Not a very bright day and part of the way was through mists and clouds. But on Pico do Arieiro the air was pure and fresh and tolerably clear. Great day for walking and exploring!
The inset is of Cedronella canariensis, Canary Balm, with its wonderfully striped 'throat'. Often called Balm of Gilead for the lovely fragrance, it's not that particular plant at all: Commiphora gileadensis, a resinous shrub of the Near East especially from the Jalʻād (in the Bible: Gilead). So sometimes this Cedronella is called 'False Balm of Gilead', but I dislike that name because of that nasty word 'False'.
I hadn't first seen this pale-pink flower but trod on it and its fragrance was indeed like balm in the Pure Fresh Air. Bending down to examine it, I felt almost like the doctor who looked down into my striped strep throat when I was a child... But admittedly the flower's truly beautiful and its aroma healthy. It grows best above 500m altitude; the Pico is about 1800m.
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