Day 8 Albercutx Watchtower, Lluc & 100 Miles

Similar to Friday, the final day in Mallorca started off early with energy to seize the day. With my backpack full of running shoes, camera gear and snacks, I headed out under the light of the stars, and my headlamp, for the 15-mile roundtrip ride to Albercutx Watchtower. Albercutx is at the top of the Coll de la Creueta climb, a 3.3km road with a 6% average grade; this was my first official climb on Day 4. I arrived just before sunrise and climbed up the exterior iron ladder into the belly of the watchtower before an interior ladder to the top; can you spot me climbing in the photo? What a view! From the top, I could see the other southern peninsula (where the walled city of Alcudia resides) along with the entire bay. It was exciting to ponder how watchmen would sit atop this same watchtower 100s of years ago to keep guard of the port. I had about 20-minutes to myself to take in the view, some apples and the sunrise, before packing up and heading back to the resort for a small breakfast and coffee.

It was exciting to ponder how watchmen would sit atop this same watchtower 100s of years ago to keep guard of the port.

After a short breakfast, I meandered west along the foothills of the mountains through small towns like Campanet and Lluc (which are fun to say with your best French accent), Mancor de la Vall (where I saw a group of kids in sombreros jumping on a bouncy house), Inca, Sineu and Sant Joan (which I went out of my way just to take a photo for my mother), and finally Petra (for a sandwich and coffee) before high-tailing it home. This journey provided some nice climbing up Lluc to take advantage of the locale, along with the opportunity to explore some small country towns. At the end of the day, I racked up 100 miles and 5,289 of elevation gain, mostly through climbing Coll de la Creueta and Lluc.

After returning to the resort, it was time for a short spa experience. Each day through the resort package, we were able to use the spa for an hour and a half. I was able to take advantage of this a few days during the trip. The spa is set up in a traditional European style, with several different ‘stations’, including hard jets for muscle massaging, light bubble tubs, hot tubs, cold tubs, saunas of varying temperatures and even an ice station. Overall, it was a great way to recover the muscles after a long day.

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Day 7 Platja des Coll Baix & Port de Pollença