Day 6 - Hiking the Alcudia Peninsula
by Will Wattles

Once again the first thing I heard this morning was a street sweeper; Mallorca might be the cleanest place I've ever been. Spend a couple of minutes locking your bike to a trash can and you'll be approached by many people.

The day began a little warmer, near 60 for the high. However the sky and the forecast were totally covered with clouds and today called for winds of 20-30 mph. So I decided to go hiking. I hoped that most of my hiking would be on the west side of the mountain while the wind was from the east-southeast. I biked by the Bonaire marina and part-way back on the winding up and down roads I was on yesterday and then took a turn up a steeper road that led to a religious icon and a closed restaurant. There I hid my bike among pine trees and palmettos and started hiking.

The whole peninsular, except for the military base on the point, is undeveloped and covered with mountains and views. My guidebook cautioned hiking without a good map but, I had no problem and encountered signs when I needed them. I first hiked to Sa Penya Roja at 345 meters. The trail started in the trees but soon took me along a steep cliff with low shrubs and grasses apparently resistant to goats. Mostly sheltered from the wind I enjoyed pleasant hiking conditions and great views all the way. I saw no one on the way up. I found a shallow cave in the rocky, red crag.

On the way down I passed a couple and, as I headed for the second peak Talaia d'Alcudia, I passed a few adolescents. Other than that it was goats and horses. The latter appeared after I climbed a stile over a barbed wire fence. Some grazed on the rocky hillside but one group of four were eating from a bale of hay. I tried to get them to look at me for a picture but they seemed much more interested in the hay.

The hike up the tallest (445 meters) of the peaks took me into the open on very rough ground. At one point I wound around to the east side of the peak and the wind made hiking more of challenge. Despite the gray weather I enjoyed a fabulous view with the peaks of the Alcudia peninsular to the north, Port de Pollenca and its mountainous peninsular to the west, Alcudia, the Bonaire boat basin and more mountains to the south. To the east I got my first look at the Port d'Alcudia, one of the most developed beaches on the island. The wind ensured my stay on the top was brief and I hiked down wishing I could take all the other trails too.

However, it was time for lunch so I pedaled to Port d'Alcudia. On a gray, blustery day in the middle of winter it looked like a beauty pageant contestant home alone. Hundreds of tables waited for people to come eat and the pedestrian areas seemed lonesome. It appears to be a pretty nice place for a very commercialized beach resort. I found a delightful Italian Restaurant where I got Quattro Estaciones which means four seasons and is a pizza with four different toppings. That's an Italian thing but common here as well. The waitress was intrigued with my hike and assured me she would have been tired before reaching the icon.

After lunch I pedaled around Alcudia and was surprised to see that it was possible to lean my bike against a wall and walk on sections of the crenelated wall that surround the old city. They have many restrictions on cars but, I seem to go anywhere by bike. Other than my initial bus ride from the airport all my travel has been by foot or bike. I get satisfaction out of seeing a mountain in the distance, pedaling to it, hiking to the top and pedaling back. Sometimes my view is smaller because I cover less ground but I think I see more.

Mileage for the day: 13
Total trip miles: 155

Cycling A Folding Bike Across Mallorca

More about Will Wattles... Will truly enjoys bicycle touring. Over the last decade, he's toured places such as Greece, Costa Rica, Malta, Chile and Venezuela. For more stories and photos from Will's previous bike trips, visit WillBike.com.

Labels: Mallorca, Montague-MX