Crossing the Serra de Tramuntana by bicycle

Departure on Tuesday night by boat to Palma. The boat leaves Barcelona at 23h and arrives in Palma at 6:30. The entry to the boat will be made through the hold with the bicycle. We will meet the whole group in advance (21h) to leave the luggage inside of the van.

Departure from Palma to take the Coll des Vent which will take us down the other side towards Calvià and from there along a brand-new cycle path to Es Capdellà. From this little village, we will start a route through a singular landscape, following a narrow and lonely road that will take us first to Galilea and Puigpunyent, and finally to Esporles. On the way, we will have passed two very entertaining, small mountain ranges, without great slopes. It is one of the most evocative stages in the interior landscape of the Serra de Tramuntana.

 45 km – 1.230 mt.

This second stage will take us through the interiors of the Serra. During a good part of the route, we will ride off the asphalt and away from any town. We will begin the exit taking the fishermen’s way, one of the old ways catalogued in the register of “Old tracks of the Serra de Mallorca”. It used to be the path that the inhabitants of Esporles and the fishermen of Port des Canonge used to communicate with each other. The first exit ramps of the village are demanding but brief, and immediately the terrain becomes more bearable. Then, we will reach the Mirant de Mar viewpoint, which has a privileged view of the coast of Banyalbufar. We will take the Camí de s’Arboçar, which will take us through several estates to the enormous public estate of Planícia. This whole itinerary is planned along tracks in good condition, which are set above the coast and with a magnificent view of the watchtower over the sea.  From Planicia, we will descend to the coastal road, to go towards Banyalbufar passing by the Mirador de Ses Ànimes. In this viewpoint is the Torre des Verger, a watchtower over the cliff built in the 16th century to defend both the marinas and the village from pirate raids. We will visit Banyalbufar, a term that comes from the Arabic Bahaya al-Bujar, which means construction by the sea. Precisely from the period of the Arab domination, this community inherited the systems of terraces, washing places, irrigation ditches, canals and fountains that can be seen around the Tramuntana mountain range. After strolling through the village, we will start the ascent to the Coll de Sa Bastida, and later we will start the descent towards Esporles.

35 km – 985 mt 

The third is the eminently coastal stage of the route, where we will pedal without great slopes between the steep foothills of the Serra to our right and the beautiful views that descend towards the sea to our left. We will begin the short ascent that will take us to the road that goes towards Valldemossa. This important town is worth a visit to contemplate the old town, especially the narrow, winding streets around the church.  A visit to the Cartoixa de Valldemossa is worthwhile. This monastery was founded in the 14th century on the former residence of the kings of Mallorca. There are several points of interest in the Cartoixa, but we will highlight three. First, the old apothecary, with its ceramic containers that contained the old medicinal remedies. Second, the small Municipal Museum of Contemporary Art, which includes an important collection of works by Miró, Frances Bacon and Picasso. Above all, the cell that contains key elements that remain from the stay of the writer George Sand and the composer Frederic Chopin. Chopin came to this town to improve his health in a winter unsuitable for this purpose. Even so, the stay was very prolific creatively, having inspired the Preludes of the composer on one hand, and, on the other, the famous novel by George Sand, “A winter in Mallorca“.

We continue along the old road that passes through two other points that would be worth a visit. The first is the Monastery of Miramar, where the medieval philosopher Ramon Llull founded in 1276 a school for learning languages, created primarily with the aim of communicating with the Arab world. The next pole of interest, related to the previous one, is the impressive estate of Marroig, belonging to Archduke Luis Salvador of Austria, who had a close and exciting relationship with the island, very well described by Carme Riera in one of his last novels, “The last words”.

We will follow the small road that runs parallel to the coast until we find the spectacular environment of Deià, with the rocky bottom of the Serra as a spectacular setting. It is worth taking a walk through this “manger village” as Santiago Rusiñol called it. In fact, the town has been and continues to be an attraction for artists from all over the world. Perhaps, the most famous resident was Robert Graves, author of the well-known novel “I, Claudius” which he composed, along with many other works, in the house where he lived, and which can now also be visited. We will continue along the road until we turn inland and start the descent to the Vall dels Tarongers, with Sóller dominating the landscape. We will stay at a hostel in the town and have dinner in a restaurant in the village or in the nearby port.

36 km. – 600 mt.

The fourth stage takes us back to the interior through more rural and solitary landscapes. We will begin the ascent in the direction of the Sóller tunnel and at its entrance we will take the old road that goes up towards the mountain pass. This road now receives more cyclists than vehicles. The road meanders on both slopes, but it can be overcome at a good pace (average gradient of 6%). From the hill we will have magnificent views of the villages and fields that descend to the bay of Palma. At the end of this entertaining descent, we will pass by the Alfabia Gardens, a 19th century romantic park with really suggestive designs. We will begin the approach to Bunyola, a charming and small protected village situated in the Sierra de Alfabia. Here begins the ascent to the Coll d’Honor, an ascent of 6 km with ramps ranging from 6% to 12%. During this part of the itinerary, we will cross a dense forest of holm oaks. Once we have passed the hill, the landscape opens up and we will descend through the beautiful valley that leads to Orient.  Then, we will descend through a very amusing route between the two moles that compose the Puig d’Alcadena and the Castell d’Alaró. We will stay overnight in a simple and comfortable rural house of the village.

38 km. – 850 mt

This is the last stage that is directed again towards the highest parts of the Serra. Before moving towards the highest part of the route, we will plan a few kilometers along small, local roads that are narrow and limited by dry stone walls. Traveling between fields, we will cross the villages of Lloseta, Selva and Caimari. From the latter and up to Pollença 30 kilometres later, we will find nothing but the silence and tranquility of the wildest landscape of the Serra. The ascent to the Coll de Sa Batalla is surely the most popular ascent among cyclists. It is about 8 kilometers at an inclination of 5%, with a small rest in the spectacular Salt de la Bella Dona. When you reach the pass, we will take the road that crosses the Serra in the direction of Pollença. We will pass near the spiritual center of the island, the Santuari de Lluc. Then, we will go through a section of small ups and downs and start the descent with beautiful views of the Bay of Pollença. Finally, we will cross the town to look for the bicycle path which is parallel to the sea, and we will go to the hotel that we have in Muro Beach after crossing Alcudia.

65 km. – 915 mt.

We will drive the 5 kilometres to the Port of Alcudia, where the boat will depart around 13:30h. Planned arrival in Barcelona around 19’30h.