La Maceta

On El Hierro's northwest coast, a series of lava tubes and submarine arches descend from 5 to 28 metres into a basalt labyrinth unlike any other site in the Canaries. The tunnels hold resident moray eels, lobsters, and dense aggregations of glass shrimp. Outside the arches, the wall drops into blue water where Atlantic torpedo rays glide close to the substrate and large shoals of salema porgy form shifting silver columns. Shore entry from a small volcanic inlet; conditions are calmer here than on the exposed southern tip.