Category: La Palma

One day on Roque de Los Muchachos

/ Carsten / Leave a comment
MAGIC, NOT & WHT

This day I drove all the way up to Roque de Los Muchachos on La Palma. From El Jesus it takes about 1:10 – depending on the driving style. One thing to take in mind is that one is going upwards from ~600m to ~2400m by car. Some people even may suffer from circulation problems. So when being up there move slowly and remember that the air density is reduced by about 15-20% compared to El Jesus or similar starting points. The next ambulance is about 1:30h away from this point. So one should only go up there if he/she feels good.

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La Palma – Visiting the Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC)

/ Carsten / Leave a comment
Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) on Roque de Los Muchachos / La Palma

One thing you should not miss when you are on La Palma is a visit of the Gran Telescopio Canarias (GTC) on top of the island at about 2400m above the sea. It is completely free and the tour just takes about one hour of your time (+ driving up and down el Roque). Currently (03/2013) the GTC is the biggest reflecting telescope worldwide. This is certainly especially interesting for people who have an affinity to technology and/or astronomy but it may also be interesting for everyone else to see this giant instrument of modern science on La Palma.

In order to visit the GTC telescope on La Palma, one has to register on the following website. According to the website there is only a limited number of places for each visit. So in case you are not flexible you should register early enough before you plan to visit the GTC.

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