Los Valles is a small farming village north of the island of Lanzarote; The village is famous for its production of potatoes and is nicknamed "the village of the potato (papa)". This culture is made in terraced fields consist of volcanic lapilli, using the technique of culture on sand (enarenado).
Los Valles has about 400 inhabitants and is part of the municipality of Teguise.
The village of Los Valles is located 5 km northeast of Teguise, on the LZ-10 highway that connects Teguise to Haría, 11 km further north. The road follows the valley between the Risco de Famara from Risco de las Nieves, Los Valles is located at the confluence of the valley and valleys descending from the Risco de Famara; the slopes of the valleys (hence the name Los Valles) are covered with farming terraces.
Located at the foot of the highest peak of the island of Lanzarote, the mountain of Las Peñas del Chache, the region of Los Valles is better watered and surprisingly green compared to the rest of Lanzarote; cultures can give several harvests per year.
The village of Los Valles was founded by survivors from the village of Santa Catalina (St. Catherine), one of ten villages in the southwest of the island destroyed and buried by volcanic eruptions of Montañas del Fuego, between 1730 and 1736. In memory of their former village, residents have given the name of Santa Catalina church of Los Valles.
In honor of the patron saint of the village festivities take place each year in November: for several days the town comes alive with decorations, Canarian folk dances, theater performances, culinary contests, raffles ...
Los Valles has a dispersed agricultural habitat that stretches into the valleys surrounding the village.
At the north end of the village is the viewpoint of Los Valles (Mirador de Los Valles or Mirador del Valle), which offers the best views of the village and the valley covered with farming terraces. Access to the viewpoint is easy to miss: it is a small road that takes to the right in a zigzag turning and leading to a restaurant of the same name, the restaurant Mirador de los Valles.
Since the restaurant terrace, sheltered from the wind, it was a beautiful view of the valley and the “village of the Potato”; However, the high-voltage power lines from the nearby wind power plant barred the valley and spoil a little the view.
Shortly after the village of Los Valles and gviewpointLos Valles, a path leads to the right of the LZ-10 highway at the entrance of the Aeolian Park (Parque Eólico); the wind farm can not be visited but one can approach up to the fence to watch the wind.
The wind farm Los Valles was created in April 1993 to take advantage of a site where the wind blows strongly and steadily; 48 wind turbines will have been built and had to produce an output of 5 megawatts, which would provide 35% of the energy required for the desalination plant of Inalsa (Insular de Agua de Lanzarote) in Arrecife.
However the wind had been built too close to each other - which created disturbances that reduced the efficiency of machines - and have not been maintained. In 2007 the 48 turbines were replaced by more modern and 9 spaced turbines, producing 850 kilowatts.
1.5 km further north, a small paved road take the left towards the Ermita de las Nieves; the road is marked with a sign “Las Nieves”; we reach the chapel after 1.5 km of low rise.
The chapel is dedicated to Our Lady of the Snows (Virgen de las Nieves), although it rarely snow on Lanzarote; Nuestra Señora de las Nieves is rather invoked - for centuries - for rain during the winter in order to ensure abundant crops. Every four years a procession leads to the chapel of action due to winter precipitation.
The Virgen de las Nieves is celebrated on 5 August.
The doors of the chapel are rarely open - except for Mass on Saturdays at 17 am - but the site itself is worth a visit.
The chapel is located at 608 m above sea level, on the Risco de Famara and offers magnificent views of the plateau, to the highest point of Lanzarote, the mountain of Las Peñas del Chache, and on the west coast of island from the Playa de Famara to the Montañas del Fuego in the National Park Timanfaya, through the sandy plain of El Jable.
The view is even better if we advance - safe - 200 m to the edge of the escarpment that descends steeply from the altitude of 600 m to sea level: we can see on the right the archipelago Chinijo with the islands La Graciosa and Montaña Clara.
The viewpoint of the Ermita de las Nieves is much less crowded than the Mirador del Río, and often desert; the small whitewashed chapel, lost in very flowery lawns, exudes great serenity.
The mountain Peñas del Chache is a double-top mountain, the highest mountain in Lanzarote: she rises to 671 m. On one of the peaks were built military radars: the orange sphere of the largest of these radomes is noticeable from afar.
You can access near the top by a small road that turns left, about 3.5 km after the junction of “Las Nieves” and just before the zigzag climb to the viewpoint of Haría.
Situation.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. Lanzarote Vipérine (Echium lancerottense). Click to enlarge the image.")
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.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. Seen from the viewpoint of Los Valles (author Frank Vincentz). Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. The wind farm Los Valles. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. La Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. La Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. La Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. La Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. La Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. La Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. La Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. Caleta de Famara view from the Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. the radar of Las Peñas del Chache. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. hiking trail map PR LZ 16. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. hiking trail Panel PR LZ 16 at the Ermita de las Nieves. Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. Lanzarote Vipérine (Echium lancerottense). Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. intermediate Astérilobe (Asteriscus intermedius). Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. Tangier Cousteline (Reichardia tingitana). Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. shrubby Chrysanthemum (Argyranthemum frutescens). Click to enlarge the image.")
.jpg "The village of Los Valles in Lanzarote. shrubby Chrysanthemum (Argyranthemum frutescens). Click to enlarge the image.")
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