Little Corn Island

The name of the Canary Islands probably originates from the Latin meaning of the term Insula Canaria, the Isle of Dogs. We think that a dense population of feral dogs, Presa Canario as inhabited the island of Gran Canaria in Roman times.

Before European colonization of peoples like the Berbers of North Africa populated the islands. They have come to be known collectively as the Guanches, although Guanches was originally the name for the indigenous inhabitants of Tenerife.

In 1402, the Spanish conquest of the islands began with an expedition to the island of Lanzarote. From there, they conquered Fuerteventura and Hierro and established a base on the island of La Gomera, it would be many years before the island was truly conquered. The inhabitants of La Gomera and Gran Canaria, Tenerife and La Palma, resisted the Spanish invaders for almost a century.

The Canary Islands have been a source of dispute between Spain and other European powers. The most serious attack took place in 1599 when a Dutch fleet of 74 ships and 12,000 men, attacked the capital, Las Palmas. The Dutch then laid siege to the city, but eventually gave up the seat of Las Palmas and withdrew.

Another noteworthy attack occurred only July 25, 1797, when the British fleet under the future Lord Admiral Nelson attacked Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The British were repulsed losing nearly 400 men. In this battle that Nelson lost his right arm.

The rivalry between the elites of the cities of Las Palmas and Santa Cruz de Tenerife for the capital of the islands has led to the division of the archipelago into two provinces in 1927. It does not lay to rest the rivalry between the two cities, which continues to this day.

The distinct characteristics of the Canary Islands are their large size relative to their region. Indeed, the volcano Teide on Tenerife is the highest mountain in Spain, and the third largest volcano on Earth. When the prevailing winds, the northeast trade winds, to meet the high mountains, the moisture is condensed and the windward side of islands see a lot of rain. This explains the diversity in the Canary Islands, pine forests on sand dunes, lush green valleys in the north, dry and hot desert in the south. Depending on the position of islands in relation to the trade winds, the weather can be mild and wet or very dry.

The economy of the Canary Islands is based primarily on tourism, with about 10 million visitors each year, representing 32% of GDP. Construction accounts for nearly 20% of the GDP and tropical agriculture, mainly bananas and tobacco, are grown for export markets. Tomatoes, potatoes, onions, cochineal, sugarcane, raisins, grapes, dates, oranges, lemons, figs, corn, barley, corn, apricots, peaches and almonds are also grown.

There are several airports in the Canary Islands within easy reach of most major cities of Europe or America. The Canary Islands are a year-round sailing yacht.

On your yacht in the Canary Islands you have the opportunity to see whales, dolphins, turtles and flying fish.

The geographical position of the Canary Islands means there is generally good wind for sailing. The northeast trades, which once took Columbus to America funnel through the islands to create so-called zones of wind acceleration, which means that even with fairly light winds there is enough wind for a large.

Despite his position near the tropics, the Canary Islands are not too hot in summer, 21-29 ° C, a pleasant temperature in winter, 15-20 C, and can be regarded as a region all the Yacht years. Gales are rare and the islands are not affected by the hurricanes.

The seven main Canary Islands are well spaced out so it is only a day sail between most of them.

Comments

Leave a Comment