La Gomera, one of the Canary Islands, is a natural paradise that boasts an impressive variety of flora and fauna. Among its most precious treasures is the laurisilva forest, a type of forest found on the most mountainous islands of the archipelago, as well as in the Azores, Madeira, and some corners of southern Europe and northern Africa.
This relict ecosystem was formed during the Miocene Period when the Earth’s climate was warmer and more humid, and the laurisilva forest covered much of what is now Europe, northern Africa, and North America.
Over time, the climate became colder and drier, and the laurisilva was reduced to small, isolated areas. Today, this forest on La Gomera, which covers around 3,000 hectares, is one of the few remaining in Europe and one of the best on the planet. It is a forest trapped by the clouds, located on the northern slopes of the islands, which are exposed to the humid trade winds that carry water particles across the North Atlantic, only to collide and deposit on the leaves and branches of the forest trees. Its lushness contrasts sharply with the arid landscape of the island’s geography below 600 meters.
The laurisilva is a subtropical humid forest characterized by its evergreen trees, such as laurels, strawberry trees, ferns, and mosses. It is found in the high areas of the island, between 600 and 1,200 meters above sea level. The climate at this altitude is humid and subtropical, with average temperatures of 18 to 20 degrees Celsius and average rainfall of 1,000-2,000 mm per year. On the island of La Gomera, it is protected by the Garajonay National Park, where its good state of conservation and the beauty of its landscape have earned it a place on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1986.
Garajonay, despite its rugged terrain of ravines, cliffs, ridges, and crests, has an extensive network of trails and paths for hiking through the park. The high humidity favors the presence of a large quantity of mosses, lichens, ferns, and fungi that cover the branches of many of the trees, giving it a primitive appearance reminiscent of jungles and rainforests more typical of other latitudes and climatic zones. It is a mysterious place where one can get lost with the feeling of having traveled a long way in space and, why not?, in time.
Ernesto Cardoso
Horizontal Rain
The Canary archipelago is located within the influence of the trade winds, low-intensity winds that blow almost continuously from the northeast, especially in the summer months. The trade winds, laden with moisture after their passage over the ocean surface, ascend the slopes of the islands with rugged terrain, such as La Gomera. This cools and condenses their water vapor into cloud droplets, leading to the formation of the sea of clouds typical of the northern slopes. The lush laurisilva forests are located in the altitudinal band where fog is frequent. These forests are largely nourished by the water droplets from the almost permanent clouds that collect on the leaves of the trees and eventually precipitate onto the ground, soaking it and reaching its roots.
Andrés Chazarra
| Season 6. Chapter 4 | Laurisilva |
| recording date | September 2023 |
| Duration | 2:29 minutes |
| Issue date | Frebruary 14, 2024 |
| Location | Isla de La Gomera, Canarias. España |
| Image and sound | Ernesto Cardoso |
| Edition | Ernesto Cardoso |
| Opusculun | Ernesto Cardoso, Andrés Chazarra |
| Music | Crowander |
| Song | Backward |
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