Pico de las Nieves (Ayacata)

Start Town	Altitude	Elevation Gain	Length	Gradient	Difficulty	Rating
Ayacata	1938m	603m	11.5 km	5.2%	574	****

Climb Description

The climb from Ayacata is a relatively short ascent to Pico de las Nieves, the highest point on the island. However, most riders will have already done a significant climb such as Aserrador or San Bartolomé to arrive at Ayacata, which increases the challenge greatly.

From Ayacata (a popular cafe stop with cyclists), you take the GC-600 road and soon begin climbing, with a couple of challenging kilometres which take you up to the view point of Roque Nublo - the iconic rock of Gran Canaria.

From here the gradient eases, with a false flat section for 5km,. Shortly before turning onto the GC-130 the road kicks up once more, and continues to be fairly steep until you reach the top of Pico de las Nieves.

Here you are rewarded with fantastic views, both across the volcanic landscape of Gran Canaria, and also of the neighbouring island of Tenerife.

Despite the name, which literally means 'snowy peak', Pico de las Nieves is usually open throughout the year.

Roads & Traffic

The road surface is quite rough for much of the first half of the climb. It's fine for riding on a road bike, but is not the most comfortable. After turning onto the GC-130 the surface becomes perfectly smooth.

There are some cars on the climb, nearly all hikers or tourists heading to Roque Nublo or to Pico de las Nieves itself. But it's never really bothersome for cycling.

Alternative Routes

Pico de las Nieves can be climbed from many different sides. You can arrive there from almost any point on the island using a different combination of roads. We consider the main cycling ascents to be starting from the following:

Arucas

Aguimes

Tejeda

Telde

The routes from Ayacata and Tejeda in particular, can also be combined with many of the other 'nearby climbs' listed below.

Nearby Climbs

Pinos de Gáldar

Aserrador

Cruz de Tejeda

Roque Bentayga

San Bartolomé

Temisas

Cenobio de Valeron

Cycling Holidays

Pico de las Nieves is climbed from this side on our cycling holiday to Gran Canaria.

In the links below you can find out more about this tour and other similar holidays that we are currently running in Spain.