William Kealy - Spring 2023

Volcano de Teide seems absolutely massive when you're on it, because the Island runs from 12,188 feet all the way to the ocean at sea level, which makes it a very prominent peak. After spending the week in a tropical beach environment it was strange to enter such an alpine enviornment as we drove up the switch backs the scenery reminded me of Colorado with the fir trees, and there was snow up there too!  The money shot. On the peak at sunset. Clouds far below. La Gomera, and La Palma islands rising out of the Atlantic Ocean in the background. We climbed at an alpine crag to start which may be the most unique rock I've ever climbed on. It was multicolored, green, red and orange, rough in texture, and wavy creating sharp spires to surrmount. Picture from top of climb at Capricho. With views of Pico de Teide in the background. Kieran Haley and I decided to leave the crag early to try to climb to the peak before Sunset. We rushed up there in only 3 and a half hours and caught one o...

Last week we had some time off from school, so I decided to fly down to the Canary Islands, which although technically a part of Spain are actually located way south, off the coast of Morocco. When I got there, there was a mild Calima, and the air was filled with sand carried over from the Sahara desert. This made the first few days very hot, however I ended up going straight to the beach to find some deep water soloing! The water was a salty slap in the face, although warm and a beautiful torquise color. I climbed high above the swells, on an archway of black volcanic rock with the waves crashing below me. I then jumped off the cliff and swam around in the caves, and there was even a little whole in the rock you could dive through. How exhilarating!   Deep water soloing spot. After this I had a harrowing day of taking buses and hitchhiking up to Arico where the hostel and sport climbing was located. The island of Tenerife has very unique topography which attracted me. The who...