Erque on La Gomera – Ravine, Trails and Rural Heritage

Erque is a scattered hamlet on the inner slopes of the Barranco de Erque. Because Erque’s remoteness has preserved the buildings and certain traditional practices, the hamlet possesses considerable ethnographic and landscape value.

Landscape

Erque reflects La Gomera’s traditional agricultural landscape, with terraced terrain, numerous paths and stone water channels. Erque and Erquito lie within the protected Orone landscape area, in the surroundings of the Barranco de Erque catchment area. The Barranco de Erque is one of the largest and most deeply carved ravines on the island of La Gomera. It consists of basalt and volcanic lava. The palm grove of Erque and Erquito is the second-largest on the island of La Gomera after the palm grove of Tazo-Cubaba, and is classified as a Site of Community Importance.

Culture

The settlement group of Erque and Erquito preserves a traditional rural appearance with stone houses as well as more recent rendered and white-painted masonry buildings. The rural settlements of Erque and Erquito preserve a traditional, agriculture-influenced architecture that is now clearly declining. Erque and Erquito can be reached via a narrow, winding paved road.

For further exploration, you can also visit El Guro, El Cercado, San Sebastián De La Gomera, Agulo, Tamargada, Alajero, Arure and Valle Gran Rey.

Hiking

The 16.6 km second stage of the Camino Natural Cumbres de La Gomera runs from Degollada de Peraza to the square in Chipude. A section of the Camino Natural Cumbres de La Gomera runs along the Barranco de Erque and offers travellers a complete panoramic view of the ravine. The Chipude–Arguayoda–La Dama route continues to Igualero in a steady descent towards Erquito; as a linear hiking route, it stretches from La Gomera’s central-western highlands to the coast of La Dama.

The Igualero–Alajeró route is a linear downhill hiking trail from Igualero to Alajeró. It follows traditional paths and passes through rural hamlets, linking traditional paths and rural hamlets, and runs through a dry, agriculture-influenced landscape of high cultural and historical value. It first reaches Erquito and then continues to San Lorenzo. The different route formats – stage, steady descent, linear route and coastal connection – can be compared for your personal day planning.

When comparing a holiday apartment in Erque, you can compare travel dates, accommodation category and cancellation conditions on the offer pages. These three details provide objective points of comparison to take into account in your personal travel plan when deciding on Erque.

An estimated duration of 4 hours and 40 minutes is given for the Chipude–Arguayoda–La Dama route. The route offers a complete panoramic view of the Barranco de Erque within the protected Orone landscape area; in the background lies the Fortaleza de Chipude natural monument.

For the overarching travel overview: La Gomera.