Ayagaures Reservoir

Local name: Presa de Ayagaures

Reservoir below ravine slopes at the hamlet of Ayagaures, starting point for steep, rocky hiking loops.

Ayagaures Reservoir is held back by a dam in the Ayagaures ravine, inland from Maspalomas in the municipality of San Bartolomé de Tirajana on Gran Canaria. The hamlet of Ayagaures stands beside the water, and a second reservoir, Gambuesa (Presa de la Gambuesa), lies higher up the valley. Hiking trails link the reservoirs with the Mirador de Ayagaures viewpoint on the slopes above, and the area is known for its walking and mountain-biking routes.

Lake

Entrance: No ticket; the reservoir and trails are open ground.
Accessibility: The trails climb steeply over rocky ground and narrow in places; they are not suitable for wheelchairs or for visitors with limited mobility.
Parking: Two parking areas, about 125 m and 145 m away.
Difficulty: Steep climbs on rocky trails, with narrow stretches along the slope; hiking boots needed. A loop over the hills takes around three hours twenty at an unhurried pace.
Transport: Nearest bus stop: Palmitos Park, about 2.5 km away in a straight line; Arteara is about 4 km away.
Advance booking: Not needed.
Hours: Open at all times.
Address: Lugar Ayagaures, 33, 35109 Ayagaures, Las Palmas, Spain

What makes it special

The road up to Ayagaures runs greener than most of southern Gran Canaria, and it ends at still water behind a dam, with the hamlet on its bank.

From here the trails climb, and the views open out early: back down over the reservoir and the valley, then higher to the second reservoir and the Mirador de Ayagaures. The pull up to the upper reservoir is steep. A couple of hundred metres of path narrow along the hillside, enough to unsettle anyone uneasy with heights. The rest is open walking with the valley below you the whole way.

It is a quiet place. Late in the afternoon, with the light low across the slopes, it is at its calmest.

Good to know

No toilets and no drinking water at the reservoir or nearby. Fill up before you come.
Wear hiking boots: the trails are rocky and climb steeply, hardest on the way up to the second reservoir.
A couple of hundred metres of trail run narrow along the slope, uncomfortable if you dislike heights.
On a bike the tracks are very bumpy and rocky. An e-mountain bike handles the climbs; ask for a padded saddle if you rent one.

Getting there

Ayagaures sits up a valley road inland from the coast, and the last stretch is the green part of the drive. Two parking areas lie about 125 m and 145 m away, with trail guideposts beside them, so you leave the car and are on the path almost at once.

By bus it is a long way on foot. The nearest stop, Palmitos Park, is about 2.5 km away in a straight line, and Arteara about 4 km; over this hilly ground the walk is longer than either figure.

Best time to visit

Best: late afternoon, when the light lies low across the slopes and the valley goes quiet. Start a long loop early enough to be down before dark.

Avoid: the climbs in the heat of the middle of the day.

The hillsides offer little shade and there is no water on the route, so the steep sections are hardest in full sun.

Sun & daylight

Park

🩶

☑️

Valleseco Lagoon