El Hierro villa accommodation, Canary Islands
How this holiday makes a difference
Environment
The concept of the Rural House Aborigen Bimbache is to keep the canary style house of lava, wood ceilings and stone floor of the area for the visitors of the island. The home is located in elegantly rustic with large fruit-bearing orchards area dated back to 1890, it was originally an old stable completely reformed and our goal is to conserve the structure of the traditional architecture El Hierro-style to give our clients the sensation of involvement in the nature, in the peace and the magic of the El Hierro island.
Recommended activities: Hiking, diving, traditional fishing, underwater fishing, paragliding, bike rides or horse riding, all sports or fun time are in contact with the nature of El Hierro.
The paradisiacal volcanic island of El Hierro is the smallest and most westerly island of the Canary Islands, in the year 2000 UNESCO declared El Hierro a Biosphere Reserve due to its great ecological value.
The name: the meaning of the rural house name "Aborigen Bimbache" is in honor of the native inhabitants of the island of El Hierro, aboriginal tribe called Bimbaches who arrived from the north of Africa and founded El Hierro Island, a tribal community included inside of the aboriginal canary´s.
Community
The name El Hierro means "island of fire", a reminder of its volcanic past, but there is no sign of any ore here. There is plenty of wind and water though, and the combined forces of the two will soon be providing an abundant supply of energy for the smallest (278 sq km) of the Canary islands. It will be the first to generate all its electricity from renewable sources.
The people of El Hierro are used to the wind, which has shaped the landscape with its steep cliffs, its tireless gusts bending trees and bushes. It brings rain too, sufficient to sustain the 10,700 inhabitants, their livestock and fertile fields. Now they are learning to tame the wind.
In a few months a wind farm comprising five turbines, with an output totalling 11.5MW, will be installed at the north-eastern tip of the island, near Valverde, the main settlement. Some of the electricity will go into the mains network; the rest will be used to pump water from a 150,000 cubic metre reservoir being built near the harbour. The energy will raise the water to a much larger reservoir (550,000 cubic metres) at an elevation of 700 metres, which is housed in a caldera, a volcanic crater.
Three kilometres of pipes will connect the two reservoirs. If the wind drops, water will be released at the top to drive six hydraulic turbines (11.3 MW). By combining water and wind these naturally fluctuating energy sources can deliver a continuous supply of electricity.
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