Situated in the north-west of the island, Puntagorda covers a surface area of 28 sq. km. Barranco de Izcagua separates it from Garafía to the north and, to the south, Barranco de Garome separates it from Tijarafe. These two spectacular ravines frame a mountainside that descends from 2,200 m to sea level in a little more than 12 km. The most outstanding feature of the area is the pyroclastic cones that dot the landscape. 
The climate is influenced by lying in the lee of the trade winds. It is a sunny and dry spot for most days of the year, although it has abundant rainfall when storms blow in from the Atlantic. 
The first settlers left important traces of their existence with remains of buildings, materials used for crafts , and other structures (rock carvings, cains, channels and vessels).
The first historical settlement was established in the XVI century in the area around San Amaro, which was only the sixth church built on the island. As t he majority of the population were of Portuguese descent , they took Saint Amaro as their Patron. Their houses were low, covered in straw and widely separated - thus showing the marginal existence of these people who ploughed ground in the pine woods to grow their crops. Their other main employment was livestock. Shortage of springs and wells made it necessary for the inhabitants to build tanks to collect rainwater.
The land was owned by the Cabildo or Island Council who leased it out to the workers in units. These units were called fifths - quintos - as the workers had to hand over one fifth of the produce to the Council, after one tenth had been deducted for the Church.
Traditionally, industry in Puntagorda was directly related to the production of tar (burning pine in special ovens to extract the resin), timber , and cultivation of cereals and fruits. At one stage the area had a granary.
The original settlement was eventually abandoned as people moved higher up the mountain settling around Cuatro Caminos, El Pinar, Fagundo and El Roque.
Adverse political and economic conditions at the end of the 19 th century and throughout a large part of the 20 th century took their toll on the people of Puntagorda , who were forced either to abandon the island or to move to other municipalities. Today, the standard of living in Puntagorda is acceptable, growth is moderate, and many foreigners have settled there in recent times. 

HONEY , a food with a history

Highly esteemed throughout history and a present from nature herself, bee honey has important nutritious and therapeutic properties. While it is true that this delicacy was eaten in greater quantities in the past, it is also true that there was a much smaller range of sweet products available at that time.

Although t he art of apiculture (beekeeping) did not begin in any one place , the quality of honey collected in the island of La Palma is deemed to be amongst the best in Spain.
The flowers which the bees use to produce honey grow abundantly in Puntagorda. Houses in the locality are surrounded by flowers and white almond trees are scattered around the fields. 
Bee-keeping requires s pecial skill , as a mutual agreement is reached between the beekeeper, who becomes accustomed to the bees, and the bees themselves, which allow the beekeeper to manipulate them. The native black bee, which inhabits the island, does not fall victim to many of the foreign diseases. In their own hierarchical world, the worker bees and drones serve the queen bee, as they busily buzz around the perfect six-sided cells. 
The rustic beehives made from hollowed-out palm and dragon trees are things of the past. Today's modern beehives are placed in sheltered spots away from human traffic. 
The colour and scent of the honey depends on the flower s used in its production. Honey made from the bugloss and borage family is white and delicately flavoured. Coastal flowers produce a soft and crystal-like substance, and heather or chestnut flowers produce a dark and strongly flavoured honey. The art of harvesting the honey is a little complicated but it is a part of our heritage which is important to keep alive and pass on.

FESTIVITIES

As well as the festivals celebrated elsewhere, such as Christmas and Easter week, locals also celebrate the feast day of their Patron Saint, Maurus the Abbott. A statue of the saint is carried in a procession to the old temple. 
In the past this feast day took place on January 15th. However, in 1916 the parish priest, Bienvenido Serra, transferred it to September, and now it is celebrated in the second half of of August.
The most important event takes place between January and February - depending on when the almond trees come into flower - and this is the Almond blossom festival – La Fiesta del Almendro en Flor . With the cool winter air and the countryside blanketed in shades of white and pink , people come from all over the island to enjoy the event. The town hall arrange a very full program of activities, although many locals and visitors prefer to relax with a good glass of the local resinous wine ( vino de tea) and a few almonds, while they admire nature's beauties once again. 

SUGGESTIONS

The charming village of Puntagorda offers a multitude of ways for the hillwalker to enjoy the surrounding open countryside. Ancient rights of way take us past modest traditional buildings, always adorned with flowers. An ageing population, highly knowledgeable about local tradition and history, is eager to convey its knowledge in these magical , natural surroundings. 
One of the routes we suggest begins at El Pino de La Virgen, and goes along the track to the church of San Amaro. From there the path continues to the scenic lookout point on the summit of the rounded mountain at Matos, and then up towards the windmill, arriving eventually at El Fayal.
Another more difficult route begins at the village, and takes the route to La Rosa all the way up to the mountain ridge . On the lower slopes the route passes vineyards and pine trees, eventually reaching the higher ground covered with codeso , a shrub in the same family as broom and gorse .


PLACES OF INTEREST

Ancient dragon trees

The sinuous road from Los Llanos to Puntagorda, the town of the red clay, runs between the steep cliffs carved out of the pyroclastic landscape. From the roadside in the neighbourhood of El Roque, you can see dragon trees growing. From this little enclave there are excellent views of the mountain slopes and clear bright landscapes. 
Admiring these slow - growing, sturdy, hundred-year-old trees puts one in mind of the great turtle, their animal counterparts, whose big heart beats slowly under its great, grey, protective shell. These legendary trees are the giants of the plant species that inhabit the Canary Islands archipelago. 
The dragon trees of Puntagorda were considerably larger until a few decades ago when a storm split one of the trunks weighed down by its heavy canopy. 

The ancient Church of San Amaro

The first church to be built in this locality is found at the lower end of the town, surrounded by fertile land irrigated with water from the reservoir of Montaña El Palomar. Now silent and remote, this building dates back to the 16 th century and became parish church in 1617.
The oldest paths in the area pass beside San Amaro. Thus thousands of pilgrims, devotees of this Portuguese saint from all over the island, walked the Calvary pilgrimage which leads right up to the mountaintop.
Its heavy doors were open for worship until 1951, but it fell into neglect and eventually into ruins due to its location and poor local economic conditions . This church is currently being restored and has been declared a monument of cultural interest. A few metres away is the old parish hall , a relic of times gone by.

The town

The simple, small, white houses are spread out along the gentle slopes of the mountainside, clustering along the edges of the quiet winding paths. 
El Pinar is the centre of the village, with the new church housing the statue of the Patron Saint, Maurus the Abbott, also known as Saint Amaro, which was transferred from the old sanctuary. In the neighbourhood , a sturdy Canarian pine anchors its roots deep into the soil, a relic of the old forest that once covered the red earth of Puntagorda. The Pino de La Virgen (Virgin's pine) has its ancient trunk carved out and a small statue of Mary has been placed inside. The town hall of the municipality stands nearby.
Another neighbourhood, Los Cuatro Caminos, the point where four paths meet, is another living example of rural life in the area. The elders of the village sit in the porches of their houses talking about times long past, about Cuba and Venezuela, about family members who emigrated and stories of their return.

Viewpoints

The scenic viewpoint of Miraflores likes not far from Pino de La Virgen . From this point, there are impressive views over the village below, the distant little red-roofed houses, potato fields, vines, orchards and thousands of almond trees. In the distance you can see high mountains, gorges and plains and the huge expanse of the ocean itself. 
Nearer the rough sea coast, mount Matos stands proudly overlooking the Atlantic, a timeless place where the wind fills your lungs. Local people say that in the past sailing ships from America sometimes used to appear over the horizon and then stop off at the small port of Garafía, an exciting event by all accounts. 

Mountains and coast

The stretch of mountain ridge is quite short in this municipality , and it reaches its highest point at Roque Chico (2,372 m). B etween Tinizara and El Roque, r idges and gorges form a crater-like structure where the surrounding landscape is carpeted with pine woods.
The slopes become less steep below 1,500 m, and there is an abundance of abandoned land where farming without irrigation was once practised, and where cereals, vegetables and grapes once grew on the units of land called quintos. This was land which the government leased out to tenants in exchange for one fifth of their produce. The mountain forest was felled to improve productivity of the soil, as it is blessed by rainfall when clouds accumulate on this side of the island. 
Along the coast the land juts out to the ocean, and the cliffs of Costa de Hiscaguán are truly breathtaking, and have been declared a natural monument. These low-lying coasts, where it rarely rains and where there are long hours of daylight, provide a habitat for plants such as the Canary Island cactus-spurge ( Euphorbia canariensis ) , sweet spurge ( Euphorbia obtusifolia ) , kleinia ( Kleinia neriifolia) , milkweed (Periploca laevigata) , and Canary Island sorrel ( Polygonaceae lunaria) . Along the shoreline grow plants which have bravely adapted to saline conditions .

Along the cliffs run narrow paths moulded by the footprints of the people of Puntagorda on their way down to the port. Although the wild waves worry even the most experienced fishermen, they do not frighten the shearwater s, seagulls and ospreys that nest in these cliffs. 

El Fayal

The pine forest stretches from the highest mountains down to the centre of the village. El Fayal is a stronghold of forests with magnificent examples of hundred-year old pine trees and undergrowth of tree heather and fayas , or Canary Island wax myrtle, which give the area its name. There is a peaceful recreational area with barbecue facilities, picnic t ables, drinking water and a small children's' park. 
Its accessibility and proximity to the village make it a popular spot. Below the beautiful conifers you can glimpse the depth of the Barranco de Izcagua ravine. In times of drought when water tanks ran dry people used to dig holes in the sandy river bed until the miracle water appeared, so they called it "the flowing pool". On the far side of the ravine you can see Las Tricias, the first district of the neighbouring Garafía, and as the eye travels further down the mountainside one gets lost in the distant landscape with dragon trees, choughs, pines, the old windmill and the quiet horizon with its spectacular and colourful sunset.


Copyright. Asociación para el Desarrollo Rural de la Isla de La Palma ( ADER-La Palma ). (Association for the Rural Development of the Island of La Palma)