Mallorca 2018

We couldn't have chosen a better week for this winter break. Edinburgh was badly hit by a Siberian snow storm and we left the day after the airport re-opened and skipped all the aftermath, perfect timing indeed!

Bye bye snowy Edinburgh!

As usual we were looking for a warm place to stock up some vitamin D and do some hiking and cycling, we were not disappointed, I could have done with some more vitamin D but overall it was a brilliant place to explore.

We stayed in Palma, at the Hotel Zurbarán and were impressed by the size of the city. The Hotel was a bit far away from the train and bus station, which meant a good 7km walk every day (sometimes 14) just to get there and back. The walk itself was quite nice though and it gave us a good opportunity to explore new streets everytime we walked it. On a positive note we were 5 min away from the castle and its huge park. If we will ever go again we will definitely choose a place close to the Plaza Espanya!

Public transport in Mallorca is excellent, reliable and efficient. We didn't feel the need to rent a car and managed to get everywhere we wanted by bus and train, well done Mallorca!

https://www.tib.org/en/web/ctm/

Cycling is a total different level too! The road surface is smooth and perfect, you can easily rent a bike pretty much everywhere and most of the busy roads have a huge shoulder for cyclists, while the secondary roads are so packed with cyclists that we never felt scared of cars, definitely a cycling paradise!

Getting started

We arrived on a Sunday early afternoon and felt at ease as soon as we got off the airport shuttle. It felt like a human place to live and explore, kind of empty and without the car madness we saw in Tenerife. We stopped for bocadillo number 1, checked in the hotel and then went to familiarise with the city (bus station mainly), checked out the main squares, the huge Cathedral, street market, and then I finally had my haircut...not too impressed with the result but with the afternoon heat it felt as refreshing as our first clara...if only the heat would have lasted all week!

We did our shopping and planning as the day after we would set out early for our first walk in the Sierra de Tramuntana.

On the GR 221 – Soller to Refugi de Tossals Verd – 21km and 1000m elevation

Monday 5 March

We were really charged up and couldn't wait to start the walk along the GR 221, so exited that I put orange juice instead of milk in Paul's muesli...sorry Paul (quite impressed you ate it anyway!) Then we went for our morning coffee to a café in the bus station and asked for a cortado...sin leche...mmhhh, how to start the day!

We took the 9am bus to Soller (n. 211) and in 40 min we reached our starting point. The weather wasn't too promising, it rained overnight and we set off with occasional showers, but psychologically we thought we were in the Mediterranean so it had to be a t-shrt day.

We started the walk in the amazing central square in Soller and then slowly found our way though the narrow allays out of town in oranges fields toward the pretty hamlet of Fornalutx. We were surrounded by high mountains all the way around and we knew we would start climbing soon...and what a climb! The path goes up a barranco with an infinite zig zag of stony steps. The path was very well maintained at all times and it was a pleasure to gain elevation and look at the valley below. 

 

Finally on top the weather did start to change, no t-shirt time anymore! It was very windy and cold and we soon put on all the layers we had. The walk to the Embassament de Cúber was splendid, and we finally had our spartan lunch sitting in a closed refugio with this amazing view in front of us. The cold wind made the lunch fast and in no time we were on the move again. We reached a road that we would cycle a few days after, and then follow a pipeline for a good while. This walk was so cool and varied, walking through many ecosystems we certainly never got bored.

I started to get a bit of indigestion so that we took it super easy. It was 3pm and we didn't want to get to the Refugio too early anyway so that we stopped everytime we could to absorb the varied ecosystems and the symphony of the infinite birds singing all around us (still no pine martins...). At 4pm we finally made it to the Refugio which had a very welcoming fire on. We had 4 hours before dinner so that we started playing cards and got slightly pissed off at Paul who got all the jokers all the time, karma? We had a good dinner, a pleasant evening sharing stories with the other hikers and an early night sleep. The Refugio is very nice and clean, the only thing is that I woke up with 4 bug bites which got quite nasty. My arms started to swallow and only after 1 week they are starting to fade away. 

 

GR 221 day 2 - Refugi de Tossals Verd to Lluch – 14km and 900m elevation

Tuesday 6 March

Today was a relatively short day and we knew that there are only 2 buses from Lluch to Palma, one at 12.15 and the last one at 17.55. We didn't know the path conditions but our Cicero guide said it would take 6h 30”, so that we figured we wouldn't make the first one. After a sleepless night we decided to have a chill out breakfast in the Refugio,but then at 8.15 we were ready and thought, should we go for it? We put on the turbo gear and we were close to running up to the top. The path was very rocky and muddy in places which didn't help but we were determined and made it to th top in less than 2h. The views from the top were supreme, finally we could spot the seaside on the other side and all the rugged peaks and cliffs, really worth the sweat! 

 

We couldn't waste much time and after a 5min break we kept on, down a bit, up another bit and then an endless and steep decent to Lluch, back to olive trees country and nice forest paths. We finally reached the village at 11.30am, way ahead out target time, starved and dead tired but super happy for the beautiful morning. Lluch is a pearl of a village, there is a monastery and is a must cycle for road cyclists, which we saw in hundreds climbing up while on the bus to Inca. We didn't cycle this road but next time will certainly be on the list.

We got back to Palma in the early afternoon and just spent the afternoon chilling out. I was not feeling well at all and managed to pass on whatever I had to Paul too. I'm not aware of any allergies but any time we would approach Palma we would start sneezing no stop, followed by cold and headache, maybe we are not used to pollution but we were much happier out of the big city.

Port de Soller to Cúber and back – 38km and 1000m elevation

Wednesday 7 March

Another sleepless night trying to avoid scratching my super irritated bites and constant sneezing, I was so glad when the alarm clock finally set off. The prospect for the day was a good cycle up to the mountains, and although I had better days I knew that there is nothing better to cheer me up that a good climb.

We took the 8am bus to Port de Soller and headed to the Tramuntana bike rental shop to get our bikes. I have never used a road bike before so that we preferred to get a hybrid and ended up with 2 Trek Zektors, which I found light and pleasant to ride (and a very comfy saddle!). The guy in he shop was super helpful and gave us directions and very helpful hints. We were planning to go all the was to Sa Calobra and get the ferry back, but it turned out that the ferry doesn't run on Wednesday (and it was too windy for it to run anyway), so that we decided to get to Cúper and turn back. We could have gone to Sa Calobra and back, but I was a bit run down and not sure I could cope with 2000m elevation.

The ride was beautiful and the road was not busy at all. Although it goes up no stop for about 18km, the gradient is not too bad and once we started to gain some elevation the views were stunning indeed. We soon left the olive trees and found ourselves surrounded by rocks and peaks, pity that the Puig Major was covered in clouds, again! We reached our destination in 1h 15” and put on all our clothes as it was freezing up there. Going down I had to stop as I was shaking too much for the cold that I couldn't keep the bike straight! 

 

Half way down we stopped a bit to get back some heat in the sunshine, and then in no time we were back in Port Soller. The village is really nice but we were way too cold to linger around and got the bus back home. We took advantage of the early arrival and went to visit the castle in Palma, which is actually 5 minutes from our hotel.

As soon as we entered the park I was shouting at Paul “upupa, upupa!!!!” and he looked at me like “what? What am I supposed to be looking at?” I still can't believe that there was a Hoopoe grazing in the ground right at the entrance, had never saw one before and was super exited, definitely the highlight of the day!

Parc Natural de S'Albufera – lots of walking and hiding birds...

Thrsday 8 March

We woke up feeling no energies, sneeze after sneeze. We decided to take it easy and went to visit the Parc Natural de S'Albufera, a huge wetland area of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, hoping we would see more species never seen before, but we ended up walking 13 km without seeing much. The last 3 km were endless and I just couldn't stay on foot, it took all I had to drag myself to the bus stop. That night we were both down with the cold and we couldn't even be bothered to go out for food, instead we had muesli, but I made sure I put milk, not orange juice...

GR 221 – Soller to Refugi de Muleta and Port de Soller

Friday 9 March

I finally had a decent night sleep and felt much better, still we decided not to push it too much and opted for a nice walk along the GR221 from Soller to Refugio de la Muleta, and then Port de Soller. When we woke up with mist and clouds we didn't expect much from the day, but on the bus, after crossing the tunnel to Soller, the clods magically disappeared and it was a warm sunshine, like really warm! Finally it felt like holidays and we stripped off of all the extra layers. The walk was very pleasant, among trees and finally overlooking the coast. In Port de Soller we had our first ice cream at the beach and just enjoyed walking around the village with the sunshine in our face, it definitely felt a different planet since our previous stay a few days before. We were both better and decided we would finish our holiday with a memorable cycle the following day.

Port de Pollenca to Cap de Formentor cycle – 40km and 1000m elevation gained

Saturday 10 March

And a memorable cycle it was indeed! We took the bus to Port de Pollenca and went to Bike March two rent the bikes (again Trek Zektor). We then joined the tens and tens of cyclists who were heading to Cap de Formentor. At first there was a good climb, followed by a beautiful descents with many turns, and then a gentle up and down road shodwed by trees, and the final bit unfolded to the lighthouse along cliffs and sublime landscapes. The weather was great as well, sunny and 21 degrees. The wind was strong too and on the way back it was a bit dangerous at times, but cycling with the sunshine in your face on that road was priceless, definitely a must do!

Eroski, our favourite provider, handly located in the bus station

Mallorca is the perfect cycling destination:

• renting bikes is easy and effortless, you can find bike shops in pretty much all the major villages/towns;
• getting around the island is easy too - we have never tried but it seems you can put the bike in buses and trains;
• the road surface is as smooth as glass;
• major roads have a wide shoulder for cyclists, while the secondary roads are much quieter and the herds of cyclists force cars to slow down;
• the climbs are challenging but not impossible (...see Madeira!) and the gradients generally human;
• the landscapes are amazing and varied, in 1 hour you can go from the seaside to the mountains!

Overall we really enjoyed our stay in Mallorca, we still have a few walks and cycles left to do which means we will definitely go back!