Walking Mallorca | Walking in Mallorca

Looking forward to the almond blossom…

December 1, 2011 By fiona Leave a Comment

Almond blossom in Mallorca

Here at Mallorca Hiking we can’t believe it’s already December and all the Christmas festivities have already started! That usually means there’s not so much time available to get out and enjoy some walking

But we’re looking on the bright side and plan to make up for a busy December with lots of good walks in the new year. We’re already looking forward to the almond blossom season, which in Mallorca is usually from the end of January to about mid-February – our short video will give you a general idea.

If that has tempted you and you’re looking for a sunny spot to enjoy a walking holiday, take a look at our Blossom Fever holiday itinerary, which we recommend for this time of year. We can organise a tailor-made holiday for you and your group, which includes any part of our suggested itinerary, additional activities, hotel and restaurant recommendations… Just contact us for a chat and more information.

And if you’re just interested in a day’s walking, you’ll see that we’ve scheduled our 2 favourite blossom walks throughout January and February:

- Rural wanderings – Es Capdella and the Galatzo Estate

- 4 Picturesque rural villages

Why not take a look at our Calendar to see which dates suit you, and then contact us to reserve your place.

We look forward to seeing you!

Filed Under: All Posts, Holidays, Walks Tagged With: almond blossom, guided walking holidays, guided walking tours, hiking, Hiking Mallorca, holidays, majorca, Majorca holiday walking, Majorca walking routes, spain, tailor made holidays, Tramuntana mountains, walking holidays, Walking Majorca, Walking Mallorca

Mallorca’s Dry Stone Route, the GR221 – a sampler

September 30, 2011 By fiona Leave a Comment

The GR221

In October we’re offering a 3-day sampler of Mallorca’s Dry Stone Route, the GR221. Many of you are already familiar with this hike and have seen our previous blog posts, but those of you who haven’t, do take a look at the following links, which describe the island’s first long-distance walking trail.

Mallorca’s Dry Stone Route

Dry Stone Route - GR221 – Part 1 and GR221 – Part 2

We’ll set off from Valdemossa with a small group of fun walkers on the 19th October, and we’ll cover 3 sections of this fabulous long-distance hike over 3 days. We won’t be walking the sections in the usual order, but then again we always like to do things a little differently! We’ve designed this trip to give you a “flavour” of the route – we’ll take it fairly easy, but there’ll be plenty of challenges along the way!

If you’re interested in joining us for some or all of this trip, please take a look at our detailed itinerary. For those of you who can only join us for 1 day because of work commitments, that’s great. It is perfectly possible to come along just for 1 day, as there is a bus route that connects our stops. We would recommend you join us for the Wednesday 19th October to get the most out of your one day!

If you can’t join us on this occasion, remember we can always organise a trip especially for you on the dates that you choose – see Tailor Made Holidays.

We hope to see you soon, and in the meantime why not keep in touch and become a fan on Facebook and/or follow us on Twitter…

Happy hiking from the Mallorca Hiking team!

Filed Under: All Posts, Holidays, Walks Tagged With: dry stone route, GR221, guided walking holidays, guided walking tours, hiking, Hiking Mallorca, majorca, Majorca holiday walking, Majorca walking routes, Mallorca hiking, Mallorca walking, spain, Tramuntana mountains, walking excursions, Walking Majorca, Walking Mallorca

Welcome to a new walking season!

September 20, 2011 By fiona Leave a Comment

Let's walk...!

We recently uploaded our new schedule of walks for every Wednesday – do take a look at the Calendar on our website for more details.

Click on any Wednesday and you’ll see a summary walk description below the Calendar. Click on the title of the summary, and you get full details of the walk scheduled for that day.

We’ve scheduled a walk for every Wednesday until the end of November so do come and join us. In December we have something different in store for you, so watch this space! Even better, please become a fan of our Facebook page – don’t forget to click the “like” button, and then you’ll be kept well up to date with all our activities.

Please remember, Wednesday walks cost:

The beautiful Sóller valley

35 euros per person
25 euros per person for Mallorca residents
20 euros per person for members of the Mallorca Hiking Club

From November we’ll be offering additional walks at weekends and on other days of the week.

And if none of the hikes we’ve scheduled fit in with your plans, then contact us and we’ll arrange a tailor-made day out especially for you and your party. For more details check our website: www.mallorcahiking.com

Or join us on Facebook and Twitter…

We hope to see you all soon!

Filed Under: All Posts, News, Walks Tagged With: guided walking tours, mallorca, Mallorca hiking, Mallorca walking, mountains, off the beaten track, residents hiking club, spain, Tramuntana mountains, walking, walking excursions, Walking Majorca, Walking Mallorca

The Boot’s best friend

February 21, 2011 By roger Leave a Comment

Boots are our major protection against the outside world when walking. But we also have to consider protection to our feet from the pressure and movement of the boot against our foot. Hours of walking creates friction, and damp wet conditions can aggravate the situation.

Pressure points, sweat and general friction can lead to blisters, and your socks are your first line of defence against these problems. Correct fitting is very important to ensure they don’t bunch, create pressure and become uncomfortable. They must move sweat away from your skin (wicking). Forget cotton socks. Forget tube socks. Our recommendation is to buy wicking, anatomically designed walking socks, and your feet will thank you.

Where to buy them

Hiking and walking are very popular sports and pastimes now, so there is a wide choice of manufacturers of socks for all styles of walking. Here in Mallorca there are several specialist Walking and Outdoor stores where you can also get some great advice. Our recommendation in Palma is: Es Refugi, Via Sindicate 21, 07002 Palma. Amazon also has a vast range of socks on their website and we’ve put a selection for you to see below.

Thickness and Padding

Socks designed for walking are padded in strategic areas for your protection – heel, ball of foot, toes and in some cases the instep. Some omit the padding.

Double Layer Socks

Double-layer socks are a great solution for preventing blisters. They provide wicking and minimise friction. This is achieved by the sock layers moving against each other, rather than your foot moving against the sock. This is a a key preventative measure for blister prevention. WrightSock is a leader in this type of sock.

Anatomic Design

The best type of sock that stays in place and does not bunch, is usually one that is shaped to your feet. Designers have added to this with elastic or ribbing to keep them snug. Men’s and women’s feet differ in shape, so it’s best to buy socks designed for your gender.

Wicking Fabrics

Cotton is out! Wicking fabrics include CoolMax, Dri-Fit, Sorbtek… and there are many other brands emerging. Smartwool uses wool to extract moisture. Wicking fabrics are key to preventing blisters.

This may seem a lot of information about a simple sock – but when you’re walking for hours – the last thing you want is pain and discomfort – taking time to choose, and investing a little more in this vital piece of kit will pay dividends for your walking enjoyment.

Filed Under: Advice, Featured, Kit Tagged With: blisters, CoolMax, majorca, Mallorca hiking, socks, walking, walking clothes, Walking Mallorca, wicking, WrightSock

The New Residents Hiking Club 1st Official Walk..

February 19, 2011 By roger Leave a Comment

There is still time to qualify for a free membership for the all new Mallorca Hiking Resident’s Club. Just click back to our introductory article here and complete the three simple Facebook entries – we will be closing up this offer this weekend.

The first official club walk will be on the 12th of March – giving you all just 3 weeks to limber up those muscles and break in your Hiking boots. The first walk will be the very popular walk from our full range of walks as found on our main web site. Affectionately known as The Old Postman’s Route – a beautiful walk between Esporles and Banyalbufar and an ideal trek for first timers to the Hiking fraternity.

This delightful, linear walk can either be done on its own, or it can be combined with another fabulous walk Ref. W-NW01 to create a more ambitious full day’s hike. Done on its own, it’s a fairly easy walk with a few climbs and some tricky cobbled surfaces (which are fine with the right footwear!). It is a particularly good walk to do when the temperatures have started to rise, as it is mostly in beautiful holm oak woods, where we can enjoy the dappled shade!

We usually start at the car park of La Granja, although we can also start in the centre of Esporles, making it a slightly longer trip(about 2.5 hours). We begin by climbing through some ancient broken down olive terraces, along cobbled paths and then we continue through the holm oak woods, where we pass a natural spring and a couple of old lime kilns. Every now and then there is a clearing from which we get fantastic sea views.

Our route then begins to descend steeply via a country lane into Banyalbufar, giving us an amazing perspective on a gentle rural life here, and the surrounding terraces and Moorish irrigation systems, which made this part of the island such a successful wine growing area in its time.

We end our trip with a wander around the village before getting the public bus back to Esporles and a good time will be had by all.

Of course it will be obligatory to bring along your cameras and compare your scenic shots on Facebook afterwards! For those of you on your first long walk, we highly recommend reading our previous articles on Being Prepared and Seven Key Facts for Beginners. The good news is there will always be some experienced walkers who will be able to give you some great Hiking tips – and with regular practice you will soon be progressing to the intermediary and more energetic walks.

Tomorrow we will be announcing the lucky entrants and Founder members into the Mallorca Hiking Resident’s club (fanfare please!), don’t forget to put the date in your diary for that first walk – everybody must be there for this one!

Now off to your homework and read up on all our great tips.

Happy Hiking.

Filed Under: All Posts, Featured Tagged With: Banyalbufar, Bunyola, Facebook, residents hiking club, Walking Mallorca, Walking Tips; the Old Postman's Route

Tossals Verds Loop – Lakes Walk, Tramuntana Mountains

January 25, 2011 By roger Leave a Comment

The lakes region of Mallorca has been declared one of the best walking areas of Mallorca by the Travel writer of the Times. Snuggled in a basin of the Sierra Tramuntana Mountains, this is one of our most popular walks. This is not only an area of natural beauty but it’s a favourite spot for the island’s birds, where falcons, ospreys and black vultures – with a near three-metre wingspan – and even eagles can be seen circling the peaks. The area also has a network of mountain refuges for backpackers and hikers. (We’ll be covering the refuge facilities in more detail in a future article).

As well as the facilities and range of walks for the seasoned hiker, there are also excellent picnic facilities including bbq areas for day trippers, and these areas are well frequented at weekends and holidays by the island’s residents.

This is an excellent and nicely varied circular walk around the Tossals Verds peak (at around 1,100 m high, it is the 3rd highest on the island). It is an energetic route, which takes us through 5 tunnels (so you’ll need a torch!), includes a couple of steep ascents and a well-located stop at one of the island’s beautifully restored refuges. Otherwise, the walk is along delightful paths, many formerly used by the charcoal burners.

We start at the car park to the north east of the reservoir, and follow the tarmac lane along the side of the reservoir before we branch off and descend the valley (with fabulous views of Tossals Verds). Here we pass through the tunnels and then continue down.

The climb up to the refuge is quite steep but we walk on an easy track and path, and the views from the refuge terraces are quite lovely. From here we continue to climb – steeply and then more gently. The path which circles around Tossals Verds is delightful, and eventually we get a view of the Gorg Blau reservoir before we return to the Cúber.

After Hike – the surrounding area includes the towns of Pollensa and Sóller – both have magic and charm and retain a lot of their historic roots. They are an ideal place to stop for a coffee or a meal after your walk and watch the world go by. The monastery of Lluc is also a must visit location in this part of the island, and if you get there around 5pm in the afternoon you can listen to the choir practice – magical.

Why not make a day of this great walking excursion, and combine our guided walk with a tour of some of the local towns afterwards.

Filed Under: All Posts, Walks Tagged With: cuber lake, gorg blau, guided walking tours, lakes, majorca, mallorca, pollensa, soller, Tramuntana mountains, Walking Mallorca

Highlights of modern art and architecture in Palma

September 24, 2010 By fiona 1 Comment

You may or may not know that Palma is an absolute treat for contemporary art lovers – there are Joan Miró sculptures everywhere especially around the Cathedral in Parc de la Mar. In fact Joan Miro and Mallorca are inextricably connected (his mother and his wife were from the island, and Miro lived and worked here for 40 years), and many examples of his work are on display in the galleries. Es Baluard, the contemporary art gallery has an excellent collection, as does Palau March in the heart of historic Palma, where you can see works by Picasso, Miró and Dalí all in one room! This museum has one of the best collections of contemporary Spanish art you’ll find outside Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia…

Few people realize that there is a wealth of culture and history waiting to be discovered in Mallorca’s capital and this season we’ll be doing just that – discovering some of the cultural delights on our doorstep – on foot, of course!

see more details of the tour:

http://www.mallorcahiking.com/en/p147/palma-excursion-art-architecture.html

and the dates we’ve scheduled the tour for:

http://www.mallorcahiking.com/en/c3/walking-calendar-mallorca-majorca.html

Filed Under: Walks Tagged With: architecture, art, city break, culture, Hiking Mallorca, Majorca holiday walking, Majorca walking routes, Mallorca walking, Miro, modern art, Palma, Picasso, walking holidays, Walking Majorca, Walking Mallorca

A Swift Story

July 7, 2010 By fiona Leave a Comment

We found a tiny Swift one hot June day while walking the Barranc at Soller. (S)he didn’t look like (s)he was going to make it, but we gathered the little thing up and I took it home with me….

(S)he stayed with me for just over a week and kept me very busy catching the required 100 flies per day to feed him!!!! It was with some relief that I finally coaxed him into flying free and now his fate is in the feathers of his wings!

Charming little creature, and I kind of miss him now he’s gone. He spent most of his days here perched on my shoulder eyeing the world around him warily! Apparently they can live in excess of 15 years, so I truly hope this little chap (or chap-ess!) lives on and brings many a young bird to our skies.

Jainie, Guide
Mallorca Hiking

Filed Under: Walks Tagged With: Majorca holiday walking, Mallorca walking, Summer walking Majorca, walking holidays, Walking Majorca, Walking Mallorca

Walking in Mallorca in June

June 15, 2010 By fiona Leave a Comment

So far, this June has been a fantastic time to be out walking in Mallorca. The conditions have been perfect – sunny, clear and not too hot.

We just completed a flurry of short walking holidays with some delightful Canadian, American, Austrian and Swedish walkers. It couldn’t have been better – great company, great walking and great weather…. and we just managed to finish before the rain began to fall (it had been forecast for days!). A day of refreshing showers and now the sun is shining again!

We walked some fantastic routes in the Tramuntana mountains: a couple in and around Sóller – see our website www.mallorcahiking.com or our walks Ref. W-NW11, W-NW08, a circular route out of the pretty village of Valldemossa Ref. W-NW10 and one a little further down the coast from Esporles to Banyalbufar Ref. W-NW01.

Let’s hope the conditions stay like this for a couple more weeks… the forecast is good, so let’s get out there and enjoy some more fabulous walks, before the heat sets in!

Filed Under: Walks Tagged With: Majorca holiday walking, Majorca walking routes, Mallorca holiday walking, Mallorca walking, Summer walking Majorca, Walking Mallorca

Walking Holidays in Mallorca

May 27, 2010 By fiona Leave a Comment

This month’s big news is that Mallorca Hiking is now offering a number of walking holidays for the next walking season, that are scheduled for specific dates, starting in September 2010. So if you’re traveling alone or there are just a couple of you, come and join us on one of our “small group” holidays. There is lots of variety – week itineraries and long weekends, pure walking holidays and others that revolve around a local fiesta, the local cuisine, or some other theme or activity….
All our holidays offer excellent value for money and there is something for every wallet, so do take a look at our Holidays from time to time over the next few months. We’ll continue to add new holidays for the winter 2010/2011 season throughout the summer.

Filed Under: Holidays Tagged With: walking holidays, Walking Majorca, Walking Mallorca