If you are a walker staying in the Pollenca area of Mallorca, the pretty walk along the valley de Boquer to the small bay at Cala Boquer can make for an attractive alternative to sitting on the beach or frequenting the gift shops. It is not too strenuous, would fill a morning or afternoon nicely and as well as providing some valuable holiday exercise it reveals a little glimpse of authentic Mallorcan landscape. If you are walking in the summer, remember to take plenty of sun protection, hat, fluid and food as there is no shade and no facilities throughout the walk.
The walk starts just off the roundabout at the North of town by a small car park. From the car park the trail follows a track through some Pine trees and a gate leading up to the old ‘Boquer’ farmhouse. There is a slow incline heading up to the farmhouse and as you come out of the pine trees, by a wall, Port de Pollenca is already below you and you can see the yachts playing on the blue waters of the bay over the rooftops of the town.
At the farmhouse the concrete track ends and as you pass the front of the old building and go through a gate, the path into the Vall de Boquer can be seen climbing gently through bushes ahead of you. The trail heads up but never at an incline so steep to make you feel out of breath. Views towards Pollenca and the 1000ft Puig de Maria, can now be seen on your left and beyond that the high mountain ridges of the Serra de Tramuntana.
The bushes slowly thin and height is gained, opening up the views around you. The high point of the trail is reached at two large and impressive rock pinnacles with the path narrowing and passing right through the middle of them.
Beyond the rock pinnacles, the valley broadens, the sea slowly starts to come into view ahead of you and the Vall de Boquer is seen to good effect. To the left, rising steeply is the seemingly impregnable Cavall Bernat ridge along which a number of ‘windows’ or holes in the rock can be seen. On the right is the equally sheer Creveta ridge. The walking is good along soil and gravel paths past trees and bushes, through the middle of the broad U shaped Vall de Boquer. Several ancient looking dry stone walls are walked over, one of them is built nearly all the way up the Cavall Bernat ridge and I spare a thought for the poor long forgotten builders.
After a while the path starts to gently angle downhill. At first the descent is barely noticeable but as the bay of Cala Boquer starts to come into view the path becomes steeper and divides into dozens of separate paths all winding their own way down to the bay. After choosing your path and about ten minutes of fairly steep downhill walking, the small pebble beach of Cala Boquer is reached.
The bay is a good place to relax, eat lunch, take on fluid and enjoy the sunshine knowing that you have reached the half way point of your walk. Mountain goats are found on the beach so it is worth keeping an eye on your lunch if you don’t want it stolen. I’ve done this walk twice and found the small pebble beach looking different each time. The first time it was pristine, the second time there was a fair bit of plastic and other rubbish that had been washed in. Either way, the views are good and the bay has a remote, isolated feel about it, far removed from the usual hubub of ‘tourist’ Mallorca.
The rocky promontories of the Formentor Peninsular, its towering cliffs plunging straight into the ocean form a wall of rock on the right and in front of you are the aqua blue waters of the bay, glistening in the sunlight and extending out to the horizon. It’s a peaceful place and nothing is heard but the sound of the breeze and the constant, mesmerising rattle of the pebbles moving back and forth on the waves, a sound as old as the sea itself. And when you are ready, having re centered and refreshed yourself in nature you can retrace your steps, head back to the bars, restaurants and gift shops of Port de Pollenca and maybe treat yourself to a Cerveza or two.
For map and route details of this walk click ‘learn more’ below