Ruta 1 - Sprint : A Short Fast Trail Running Route from El Paso. The city of El Paso on La Palma is now part of the Spanish network of Trail Running Centers (TRC web page). Three routes from the Reventón Trail (web page) are well marked and doable year round: R1- Sprint (Blue), R2 - Classic (Red) and R3 - Maratón (Black). There are information panels next to the Tourism Center in El Paso. It's a convenient starting point next to the bus stop with all facilities close by : bakery & coffee, supermarket and pharmacy...
There is three routes to explore the area. I will focus on the Sprint and Classic routes. I share in this blog post my personal adjustments on the Ruta 1 - Sprint. The great advantage of this permanent marking is that you can custom your own route easily. I adjusted my training routes to make them convenient to catch the bus (Guagua Linea 300 Los Llanos <> Santa Cruz de La Palma - Lineas Regulares TILP). .
R1 - SPRINT / My Training Route: Starting from the center of El Paso. Finishing at the Visitor Center of the National Park of the Caldera of Taburiente. Distance around 12 km. Highest point 1100 meters.
- Access: Bus stop of El Paso. Start panels in front of the Tourist Center. Walking on Avenida Islas Canarias up to the Barranco de Tenisque. At the end of the avenue starts the trail.
- Starting on the trail, following the blue dots. It's a steep ascent till you pass by a sign that confirms you're on the right track. These signs are very useful, you know exactly where you are.
From there I stay on the R1 SPRINT route following the blue dots, enjoying a fun run in the forest.
About half way, the highest point is at 1100 meters. After this ultimate ascent, the route goes downhill. At the end of the forest trail, you get to run on the road. That's my second twist from the original track, I skip heading to the church Ermita Virgen Del Pino, I trace directly to the National Park Visitor Center to get the bus back to Los Llanos de Aridane.
I really enjoy this route, so that I do it often. I share pictures on my IG Stories and I have few Instagram posts about this R1 route.
For a training route, I appreciate having such convenient connectivity by bus. It takes me about 1 hour, which is perfect for a short trail run.
I will do a following blog post to document my "adjusted" training route based on the R2 - Classic track of the Reventón Trail, which happens to be the original route that I did years ago during one of the first editions of this race. The R2 - Classic route is a challenging trail run going from El Paso by the forest, passing by Ermita Virgen del Pino, going vertical on the Reventón, going fast & furious on La Hiléra to the Refugio del Pilar and down by the forest to get back to the National Park Visitor Center.
