Socorro Beach

The waves come first. Swell rolls in off the open Atlantic onto a strip of black volcanic sand at the foot of the north-coast cliffs, and surfers of every level are out in it on a good day. The water is clear, the sand is dark, and the whole beach feels raw and natural.

It is a watched beach. Lifeguards take the job seriously, and on days when the current is too strong for plain swimming they keep bathers close in while the boards work the break. For anyone who only wants to watch, the sand itself is the best seat: sets building, riders dropping in, spray coming off the tops.

• The current can be too strong for swimming even while surfers are out; check with the lifeguards before going in.
• Finding a parking space is sometimes easy and sometimes not; a second car park lies further off if the near one is full.
• Toilets stand about 110 m from the beach.
• There is no drinking-water tap nearby, so bring your own.

Most people arrive by car. The main car park is paved and sits about 160 m from the beach in a straight line, so the last stretch is a quick walk down to the sand. When it is full, a second car park lies about 580 m away.

By bus, the Playa del Socorro stop is about 80 m from the beach, the closest drop-off of all; the La Grimona stop is about 330 m away. Toilets are about 110 m from the sand.

Best: a morning with a small swell if you want to swim; a day with the swell up if you surf or want to watch surfers.

Avoid: swimming on big-swell days, and the middle of a sunny summer day on the open sand.

The north coast takes the Atlantic swell head-on, and black sand with no shade soaks up the midday sun until it burns underfoot.