Tenerife Village Adapts to Modern Life, Cherishes Rural Roots

Socorro León remembers her grandfather, who could always tell if water came from the Fuente del Bardo spring. She once tried to trick him with water from another spring, but he knew right away. "You can't fool a man who's bedridden," he told her, highlighting how special the local water was. Sadly, that spring is gone now, buried when the TF-344 highway was built, connecting the village to San Juan de la Rambla and Los Realejos.

Fuente del Bardo sits on land dramatically shaped by water erosion, creating a natural boundary – a sunken forest between scrubland and laurel forest, nestled between two towns in northern Tenerife. This large ravine, called Ruiz, creates a complex landscape, but the village is growing. It now has over 50 residents, up from 34 in 2015.

Socorro León has lived in Fuente del Bardo her whole life. She's a charming woman with bright red lipstick, and she jokes that "there isn't even anywhere to buy a kilo of sugar here." While they sometimes miss having shops nearby, she says the car makes everything accessible. The roads to Fuente del Bardo are well-maintained, making it easy for the baker to deliver bread to their door, announcing his arrival with a honk.

The road improvements also affected the spring that gave the village its name. "We have so many memories of Fuente del Bardo. Everyone used to go there to wash," Socorro León recalls. In Tenerife, water was once central to daily life, with washing becoming a social activity for previous generations.

Besides water, Socorro León remembers her grandparents herding goats. She helped with the animals from a young age, walking from Fuente del Bardo to Santa Catalina and San Juan de la Rambla. "Life in the countryside was always hard, without all the modern conveniences," she says. Despite the challenges, she's proud to have raised her family there and now has six grandchildren and one great-granddaughter, whose photos are displayed in her home.

"We've always been cheerful people who love to celebrate," she smiles, mentioning Los Alzados, a popular local folk group. She also talks about hunting, a hobby of her two sons, pointing to the mouflon heads on her walls. Proudly, she shows off the produce from her land, including the squash decorating her table. She is incredibly kind.

Fuente del Bardo offers stunning views of the terraced farms that characterize northern Tenerife. Located within the protected landscape of Los Campeches, Tigaiga and Ruiz, the fertile land provides everything needed to survive. "You can't live like this anywhere else," Socorro León says, emphasizing the peace of the area. Yurena García León, who runs El Andén, the village's only restaurant, agrees.

Socorro León raves about the roast chickens at El Andén. The restaurant is named after the steep street it's on. García León, 32, has also lived in Fuente del Bardo her entire life. As she prepares lunch, she proudly displays the avocados from her father's harvest, saying, "Everything grows in this land." She's raising her two children in Fuente del Bardo.

Yurena García León has no plans to leave and believes it's a great place to raise children. "We all grew up here and we're doing well. I have wonderful childhood memories of spending time in the mountains with my grandfather," she says. She notes that young people are returning to the village, even selling properties in more populated areas to come back. Every morning, two buses full of children travel down the street to go to school.

The steep street of El Andén is the main road into the village. A white van serves as a taxi, provided by the Los Realejos City Council as public transport, since the regular bus service doesn't reach Fuente del Bardo. Residents can use the same payment system as on the island's buses.