This year in January there was supposed to be a winter tour for Bimbi and me. One week in the Palatinate before I dive fully into my last exams. But the closer the long winter tour came, the greater my need for sun and good weather became. So I spontaneously suggested a trip to the south. After a brief analysis of the weather data three weeks before departure, we decided to go hiking in Mallorca. The current temperatures ranged between 15°C and 20°C, and there was sunshine in abundance. So no time to lose! This time we decided against tents. Bimbi's chosen day tours were spread all over the island, so a rental car was the obvious choice for getting from A to B without hassle. Add a small holiday flat for the night, and the conventional holiday is complete. From experience, our tours are always very chaotic, so why should it be any different this time?
After three long weeks the time had finally come! Off to the train and to Bimbi's. The rays of the setting sun made Hildesheim glow in a beautiful golden light.
The next morning we went to the airport in Stuttgart before dawn. Getting up just after six on a weekend is simply not my thing, but when a great holiday is in prospect, you accept the inconvenience. On the plane, Bimbi asked me if I had looked at the weather forecast in the past few days. There had been a severe winter weather break in the Serra de Tramunata. At that moment I was glad not to be hiking the GR221. Without visibility, in strong gusts and winter temperatures, this holiday would have become a Madeira 2.0.
After landing in Mallorca we picked up the rental car and drove to our accommodation. With the phone as a navigation device, our holiday flat was quickly found, but the scale of the weather became clearly apparent.
The road just before our destination was badly flooded, so we decided to park the car on a hill. The first days were supposed to be stormy and rainy, so we could descend into the Dragon Cave with a clear conscience.
Since we still had a little time before the tour was supposed to start, we walked the few metres to the sea on foot. The view of the sea didn't disappoint us, and the sea salt in the air created ever stronger holiday feelings.
Time flew by, and our guided tour through the Dragon Cave began. The cave is incredibly large and has several underground lakes. At that moment I would have loved to have Grandpa's SLR camera, but it had stayed at home. I made the best of it with the smartphone though. Photographing with the smartphone appeals to me because you try to get the best out of the small sensor and the lens without a mechanical shutter and with a fixed focal length.
In the cave it was very pleasant despite the high humidity, at a temperature of 18°C. On this day the holiday showed its great potential right from the start.
All in all, this was a great opportunity to enjoy the morning. Afterwards we continued to the coast. Bimbi wanted to find her first geocache on the island. The cache was hidden near a tower. Thanks to the cache we got to see a beautiful location, but see for yourself!
You could tell from the island that January is clearly not the main season. The search for open supermarkets, postcards and places to eat turned out to be more difficult than expected. Nevertheless, visiting the island in the off-season is worthwhile. This way you can explore the island without the masses of tourists.
Our next day tour took us to the north-east of the island. The weather was changeable, but was only supposed to turn in the evening. However, since we only got going shortly before noon, we had to hurry on this tour.
The tour started on the coast at sea level. The strong wind caused high waves, and I was glad to have not only a fleece but also a wind shirt with me.
A few hundred metres further on, the island began to show its most beautiful side. Narrow paths, beautiful vegetation and ever-improving views made the island more and more appealing to us by the minute.
The closer we got to the summit, the narrower the paths became.
At first the well-trodden paths gave way to narrow trails, before the further route was only marked with cairns. At times we lost ourselves among the rocks, but found our way back to the path.
When we reached the ridge, the great landscape revealed itself despite a heavily clouded sky. Mallorca clearly has not only tourist beaches.
In the other direction lay our tour's destination - a tower on the summit that had by now fallen into ruin.
Since there was a strong wind on the summit and the weather was getting worse, we descended back into civilisation after a small snack. This time, however, we took a different route with fewer scrambling sections. The timing was perfect. Just as we reached the car, it started to rain. Until then we had had a very relaxed holiday, and everything went without any serious complications.
The next day was simply relaxing. Nothing was on the agenda, and we worked through it meticulously with the greatest ambition.
One day later we visited the monastery “Santurio de San Salvador” and enjoyed the view. Bimbi couldn't resist again and found another cache, for which we had to search for a dead tree.
Our next hike was again at sea level. We walked from our accommodation to the next lagoons.
The path was really beautiful! For the way back we wanted to take a different route, but that turned out to be more difficult than expected. In the plains of Mallorca the plantations, houses, gardens etc. are completely walled in or fenced off. With that died the hope of being able to take a shortcut instead of the road for the way back. In this case we realised how difficult a search for a place to camp in the interior of the island would have been. In the mountains it's a different story, but in the agricultural areas this is not to be recommended.
For our finale we enjoyed the sun in a thoroughly clichéd way at the tourist beach of Cala Mondrago. Come to think of it, maybe it wasn't so clichéd after all to sit at the beach with a can stove.
Looking at the pictures in this report, it becomes perfectly clear to me that I won't spend my holiday on this island for the last time. After all, the GR221 and GR222 are on the island, waiting to be explored by me. So the only question that remains open is when I will be there again.
