Cenobio de Valeron

From the path the cliff looks like a honeycomb: rows of dark openings stacked eight levels high under a natural arch of rock. There are 298 of them, each between one and three square metres, cut by hand with stone and wooden tools into soft volcanic tuff. Steps carved into the rock to reach them are still there.

This was a community's grain store. Each chamber had its own door of wood or stone slab, sometimes stamped with a pintadera seal to mark the owner, and the cracks were sealed with ash mortar to keep the crop safe. The site was chosen because it is hidden from the sea and the slopes below are steep enough to defend.

The name means "monastery". For centuries the caves were taken for the home of the harimaguadas, celibate priestesses, until the French archaeologist Guy Marcy recognised them in the 20th century as a granary, close kin to the agadirs of North Africa. Around the site, the mountains and gorges of the north open out over the San Felipe ravine (Barranco de San Felipe).

• The chambers are closed to visitors: you see the caves from the path, with information panels and models along the circuit.
• The visit takes between 20 minutes and an hour.
• The circuit has a lot of stairs, and the entrance is not wheelchair accessible.
• The car park fills up, and finding a space can be hard; free street parking is the alternative.
• Toilets are on site. There is no drinking water point nearby, so bring your own.

The Cenobio de Valerón sits on the GC-291, a minor road in the hills above the north coast. Leave the GC-2 motorway at exit 20, which is signposted for the site; from there it is about 4 km. Exit 21 also leads round to it. The road has a good surface but plenty of bends, and it runs high along the slope. The eastern end of the GC-291 meets the GC-2 near San Felipe, but you cannot get off the motorway there, so come in from the west.

The free car park is right at the site, with a second one about 180 m away. Without a car, the bus plus a walk of about 40 minutes gets you there; the nearest stop, Cruce del Hormiguero, is about 770 m away in a straight line.

Best: the afternoon, Tuesday to Sunday.

Avoid: Mondays, and the Christmas and New Year holidays, when the site is closed.

The cliff faces north-west, so the cave openings sit in shade through the morning and catch the sun later in the day.

The Cenobio de Valerón is a protected archaeological site. The caves themselves are off-limits, for safety and to preserve them: the visit follows the path in front of the cliff, and nobody enters the chambers. The exhibits along the circuit are not to be touched. The site is fenced and locked at night.