El Río ( es, Estrecho del Río) is the name given to the sea

strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...

that separates

La Graciosa Graciosa Island or commonly La Graciosa (; Spanish for "graceful") is a volcanic island in the Canary Islands of Spain, located north of Lanzarote across the Strait of El Río. It was formed by the Canary hotspot. The island is part of the C ...

from

Lanzarote Lanzarote (, , ) is a Spanish island, the easternmost of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. It is located approximately off the north coast of Africa and from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering , Lanzarote is the fourth-largest of the i ...

in the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

. ''Río'', in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, means 'river'. At its narrowest point, the strait is just over wide. El Río is part of the marine reserve established around La Graciosa and the islets north of Lanzarote.

Points of Interest

Caleta de Sebo is located on the strait's northwestern shore. It is the larger one of only two settlements on the island of

. Overlooking the strait from the southeastern shore are the cliffs of Famara, on the island of

. One of local artist

César Manrique César Manrique Cabrera ( or ) (24 April 1919 – 25 September 1992) was a Spanish artist, sculptor, architect and nature activist from Lanzarote. Early life Manrique was born in Arrecife, Lanzarote, one of the Canary Islands. His father G ...

's creations, Mirador del Río, consists of a viewpoint located at a height of on the cliffs of Famara. The viewpoint overlooks onto La Graciosa and the rest of the

Chinijo Archipelago The Chinijo Archipelago () is a small archipelago located in the northeastern part of the Canary Islands, north of the island of Lanzarote. The archipelago includes the islets of Montaña Clara, Alegranza, La Graciosa, Roque del Este and Roque ...

across the strait of El Río, after which the viewpoint is named. The Salinas del Río are located at the feet of the cliffs of Famara along the shore of El Río. Believed to be the oldest

salt evaporation ponds A salt evaporation pond is a shallow artificial salt pan designed to extract salts from sea water or other brines. The Salt pans are shallow and large of size because it will be easier for sunlight to travel and reach the sea water. Natural s ...

in the Canary Islands, the salt pans fell out of use in the second half of the twentieth century. They are, as of 2018, under restoration. File:Caleta de Sebo.jpg, Caleta de Sebo File:Lanzarote Famara Massiv Hochebene.jpg, Cliffs of Famara File:Mirador del Río - Lanzarote - 04.jpg, Mirador del Río File:Salinas del Rio - Lanzarote.jpg, Salinas del Río

Ferries

The only way to get to the island of

is by ferry from

. Ferries depart Lanzarote from the port of

Órzola Órzola is a village in the municipality of Haría on the island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands. It is the northernmost settlement of the island. As of 2021, it has a population of 352 inhabitants. The port of Órzola is the departure point ...

and head into the strait of El Río to reach the port of Caleta de Sebo on La Graciosa. As of July 2019, two ferry companies operate this service, both based on La Graciosa: Líneas Romero and Biosfera Express. Travel time is about 25 minutes.

Open Water Swimming

The ''Travesía a nado "El Río"'' is an annual

open water swimming Open water swimming is a swimming discipline which takes place in outdoor bodies of water such as open oceans, lakes, and rivers. The beginning of the modern age of open water human swimming, swimming is sometimes taken to be May 3, 1810, when L ...

event that crosses the strait. The start line is ''Playa de Bajo Risco'' on

and the finish line is the dock at Caleta de Sebo on

, covering a distance of . The event first took place in September 1993 and has been organised every year since then, in either September or October depending on the tides.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Río, El Lanzarote Geography of the Province of Las Palmas Straits of Spain Straits of the Atlantic Ocean