Los Cancajos
| Breña Baja municipality: Los Cancajos | |||
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 Los Cancajos, view from the LP-5
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| coat of arms | Map of the Canary Islands | ||
 Help on coat of arms |
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| Basic data | |||
| Autonomous Community : | Canary Islands | ||
| Province : | Santa Cruz de Tenerife | ||
| Coordinates | 28 ° 39 ′ N , 17 ° 46 ′ W | ||
| Residents : | 739 (2018) INE | ||
| Area code: | 38009000200 | ||
Los Cancajos is a part of the municipality and a holiday resort in the municipality of Breña Baja on the Canary Island of La Palma . It is located on the east side of La Palma, between the capital Santa Cruz de La Palma and La Palma international airport . In the early 1980s, there was nothing to suggest that a disused saltworks would become a resort on the inhospitable coast .
history
Until the 1970s, the place was still a small fishing village and the location of a salt works. With the creation of an artificial beach, the place grew with tourism and the construction of a large number of hotels and apartment houses. Besides Puerto Naos , Los Cancajos is the island's main tourist destination.
Salt pans
The oldest remains of salt pans on La Palma are in Los Cancajos . In 1815 the Fierro family started operating a salt works in this place. The Norwegian botanist Christen Smith , who visited the island of La Palma in 1815, reported on salt pans for salt production on La Palma. The salt pans were on a low cliff by the sea, onto which the sea water was pumped with the help of two wind pumps (drive: windmill wheel). When there was no wind, a large bucket wheel powered by a camel was used for pumping water.
The Hernández Rodríguez family still operated the salt works in the 1960s . Today the salt basins and the structures of the wind pumps of the disused saltworks are still on the coastal path ( Paseo del Litoral ) in Los Cancajos. Due to its ecological value, the saltworks were recognized by UNESCO as worthy of protection.
The natives of La Palma were already familiar with salt production by creating small, handmade ponds for this purpose. Some of these ponds are still located below the saltworks in Los Cancajos.
Salt pans of the salt works, in the background 2nd wind pump
2. Wind pump on the Paseo del Litoral
1. Wind pump and water tank
Remnants from the shaft of the bucket wheel for pumping water
Population development
| year | 2000 | 2005 | 2010 | 2015 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| population | 439 | 467 | 608 | 695 | 739 |
Townscape
Los Cancajos is a pure holiday resort, which has grown rapidly since the 1980s around the artificial beach of Playa de Los Cancajos with hotels and apartment complexes (with around 3000 guest beds) without a town center having developed.
A waterfront promenade, Paseo del Litoral, was laid out along the coast of the village, from which the rugged rocky coast made of lava stone is clearly visible. The capital Santa Cruz can also be reached on foot via the coastal path .
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beaches
The Playa de Los Cancajos consists of two black sand, gently sloping bathing bays of about 200 and 100 meters in length, which were artificially created. Several breakwaters in front of the coast protect the bays and bathers from the often very restless Atlantic. The bays also serve as diving bases, which are an ideal area for beginners and snorkelers to explore the local underwater fauna. The bathing operation on the beach is guarded by lifeguards in several places all year round.
literature
- SMITH, C.: Diary of the trip to the Canary Islands in 1815. Fundación Canota Orotava of the history of science. Science history materials. Nº8. La Orotava, 2005.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Pedro Merino Martín, Las salinas palmeras , Rincones del Atlantico.
- ↑ Salinas de La Palma
- ↑ Cancajos Salt Pans, December 13, 2018.
- ↑ The Salt Pans - 1815
- ↑ Los Cancajos - Population , Instituto National de Estadistica, accessed July 15, 2019.
- ↑ Los Cancajos , Canary Time.
- ↑ Beach catalog - beach guide , Ministerio de Agricultura y Pesca, accessed on July 15, 2019.