Alaró, Bunyola

There were two reasons for our decision to stay longer in Palma. Firstly, we would have had to bridge another five days and then we would have returned to Palma for our short trip. The weather was not a good sign. We would have had good sailing conditions in the west, but five days in Andratx were not an absolute must. The ports between Palma and Andratx all have a slight tendency towards the jet set, and we and Gustav did not want to subject ourselves to that.

So why not stay in Palma, the costs in the port are affordable and the city offers everything you need.

We were well equipped with our two e-bikes, but we didn't yet know exactly where we could go. And if you want to know, you have to ride until the battery runs out.

Port de Sóller should be realistic, but since we couldn't drive through the tunnel, the pass road was the challenge.

We packed our bags for at least one night and set off.

First destination, Mercat de Santa Catalina, almost within sight, here you are supposed to eat well, it is a rather local market where more locals than tourists shop and spend time.

Our second destination was the Centre Cultural Comercial s'Escorxador, where there is supposed to be a small but fine restaurant and also a cultural offering.

Thirdly, we wanted to find out at the Ferrocarril de Sóller station whether it was possible to transport bicycles on the train in case we ended up in Sóller with an empty battery and couldn't get a room. Unfortunately, the question was quickly answered: no, that's not possible.

So we decided not to go to Sóller and set Alaró as our destination. At first our route took us through the Parque de las Estaciones and far out of the city, then a few suburban streets and we were in the countryside. We rode the first few kilometers along the country road on a comfortable bike path until our sat nav led us away from this route.

On sometimes adventurous routes, paths paved with round pebbles, partly gravelled, then asphalt again, through agricultural areas, past sometimes inviting farms, shaded by old buildings, until we finally arrived in Alaró.

We took a short break there and Heike was able to buy some bananas at the market to satisfy her hunger.

The rural area and the obvious proximity to the mountains tempted us to drive a little further. From Alaró, a small road leads through the Serra de Tramuntana towards Bunyola. We wanted to follow this road for a few more kilometres and then turn around. After a short distance, there was a sign on the side of the road: 5.1 km to the pass and a gradient of 5%, Bunyola 17 km.

That should be doable with one battery charge and we should also be able to get back to Palma. We also had our chargers with us in case of emergency.

So we set off for Bunyola in a picturesque setting. The route is mainly used by cyclists who ride the two passes in small groups, in both directions. Heike rode ahead and, as was inevitable, it happened. She easily overtook the first cyclist; he had already got out of the saddle, but the 1000 watts in the hub gave him no chance. He was then able to redeem himself on the descent.

Past the inviting town of Orient over the Coll d'Honor to Bunyola. When I got there I still had 20% in the battery, which should have been enough for the descent to Palma and it was.

We were very proud of our two workhorses; real cyclists will forgive us.

We now also knew our radius of action, at least 70 km with an elevation gain of 798 meters. The whole thing was almost completely electric😊