Fuerteventura beaches, Routes and trails
Popcorn Beach
Jul
We will never get tired of telling you that Fuerteventura has beaches for all tastes.
If we have already talked about coves with fine sand and gentle slopes, and others that are abrupt, surrounded by high cliffs that make it impossible to look out to sea, today it is time to talk about a type of beach that, since 2015, has become tremendously popular on social networks, we refer to Popcorn Beaches, #PopCornBeach.
There is not just one popcorn beach in Fuerteventura, but there are several spread all over the coastline. The most popular beaches are Playa del Hierro and Caleta del barco, both in the municipality of La Oliva.
The nickname of popcorn comes from its unique soil, composed of rhodolites. Rhodoliths are calcareous algae that originated under the sea bed, which currents have brought closer to the shore. They are shaped like popcorn (roscas o cotufas for the natives).
Playa de las Palomitas – Beach of Bajo de la Burra or Caleta del Barco.
Playa del Bajo de la Burra or Caleta del Barco is one of the least known PopCornBeach in Fuerteventura. This cove is not only a great place to watch the sunset, but it also holds in its depths real stories about sunken ships, legends of pirates, and tales of hidden treasures. Don’t look up from the screen, we’ll tell you about his charms.
Bajo de la Burra beach is located in the municipality of La Oliva, between Corralejo and Majanicho. It is almost 500 meters long and about 10 meters wide on average. The beach is bounded by a rugged volcanic landscape, while its soil is sifted with rhodolites.
Treasures and pirates on Popcorn Beach.
Place names often give us clues about historical events that have occurred in a particular place. And this one from Boat Cove was no less. At the end of the 18th century, stories abounded on Fuerteventura about a ship near Corralejo that carried a cargo of gold.
The legend tells of a pirate ship, which sailed through Canarian waters assaulting the ships to keep the booty. Among the crew of that pirate ship was a prisoner from Lajares. The latter, seeing that he was near his land, indicated to the captain of the ship that a treasure was nearby. However, his real intention was to escape from his captors, and he took them through the vicinity of the Bajo de la Burra, so that the ship ran aground and he could escape. Finally, the ship ran aground, but when he tried to swim away, another crew member caught up with him and killed him.
Another version of this legend tells of a pirate ship that ran aground in the vicinity of Caleta del Barco, and that the pirates on the ship hid the treasure nearby, but where? Well, in the Cueva del Dinero, very close to Majanicho. How you see the origin of place names hides very interesting clues.
A very real legend
All legends have their share of reality, and this one too. The story of the pirate ship sunk off the coast of Fuerteventura with a treasure was very popular in Cuba. It was transmitted orally from father to son, since the 19th century, by the majoreros who emigrated to America.
In the 1940s a majorero returned from Cuba, and encouraged by the stories he had heard, he began his search for pirate treasure. Marcial Estévez and two other people were digging in the Cueva del Dinero for two months, but they didn’t find any treasure.
But that’s not the end of the story. In February 1998 two sport divers reported the presence of some canyons in the area of “Caleta del Barco”. Fourteen pieces of cast iron artillery were found, most of them stuck to the rocky bottom and covered with seaweed. Each of these canyons can weigh about a ton and a half. The cannons belonged to a Spanish ship that was sunk by the English in April 1780.
The location of the wreck, in the vicinity of Caleta del Barco, and the oral references to the Cueva del Dinero, suggest that this is the origin of the legend of the treasure of the Cueva del Dinero. Between 1779 and 1793 the English chased two Spanish ships until they ran aground. The crews jumped ashore with the money, which they carried in the holds from America and various belongings.
The English burned the Spanish ships and chased our sailors, catching up with some of them and taking what they were carrying. From this historical fact the legend was built, and each generation adapted it to its own taste.
Frequently asked questions about Popcorn Beach:
Getting to Caleta del Barco is easy. It is done through a ground track that connects Majanicho and Corralejo.
Yes, this beach is a great way to introduce children to the love of history and heritage conservation.
This part of the coast has strong currents, so it is not advisable to move away from the shore
Yes, Caleta del Barco is one of the beaches chosen by surfers and divers.
Near Caleta del Barco there are some natural salt flats, and other pre-Hispanic shells and housing units.
No, that practice is totally forbidden. Keep in mind that each of these curious “little stones” takes more than 50 years to form.
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