Walking from Valldemossa to Deia

We took a bus from Soller to Valldemossa in the morning. Before hitting the trail we first took a little walk around Valldemossa. It really lives up to its name and reputation - beautiful. We didn't linger longer as we had to get on with our hike.

We had chosen a path that is one side of a triangle as opposed to the GR221 that takes the two sides. Twenty minutes into our program we found out that our path goes on private land, that we would have needed to request permission ahead of time, or pay a toll in the form of olive oil purchase. Not knowing the legitimacy of the project and given the existence of a slightly longer way on the public land, we started on the Cami de ses Basses.

On the Cami de ses Basses, there were amazing vertical views to Valldemossa. I was glad we came this way! Then all of a sudden, I had the terrible feeling that I no longer had our credit card, with all the consulting of routes and shedding of jackets, I ended up putting the phone in the same pocket as the credit card, never mind I had five other empty pockets all with closure. Our thorough search unfortunately confirmed my premonition. Could I have had a stupider move?! We turned back to Valldemossa, looking for the card, without much hope. Back in town, John called Capital One and locked the card.

Determined not to let the credit card ruin our day, we started back on the trail. The trail through the public land was well maintained and traveled. Soon after we joined where we would have come out on the private land, we found ourselves walking high on the cliff with a sea view. It was such a heady feeling, almost vertigo. Soon Deia came into view, far below. At which point, we joined GR221, started on 800m descent into Deia. Originally we had ambitions of walking all the way back to Soller, half way into the descent, we realized we'd be taking the bus from Deia to Soller.

Deia turned out to be a little underwhelming, maybe because at one point we thought to base ourselves in Deia, instead of Soller. We now would rank Deia behind Valldemossa and Soller in every way. We were happy to get on the bus for the 12km ride back to Soller. Maybe losing the credit card saved us from slogging all the way back to Soller. Always remember to look for the silver lining.

Bus Stop seen out the bus window on the way from Soller to Valldemossa. Wow!

Strolling through Valdemossa before hitting the trail.

Looking from the City Hall to the Church.

The City Hall (below) and Church have distintive cupolas.

Viewpoint down to Valldemossa near the spot where SL realizes the credit card was missing.

Ascending through a rocky forest as we head to Deia.

Dueling photos of each other as we walk through a pass at 750 meters above sea level.

Switchbacks as we head up to pas de Son Gallard.

And we get our first glimpse of Deia in the distance.

It's an 800+ meter drop to the Mediterranean Sea. Great views and worth the uphill efforts.

We stop at a mirador on the GR221 for a short break. Deia is now in full view below.

There is time in Deia before the bus comes to take a walk around town and have a view back to the mirador where the previous photo was taken. Back in town we buy some Majorcan oranges.

The Soller Church and City Hall (lit up in support of Ukraine) at night.

Hiking a Soller Circuit

It didn't occur to us to come to Mallorca until the week before we were flying to Spain! And we didn't decide to base ourselves in Soller until a few days ago. We only cobbled together this program the day before since the weather was not so good. What a great day of hiking it was!

First, we walked, in the rain, on the road from Soller to Biniaraix, to catch the old road up the gorge. What a beautiful gorge! At the top of the gorge we had to do a waterfall crossing without a proper bridge, before connecting with GR221 back down the gorge. We didn't see anyone on the old road going up; on the way down we counted a few hundred people going up and down! The scenic gorge is deservedly popular. We got the particulars of the route from this website and their other programs look good too.

Then we walked on the road from Biniaraix to Fornalutz, to head up to the Mirador Ses Barques, before returning back to Soller. While these trails were not nearly as popular as the GR221 through the Barranc de Biniaraix, there were hikers all over the place, to our amazement. Now we really appreciate how and why Soller is a hiking mecca of Mallorca. It just took us a while to catch on.

Sun-Ling (right) and I board our flight from Valencia to Palma, Majorca.

You can tap your personal credit or debit card to pay for most bus and train trips in Majorca. No need to buy a transit card and put money on it. How cool is that?

The main plaza in Soller with church, cafe umbrellas, and tram tracks.

Starting our hike in Biniaraix under rainy skies.

Looking back to Soller which is surounded by olive and orange groves.

Part of the hike was on the nicely maintained GR221.

Looking across the gorge to the switchbacks of the GR221 trail.

Still raining as we head up through the terraces.

View to a waterfall across the gorge.

I'm a bit soaked after several hours walking in the rain, but I did NOT fall in the creek!

The sun comes out and all is well on the GR221 as we head to Fornalutx.

Sun-Ling spotted a pitcher plant along the trail.

Walking through the narrowest part of the gorge.

A group of hikers goes by us.

The boss of Fornalutz.

Walking up from Fornalutz to Mirador Ses Barques.

View to Soller Port from Mirador Ses Barques.

Heading downhill through the terraced olive groves to Soller.

Almost back to Soller; the church is in view.

The Rest of our Valencia Visit

We stayed in Valencia for a few days after Las Fallas to recuperate and finally adjust to local time, for we stayed on EDT during the festival. Even though rain continued, I came to appreciate Valencia much more this trip.  I liked the mild climate, livable neighborhoods, readily available housing, pedestrian streets, public transport, mostly average (non-posh) shops and restaurants... it felt equal, not full of rich-poor chasms in bigger cities.

We took advantage of free museum admissions (modest to start with) on Sunday (Art Museum always free).  Almost of tourist attractions were closed on Monday.  Due to the rain, we skipped Xativa, went to the Botanical Garden (free Earth Day) which turned out to be a highlight, saved Tuesday to visit Roman Sagunt.  The very well restored theater was a first for us.  They even have new museums [https://saguntoturismoblog.wordpress.com/2018/01/31/via-del-portico-y-domus-dels-peixos/comment-page-1/] that were not on our radar, guided tours only, we missed.

Here's a shot of us while waiting for the 18 March, 2pm Mascleta (Explosion).

The Valencia Archaeology Museum, located underground near the Cathedral, features remnants of the Roman forum, baths, and roads.

I enjoy spotting the "ninja" grafitti around town.

Inside La Lonja de la Seda (The Silk Exchange).

The Museu de Belles Arts has the most compelling Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian I have ever seen. The models for Sebastian and Irene must have been young teenagers.

Sun-Ling and I both enjoyed the Botanical Garden even though it was raining. Here's Sun-Ling with white clivias.

And me.

On Monday the City Hall was open to the public so we were able to get onto the balcony and see the "cage" that held the mascletas.

On Tuesday we made a day trip by train, leaving from Valencia Nord (below), to Sagunto to see the Roman Theatre.

Looking towards Sagunto city center.

The restored Teatro Romano is set into the hills behind city.

Above the theater is a huge castle complex with views down to town.

The castle has its own Roman sites ie Forum and Temple of Diana.

One of the new museums in Sagunto lets visitors walk among the ruins of the Roman Road. Very cool. We missed the entry-only-by-guided-tour but had a peek from the ticket office.