Port de Pollença

Port de Pollença has quite different scenery from Santa Ponça, lower rise apartments and traditional houses surround the bay, partly hidden amongst the pine trees, with the Tramuntana mountains towering behind. The area was once a much quieter fishing and agricultural village, before tourism gradually transformed it into the popular resort it is today.

The large sheltered natural harbour had been useful to fishermen for centuries. Today it provides excellent anchor spots making it a very popular stop for sailors. We anchored in the clear water, and it was a lovely spot to sit and watch the colourful sky as the sun went down. Later the full moon rose lighting up the bay.

The bay is also home to the Pollença seaplane base, where firefighting aircraft have operated for decades. We were anchored quite close to the base and were lucky enough to have a little excitement while sitting on board.

A seaplane arrived and landed on the water not far from us, and before long, everybody on the surrounding boats was out on deck watching.

Soon afterwards, another aircraft took off and flew across the bay. It was fascinating to watch their manoeuvring on the water before taking to the air. It’s not every day you get front row seats to a flying display!

Port de Pollença began developing as a fashionable seaside resort during the 20th century. One of its best known features is the famous Pine Walk, or Passeig de Voramar, a coastal promenade lined with mature pine trees. We parked Fred 1 and Elliot at the handy dinghy dock and then walked along the waterfront, enjoying the welcome shade from the trees and the lovely views across the sandy beaches and sparkling sea.

Port de Pollença has developed a reputation as a more affluent resort, particularly compared with some of Mallorca’s heavily commercialised tourist areas. There was a lovely feel to the place, with smart hotels, restaurants and cafés and the long sandy beaches. It has a combination of old fishing village and attractive holiday resort.

Everywhere was very clean and tidy, the beaches were being ploughed and cleaned every day, keeping the sand looking neat and well maintained.

We were also there for the weekly market, which takes place close to the harbour. The main square and surrounding streets were filled with around 200 stalls selling everything from fresh fruit and vegetables to plants, clothes, shoes, crafts and local products. It was not too busy and had a lovely, relaxed atmosphere, with locals and holidaymakers wandering between the stalls and stopping for coffee at the cafés around the square.

The port is separate from the historic inland town of Pollença, which lies several kilometres away. While Port de Pollença developed around the coastal settlement and harbour, Pollença has retained much more of its older, medieval character.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to visit the old town. There was a good weather window for a pleasant sail across to Menorca, so rather than stay longer, we decided to make the most of the conditions and continue our journey. Pollença would have to wait for another visit.

The journey to Menorca was 37 nm, We motored out of the bay in a calm sea with a light breeze. Our course was set to travel east and we waited for the forecasted northerly wind to pick up as we prepared to sail on a beam reach.

There was around 10 kts of wind, but it was a little more easterly than expected and combined with an unexpected Southerly current we were heading back to Tunisia, sailing as close to the wind as Ziggy could manage. Eventually, the wind increased to 15kts and gradually shifted further north, allowing us to get back on course and sail at 6-7 kts. It was a very pleasant and calm sail as our track drew a graceful arc across the channel between the two islands.

A couple of miles from our destination on the south coast of Menorca, we lost the wind as we came into the shelter of the land, so we had to motor into the bay. We arrived at Cala Son Saura and anchored in the sand. Several boats were already anchored and there wasn’t much space available, but luckily one boat left just as we arrived, allowing us to take their spot. We had our anchor down just in time for a sundowner.

The water was incredibly clear, with a couple of lovely beaches surrounding the bay. Our first impression of Menorca was that it looked much flatter than its neighbouring islands. The landscape was covered in trees, with just a few small hills visible in the distance.

We woke the following morning to a beautifully calm bay, at least until around 11am, when the trip boats began arriving, bringing people ashore to the beaches. There were also a few jet skis coming to have a look around. Being the weekend, many locals came out in their small motorboats to enjoy the clear water and spend the day in the bay. By the evening, everyone disappeared leaving just a few boats anchored for the night.

We had an unexpected visitor on board when a small Scops owl landed in the cockpit. apparently they are relatively widespread around the Mediterranean but they are nocturnal and difficult to spot because their plumage blends perfectly with tree bark. It perched quite happily among the ropes, staring at us with big yellow eyes as if it had every right to be there. We kept our distance and watched in fascination until, after a while, it decided it was time to continue its journey.

After three nights we continued east along the coast. Our plan was to travel just 12 nautical miles to another bay where we would need to anchor and then secure the stern to the shore with long lines. However, when we arrived, we found a very narrow bay surrounded by rocky cliffs, with the wind funnelling strongly down between them. There was enough space, but our anchor would need to hold quickly; otherwise, we could find ourselves being blown towards the rocks.

After careful consideration, we decided it was a little too sketchy for our liking and continued on to Plan B. As we left the bay, we passed an unusual nightclub built right into the rock face. It certainly looked like an interesting place for a night out!

A few miles further on, we arrived at Cala Blanc, a very pretty and calm bay, with smart villas perched on the low cliffs, surrounded by rugged rocks and caves. The water was extremely clear, although the anchorage was quite deep and not known for having the best holding. We also expected that swell might eventually roll into the bay.

We anchored in 14 metres of water and stopped for lunch to see how things developed before deciding whether to stay or move on to Plan C. After a couple of hours, Ziggy was sitting comfortably, and we ended up staying for a couple of nights.

The only slight downside to Cala Blanc was that we were directly underneath the flight path to Mahon airport. However, the planes weren’t too frequent and we made the most of our beautiful surroundings, paddle boarding around the rocks and into the caves, swimming in the clear blue water and doing a bit of bottom cleaning.

Another storm was forecast, and rather than risk battling through it while anchored in a bay, we decided to book into the marina at Mahón. The following day, we set off just 10 nautical miles around the coast to Mahón (Maó), the capital of Menorca, situated at the eastern end of the island.