Alajeró

Alajeró is a municipality on the island of La Gomera in the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands. It is located on the south coast, SW of the capital San Sebastián de la Gomera. As well as being a municipality, Alajeró is also the name of the administrative town that governs that municipality.The valleys (barrancos) and Atlantic coastal strip are used for arable farming, with mountains and hills in the north covered by forest and scrub/grassland used for grazing sheep and goats.HistoryHistorically the area of Alajeró was in areas known as Hipalán and Orone. On the (southern) coastal side of Alajeró, Playa Santiago, part of which is located within the Alajeró municipality, was founded by fishermen, attracted to the location by its excellent fishing opportunities. As a result of this canneries and ship repair facilities were established.EconomyAlthough hot during the summer, in the winter months the climate is generally foggy, particularly at higher altitudes, which the inhabitants take advantage of by planting crops in November and harvesting their fruit and vegetables in May. Agricultural production has fallen over the past few decades, with an agricultural crisis in the 1960s and the 1970s, causing many people to leave, so the smaller villages became depopulated.The fish factory in Playa Santiago, which used to can tuna and sardines, shut down as fish stocks dwindled, although there are still a few remaining fishing boats, whose catch is frozen for transport. There is a boat repair yard in the port, but there is no longer a ferry. The Garajonay Exprės ferry ran from Valle Gran Rey via Santiago to San Sebastián de la Gomera and on to Los Cristianos, from 2002 to 2008, but ceased due to a lack of government subsidy.