Hace calor! It’s actually too hot for hiking in the Mallorcan summer months. On the other hand, the air is much cooler in the mountains than in the city or on the beach. Even more so if you hike through shady forests. I love to follow the historic routes of the charcoal burners. A particularly beautiful one goes all the way up to Penyal d’Honor. Guess who I met on this tour.
From Bunyola steep staircases lead you towards the ancient forest of evergreen oaks. The rocky path steadily winds up, passing the charcoal burners’ long abandoned cottages, fireplaces and cisterns. I could vividly picture, almost smell the history of this landscape. And while we are moving along light-footed you can imagine how hard life and work in the forests must have been. Watch out for the two cairns marking the way to the top. Leaving the trees behind you climb on a small plateau with a fabulous view of the island to your feet.
The way down is less stony and mostly covered with leaves. Hollow ways and wider paths with huge mossy stones take turns. The light cuts through the high green roof. Eventually you squint against the burning sun when the oaks give way to a small plantation of olive trees. They are hundreds of years old and elaborately twisted. But they are less archaic than Sa Cova, a cave house built into the rocks. The house is part of a small farm with a horse, peacocks and turkeys. It occurs to me only now, that on the whole tour we did not see anybody but six goats. They had looked at us as if we were the first human beings entering their territory since the charcoal burners left.