The Bandama Natural Monument is part of the Tafira Protected Landscape on the island of Gran Canaria

Gran Canaria

Gran Canaria is the second most populous island of the Canary Islands, with a population of 838,397 which constitutes approximately 40% of the population of the archipelago...

 in the Canary Islands

Canary Islands

The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...

, Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

. It's considered a point of geological interest, because of the Caldera de Bandama. This volcanic caldera

Caldera

A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption, such as the one at Yellowstone National Park in the US. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters...

 reaches 569 m (1,867 ft) above sea level at the highest point on its rim, Pico de Bandama, and is about 1,000 m (3,300 ft) wide and 200 m (700 ft) deep.

The steep walk to the bottom of the caldera takes about half an hour. Volcanic ash of different hues is in great abundance, and there are some interesting botanic species of Canary Islands origin. There are facilities for food and refreshments as well.

The Caldera de Bandama is located at the meeting point of three municipalities: Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria commonly known as Las Palmas is the political capital, jointly with Santa Cruz, the most populous city in the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the ninth largest city in Spain, with a population of 383,308 in 2010. Nearly half of the people of the island...

, Santa Brígida

Santa Brígida, Las Palmas

Villa de Santa Brígida is a Canarian municipality in the northeastern portion of the island of Gran Canaria in the Province of Las Palmas of the Canary Islands. The suburbs of Las Palmas. The population is 18,817 , its density is 790.3/km² and the area is 23.81 km²...

 and Telde

Telde, Las Palmas

Telde is a municipality in the eastern on the island of Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain. The suburb of Las Palmas city. It is the second most populated municipality on the island, with a population of 100,015...

.

External links

• Monumento Natural de Bandama, official info, in Spanish