short walk along the ruins of mills

From Calle Tomás Arroyo Cardoso, 53108 Santa Lucía de Tirajana, Canary Islands, Spain
To Calle Tomás Arroyo Cardoso, 53108 Santa Lucía de Tirajana, Canary Islands, Spain

Routing Shortest - OSM

Santa Lucia has traditionally been in an area rich in water and arable land. Water is currently a limiting factor.
Santa Lucía, located in the Caldera de Tirajana, has always been an important producer of grains and olive oil. The presence of these three elements (water, grain, and olive trees) led to the construction of a total of nine water-powered mills in the second half of the 19th century, utilizing water from Heredad de La Zarcilla. Water from the river was diverted through a pipeline to the mills. The mills were constructed so that the water pipe emerged above the blades, allowing water to strike the blades with a certain force. This drove the millstone. There are many grain mills on Gran Canaria, but oil mills are (almost) exclusively found in Santa Lucia de Tirajana.
Before water mills were used, the millstone was powered either by animals or by people. They walked in circles all day, sweating and sometimes to the point of bleeding. This is when people referred to them as 'blood mills'.

The Mill Route passes by several places where a relic of this small industry may still remain.

In the center, there is also a small museum 'Museo del gofio'. It was closed due to COVID.

The walk is uphill on the way there. The first part is paved, later it follows along a field path.