ALL THE CLIMBS!

Road bike overnighter in the Tramuntana mountains

So what do you do if a good friend and fellow Grimer visits you on the island of Mallorca for four days? Two overnight bike trips of course - one on MTBs and this one on road bikes.

Our road bike trip covered the length of the Tramuntana and went over many of the famous cols (passes) that this coastal mountain range has to offer. In total the ride was 250 km with about 4.500m of climbing in two days with an overnight stay at the refuge of Son Amer close to the Lluc monastery.

The first day (150km) of the trip was front loaded with eight mayor climbs (including the 14km Puig Major which we've saved for last). Again and again I am reminded how beautiful and perfect for riding this part of the world is even after 7 hours in the saddle.

On a side note: Most of the hiking refuges on the island can be reached by road bike (albeit in some cases there a short gravel roads leading to the actual buildings). In the case of Son Amer you can walk down to the monastery for dinner, which can be done in cycling shoes - as proven on this trip.The second day was a bit shorter with only 100 km and the ride out to Cap Formentor being  just a little “hilly”.

The second day was a bit shorter with only 100 km and the ride out to Cap Formentor being  just a little “hilly”.

After a good nights sleep we headed of for the second part. Unfortunately we had a ruff start forgetting some essentials back in Lluc.
After the first descent and a quick lunch break in Port de Pollenca we rode to the famous Cap Formentor. The dead-end street with the lighthouse rewards you with one of the most stunning views of the island.

Because of the easy terrain of the day we where still feeling strong tackling the last kilometers of the day. However we did struggle a bit in the headwind on the final stretch through the valley of Campanet.

Adventures: Torben and Bengt