lot of scree/rock chippings.  This made the ascent hard going (and tough on the legs) and the descent slow due to the slipping hazzard (and tough on the knees!).  But the path was quite well marked with cairns and was well worn to the top.  I had perfect blue sky warm weather with a cooling breeze.

 When nearly at the top, access to the summit is through a turnstile:

 The summit provided stunning views and a large activation area, and I did not see any other hikers  so had the summit to myself.  I set up my bandhopper antenna using rocks to hold the wires and string in place just below the summit.

I started the activation on 2m FM, with Fraser EA8/M0EFI first in the log with whom I had been in touch as he was holidaying on Gran Canaria.  He was on EA8/GC-011 and so this was the first of 3 summit-to-summit contacts.

I also contacted Fritz and Hans (EA8/HB9CYX, EA8/HB9BQU) on 2m FM who were on EA8/GC-005

 A further 2 on 2m, followed by just 3 qsos on 20m (which was very quiet) encouraged me to try 15m SSB.  There I enjoyed a further 8 QSOs including one across the pond with KC2WLR in New York.

I had planned TF-005 for the afternoon, but my weary legs were complaining and so I next returned to the easy EA8/TF-007 >>

Activating EA8/TF-011, Paso -934m 14th March 2026

 

 Challenging hike through dense forrest with limited space at the summit under the canopy, 6 SOTA points

Paso can be approached from the North West or the South East - I chose the latter and parked in a layby along the road from the start of the ascent:

 The path I took is marked on SOTLas maps as part of the PR-TF3 trail and is well worn initially.  The map then shows a departure up a steep incline which I found difficult to find, and had to use some judgement as to when to start clumbing up the steep slope.  From this point the summit is simply found by continuing to climb upwards (perhaps obvious!) but choosing the route to avoid very dense forrest, loose sliding ground and thorny bushes was quite challenging.  Long trousers, gloves and sunglasses provided some protection from the trees!

  

The summit is well marked by a large trig marker and a welcome relief when it came into sight!

 

Space to set up an HF antenna is very limited so I again limited the bandhopper span to the 20m section only and anchored the ends to tree branches, my pole tied to the trig marker to give the centre what height I could get under the canopy.

 

 I magaged 8 SSB qsos on 20m, including 2 summit-to-summits.

 The descent was also difficult as again the route was not obvious. I followed the track on SOTLas as closely as possible and was glad to find the well walked TF-03 track back to the car.

Next activations TF-008 Taborno (previously activated)>>  and then TF-004 El Sombrero >> 

 

Activating EA8/TF-012 Chinobre -910m 14 March 2026

 A gentle hike through the forrest, easy set up worth 6 SOTA points

NB: PERMIT REQUIRED - see below 

I returned to Tenerife in March 2026 to activate 12 SOTA summits over 5 days.  An atlantic storm came over towards the end of my trip and the Teide National Park closed and disallowed hiking on my last 2 days, but I enjoyed the usual 'winter sun' climate for most of my trip.

The hiking trail to Chinobre is well marked from the road and is easy to follow through the dense forrest, typical of this part of the island.  I parked in a nearby layby.

 There are 2 routes marked on the map, one approaching the summit from the South West (which I took) and one from the North East.  Both are part of the 'La Ensillada - Cabezo de Tejo - La Ensillada Loop Trail' which requires a permit.  The permit is free and can be applied for and downloaded around 2 weeks before hiking here:  https://www.tenerifeon.es/en/routes/hiking/pra-72-la-ensillada-cabezo-del-tejo.  I applied for an additional permit for a different day in case the weather prevented me from activating on my planned day, but this can be easily cancelled online when not required.

 The summit does not provide much space so I set up my sotapole and bandhopper on the trig marker for 20m only.  I had 5 quick SSB qsos with hams in UK, France and Spain.

  

 I wanted to activate 2 further summits so packed up and headed back to the car.

 

 

Next activation EA8/TF-011 Paso >>