10,000 Volcanic Craters
La Geria Volcanic Crater Walk
Walk through 10,000 hand-dug volcanic craters, each protecting a single vine from the relentless wind. After the 1730s eruptions buried the island in ash, farmers invented this insane technique: dig a funnel-shaped hole into the lava, plant one vine at the bottom, build a crescent wall to block the wind. The black moonscape stretches to the horizon. These vines survived phylloxera when Europe lost everything.
A Wine Memories experience · winememories.fi
Good to know
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Languages
- No language barrier
Insider Tips
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Go at sunrise or sunset when the black ash glows. Midday is harsh.
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The main road (LZ-30) bisects La Geria - park anywhere and walk into the fields
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Touch the volcanic ash (picón) - it is incredibly porous, which is why vines survive with no rain
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These vines are pre-phylloxera. The louse could not survive in the ash. Original European genetics.
Tagged
- volcanic
- walking
- moonscape
- pre-phylloxera
- extreme
- photography