The Dry Stone Route

 

I plan to hike my next long-distance trail in April or May 2024 and this trail will once again take me to my beloved island of Mallorca. The Dry Stone Route, Ruta de la piedra en seco, refers to the long-distance trail 221 (GR 221), in Mallorca, Spain. It connects Port d'Andratx to the northwest of this island, to Pollença, to the northeast, thus traversing the Serra de Tramuntana, a mountain range on the north coast, characteristic of this island, listed in 2011 as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. 

 

The Serra de Tramuntana,

It is called dry stone road because of the large number of constructions carried out by the technique of dry stone masonry encountered along the way: low walls, mines, huts of charcoal burners (half-stones, half-wood), icehouses ( Cases of Neu) for example. The GR 221 is the first long-distance hiking trail in the Balearic Islands. The project, presented in 1996, was approved in 1999 by the Island Council of Mallorca and obtained its provisional approval in 2002. The territorial plan of Mallorca (2004) provided for the development of a special plan, which was definitively approved on June 17, 2015, which defines the final route, the authorized uses and the regulations to be applied.

The route of the path measures a distance of 178 km, of which 94.5 kilometers are marked for the main route. It can be extended starting from Port d'Andratx, to the west to Port de Pollença, to the east, or even to Cap de Formentor. Apart from the marked parts, the route extends over nearly three hundred kilometres. It crosses the villages or sites of: Port d'Andratx, Sant Elm, La Trapa, Estellencs, Banyalbufar, Esporles, Valldemossa, Deià, Sóller, Fornalutx, Escorca, Sanctuary and Monastery of Lluc, Pollença, Port de Pollença and Cap de Formentor. In 2023, nine refuges are in operation: those of Galatzó, Coma d'en Vidal (near Estellencs), Can Boi (near Deia), Muleta (near Port de Soller), Castell d'Alaro , Tossals Verds, Son Amer (near the Monastery of Lluc, where accommodation is also possible), Son Tries and Pont Romà (near Pollença).  

Decided in 1996 and started in 2013, this trail is the first long-distance hike in Mallorca. It includes old paths, in turn peasant, Roman, mule or pilgrimage. The dry stone route takes its name from typical Mallorcan works, including dividing walls, properties or farms, wells, made without mortar, as well as the surfacing of the path. It crosses notable sites of Majorca and rises to almost one thousand two hundred meters above sea level, at the pass of ses Cases de Neu in the vicinity of the Monastery of Lluc. Near this same place, the GR 221 crosses the GR 222, the other long-distance hiking trail on the island which leads from Artà to the Monastery of Lluc. The path allows you to discover points of interest: the close view of the island and the natural park of La Dragonera, the isolation of the destroyed monastery of La Trapa, the old charterhouse of Valldemossa, the luminous valley of Sóller, Gorg Blau, artificial lake and water reservoir, the Puig Major, summit of the island, at nearly one thousand five hundred meters (1,436 meters) above sea level, the spectacular Pareis torrent, the Sanctuary of Lluc, the religious and traditional heart of Majorca, the Puig de l'Ofre , the Puig Maria and its Romanesque church, with an extraordinary view of the bays of Alcudia and Pollença, the famous cape of Formentor, from where contemplation of Menorca is sometimes possible.  

The course can be embellished with a dozen variants, which are as many detours by other notable points: the Puig de Massanella, one of the highest peaks in Majorca, accessible on foot, the village of Calvià, the castle of Alaró. The excursion, or the trek, is practicable all the year. Weather conditions can make this difficult. The months of May to June, together with October, are the best months to discover or to frequent this path. The heat of July and August can make the route more difficult, in addition to the tourist influx concentrated on the coasts, at this same time of the year. The same goes for thunderstorms in September, rains in November, March and April, and snowfalls in December, January and February.