Masca is a small mountain village on the island of

Tenerife Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...

. It was originally a

Guanche Guanche may refer to: *Guanches, the indigenous people of the Canary Islands *Guanche language Guanche is an extinct language that was spoken by the Guanches of the Canary Islands until the 16th or 17th century. It died out after the conquest ...

settlement before the Spanish conquest in 1496. The village is now home to around 90 inhabitants. The village lies at an altitude of 650 m in the

Macizo de Teno The Teno massif ( es, Macizo de Teno) is one of three volcanic formations that gave rise to Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. It is located in the northwestern part of the island between the towns of Santiago del Teide, Los Silos, El Tanque and B ...

mountains, which extend up to the northwesternmost point of Tenerife. Forests including cypresses and palm trees abound. The village lies at the head of the Masca Gorge. The trail from the village down the gorge to the beach on the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

is a popular, though strenuous, hiking route, which takes about 3 hours each way.

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{{Authority control Populated places in Tenerife