May 23, 2022
Bunyola to Alcudia
Today we crossed the Coll d'Honor, another honorable ride in the mountains of Mallorca.
Initially we decided to opt for the early breakfast and an early departure, but on learning it wasn't much more than bread and cheese, we chose the later start with fresh OJ, omelettes, pastries and lots of coffee to help us over the top. It was already hot in the sun when we started, but much of the route was shaded. The Coll d'Honor is one of the best know rides in Mallorca and we would agree it deserves the reputation. The climb was not as bad as we feared, a steady 5-6% grade, mostly through wooded valleys with endless switchbacks. I read somewhere that the record is 16 minutes for that climb, but we had loaded panniers and stopped for pictures so it took us slightly more than an hour. Then a steep descent into Orient, and zoomed along a bucolic valley, wide with almost flat fields of grain. Then up over a smaller, second pass and onto a stunning downhill, between two massive rocky outcrops, 8km of smooth road, winding but not switchbacks and just steep enough to be fast but not out-of-control. Again we heard ourselves saying "I think this has to be the MOST beautiful ride yet". WOW.
All too soon we left the woods for olive farms and were coming out onto the plain. For the next 10km the mountains were there beside us as we meandered on quiet, country roads. At Inca, we crossed the Autoroute and then travelled on very flat routes through farms of livestock and irrigated fields of potatoes, onions and even lettuces. Then a few km of the inevitable section of busy highway with no shoulders and finally we were in Alcudia, on a bike lane, cruising past multi-story hotels, looking for ours. We checked into our 5th floor room and went straight to the nearby beach for a swim in the sea. Refreshed, we were ready to enter into the strange space of the resort hotel and hit the buffet.
Today's ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Total: 1,983 km (1,231 miles)
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