Since mid-March 2018, the Guergues Climb has been closed. The area probably belongs to the owners/goat farm Casas de Araza. At the moment I don’t know anything about the exact background. Already in the last few years the owner has objected to dogs (even on a leash) being brought onto the trail. Now he seems to be enforcing a hiking ban for the well-known Steig hike.
The start of the Guergues Steig hike is identical to the hike into the Barranco Natero. Therefore, there is no longer any possibility to descend into the Barranco Natero from here. Allegedly, there is also a legal dispute pending. As soon as I hear anything new about the Guergues Steig hiking trail, I will be happy to report it here.
Hi there, we tried to do the barranco trail but the owner of the farm will not let anyone in. He is really strict. It s a pity. That means the Guergues trail is also not accessible. ?♀️ (April 2021).
Thank you for the comment. I had already written about it here shortly after the closure: https://siebeninseln.de/en/up-to-date/guergues/
Shocked that such a vast track of land could be closed just like that, after so many years…
Would be very interesting to know exactly what is “private property” on the this trail and also the Barranco Natero/Seco trail. It is such a widely used and enjoyed trail for so many over uncountable years.
A real gem of a trail with spectacular views and one of the few exceptional trecks that is very easy to drive to the trail-head on a good road. There must be a lot of “local talk” about this, will keep a watch here for any updates.
Yes, this is a really sad and annoying story. As far as I know legally, someone would have to sue. The responsible municipality of Buenavista apparently does nothing and only gives vague information when asked. If I have read Spanish law correctly – there are many precedents cases on Mallorca – then old hiking trails cannot simply be closed. But if the owner manage to keep hikers away for a few years, then the owner gets justice. Since no one is complaining here, he seems to be getting away with it. Then there will be no more Guergues Steig hikes.
A very sad story indeed. My connection to this place happened whilst i was online researching Tenerife as a place to go to after this COVID alarm. I came across a stunning picture of Los Pajares/Masca taken from up on Montana de las Rosas and the ridge line immediately caught my eye. I said to my wife ‘THAT’ would make a fantastic ridge trek, not knowing anything about the area. The first thing she said was without a path it would be impossibly overgrown wild ground to cover.
Later i zoomed in with goole-earth and sure enough there was a faint path going along the ridge line. Then i googled “Masca Ridge Walk” and found myself dropped into one of the most famous walks in Tenerife for the conesuer walker. A path that has been used for over a 1000 years!
Now we have one guy doing his best to take over the whole place, in the process ruining it for everyone else, for evermore.
Only two weeks ago (April 30th) Adeje council announced they are fully supporting mountain walking (Ponte Las Botas) starting this summer.
It is a very sad situation someone from Buenavista council could not have the same vision as Adeje council for Los Pajares/Sendero Guergues/Camino de Guergues/Guergues Steig/The Masca Ridge Walk.
Tenerife tourism could actually lose out on the belligerence of this one individual in the long-term.
This morning we tried to access the trail following the instructions of the Dutch Rother walking guide for Tenerife and still has this hike in the 2022 revised edition. As the gate was open and we were not aware of a closure of the track we entered the area. After just a few minutes the owner of the farm did run towards us and attacked us with a knife and a wooden stick. Without a warning or a worth he came screaming towards us and furiously attacked us. We tried to run away but he managed to hit us with his stick (we both have scratches and were bleeding). We were completely shocked. The lady at the tourist info in Masca told us has attacked tourists before and that he is “loco”. Somehow we feel we have to report to the police and hopefully this helps the case for re-opening the trail?! We will also report to Rother because both walking guide and walking map show this trail but it is very dangerous to access the area.
Thank you very much for your message. I have now heard from some hikers who were attacked by the farmer. You should definitely report it to the police. It is also a good idea to inform Rother. I hope that many other hikers will read your comments here.