11 The Cala Comte Beach Patrol

11
The Cala Comte Beach Patrol
S.11
A rave cave and a hermit cave
S. JOAN
IBIZA
S. EULÀRIA
S. ANTONI
IBIZA
TOWN
S. JOSEP
Starting at the ever-popular beaches of Cala
Comte and following a good stretch of their
famous turquoise waters, our route will lead
inland along hunters’ paths, terraced fields
and hidden caminos. You will explore an old
watch-tower and even meet a friendly hermit
– if she’s at home. If you are lucky she may
invite you into her cave for a cup of tea and
spin tales about times past. Our walk has
been given a rating of medium because of its
length, but it’s a relatively flat route so if you
have a fit and healthy family should not prove
difficult at the right time of day.
167m
225m
E
18km
5hrs
5
5
2
Estància
des
Dins
The Cala Comte Beach Patrol
11
GETTING THERE
A rave cave and a hermit cave
A
Cala Comte is a popular spot for sunsets, and in summer the parking
area can get busy, so be prepared. On any island map you will find it in
the far west, facing the offshore islands of Es Bosc and Sa Conillera..
Sa Conillera
S’Ollleta
Illa des
Bosc
THE WALK
N
Cap des
Blancar
1,000ft
Es Picatxos

Punta de sa
Torre
400m
Es Farallons
Torre d’en
Rovira
Cap de
la Bassa
Punta Roja
Punta de
Sa Pedrera
Cala Roja
Illa des
Bosc
Punta de
na Juliana
Escull de ses
Punxes
NOT TO MISS
Cala Bassa
q
es Penyal
w
e
rt
y
u
La Bassa
Platjes de
Comte
Puig de sa Roca
i
o
a
s
50
2!
50
Serra d’en
Vinya
Cap des
Bou
Figuera
Borda
2)
1%
f
1(
Cala Codolar
50
1*
Plana de
Cala Llentia
1&
da
ari
la T
Ca
e
D
C.
Cala Llentia
Cala Corral
CLIMBS
d
1$
1^
Roques Males
Cala Tarida
90m
60m
30m
0m
1km
2km
3km
4km
5km
6km
7km
8km
Starting at our recommended pitstop, Sunset Ashram, walk to the right
along the coast with the sea on your left. You should follow the coast,
weaving in and out as you use the rocky pathways, for about three or
four kilometres.
9km 10km 11km 12km 13km
100
THE WATCH-TOWER AND THE HERMIT
On the first prominent headland there
is the well-preserved Torre d’en Rovira.
These watch-towers were used by islanders
hundreds of years ago to keep a lookout for
Barbary corsairs who raided settlements
near the coast. On the eastern side of a
second sizeable promontory (Cap de la
Bassa), is a welcoming German lady who
lives in a cave overlooking Cala Bassa. She
has lovingly decorated the entrance and if
you are invited inside you will be surprised by
the warmth and comfort of her home. Recent
reports say that she has moved out and the
cave is up for sale. But if you see her, be
generous if she spins a yarn for you.
w
After the hermit’s cave you will soon pass Cala Bassa. Keep going along
the coast on the far side of the beach and you will pass two houses
close to the sea where the path is paved. After these dwellings walk
uphill slightly and then down to a sharp arrow-shaped inlet that cuts
into the coastline. Walk to its innermost point, where you can descend a
steep bank to bathe in the sheltered waters.
e
Resuming the walk, climb back up the steep bank to the main path
where you arrived. Follow as it heads inland from near the point of the
inlet. It is a wide track which splits at one place around a small and
attractive tree.
S.11
11
r
t
The Cala Comte Beach Patrol
A rave cave and a hermit cave
After about 50m the track splits again. Fork left.
After another 50m you reach an area where you will see several tracks
and pathways. Look left and turn onto a smaller path leading slightly
downhill.
y
u
After 150m you reach a junction. Go right and stick to the wide pathway.
i
About 150m further the path splits. The left fork goes over some small
banks. Go over these to the main track and head left for a few metres,
and then join the dirt road going left again to walk up a small rise.
o
The dirt road bends to the left at the top of the rise. Just after the bend
turn right onto another dirt road and walk downhill for 100m. Then turn
right where you see the small electrical box and joining the track heading
off to the right.
a
After passing the small field on your left stick to the natural route of
the path and do not deviate onto other paths or tracks that lead off it.
s
This path will gradually turn into a track, and after about 150m it bends
to the right, passing close to a house. Keep going and join the small dirt
road by forking right.
1@
After 300m when you meet the asphalt road, cross over carefully and
carry on down the dirt road opposite.
f
After 200m, at the end of an almond grove, there is a small clearing on
your right. Join the pathway that leads into the trees from the far side
of the clearing. The path will lead along a property boundary for the
first 200m then, while the boundary turns 90 degrees, carry on in the
same direction for a further 200m or so until you reach a track and an
attractive field.
g
Turn left onto the track and walk uphill. This track will take you up to
and along the top edge of a large terraced field with spectacular views.
Keep going when it turns into a path and heads into a more wooded
area in the far corner of the field.
S.11
NOT TO MISS
CALA CODOLAR
Cala Codolar is a lovely beach and a tranquil spot even in high summer. The
friendly people who work at the chiringuito will prepare chilled cocktails,
alcoholic or non, and simple meals for you to enjoy on the sunbeds.
After about 200m the path you are following joins another wide path.
Look opposite for the small pathway heading through the bushes and
follow this.
131
THE EXTRA STEP
Fact File #4
The Hannibal Riddle
Sa Conillera, ‘the rabbit warren’, is
the largest of the Illots de Ponent,
the string of rocky islets which adorn
Ibiza’s western coastline like pearls on
a stunning necklace. Its rugged profile
shelters San Antonio Bay from strong
westerlies, and there is an irresistible
legend that Hannibal was actually born
there, presumably on a vessel seeking
shelter during one of those capricious
and terrifying Mediterranean tempests
(immortalised by The Bard himself).
The Hannibal story started out as a
creative reading of a dubious passage
in Pliny the Elder’s Natural History,
which cites three small isles opposite
Palma – ‘Menariae, Tiquadra and
little Hannibalis’. Palma Bay has
nothing like an island, so Tiquadra
was tentatively identified as Illa Plana,
one of three small islands which once
stood directly opposite Ibiza Town.
This was also known as Conillera
in earlier times, presumably for its
rabbits, a favoured source of ancient
protein. (Nat. Hist., Book III, 78) That
the greatest Carthaginian was born
in the Balearics is unlikely to say
the least, but it doesn’t stop Ibiza
from having its own Calle Anníbal,
otherwise known as the Calle de las
Farmacias. Once forged, a good legend
never dies, and the Hannibal story
features in the majority of guidebooks.
One local author has even spun the
myth into a remarkable novel, Anníbal
i s’ibosità – Hannibal and the Ibizan
(El Hondero is the Spanish reworking).
Strongly recommended for Spanish- or
Catalan-speaking history buffs.
Back to Conillera. Toponymy is a
S.11
tortuous subject at the best of
times, dependent on a deep and
imaginative knowledge of long dead
tongues, as well as the capricious
manner in which they evolve over
generations among unrelated ethnic
groups. Ibiza is fortunate in having
its own big-league toponymist, Enric
Ribes, who has dedicated his life to an
exhaustive study of Pityusan placenames, borne out in three scholarly
tomes covering the coastline. Ribes
believes Conillera has nothing at all
to do with rabbits – there are as many
on Es Vedrà, or any of the other larger
offshore islands – but rather caves.
The area has a number of outstanding
sea-caverns, and it makes sense that
Latin cuniculum (cave, mine gallery)
should carry through the intervening
centuries into the present. Conillera
itself has ten, the neighbouring
Illa des Bosc four, and the nearby
coastline (to which the ‘Conillera’
label was originally applied) dozens
more – in other words a wealth of
outstanding speleology right by the
water’s edge. Hikers familiar with the
area can testify: Conillera, in its very
name, celebrates a natural feature
neater than any dodgy connection
to a long-defunct general. Here we
have the Pityusan cave central, a
locality where canny seafarers not only
sheltered from sudden storms, but
also stowed their precious contraband.
The emblematic offshore island
whose lighthouse is now earmarked
for an ambitious luxury hotel (fiercely
opposed by environmental custodians),
embodies in its very name the Ibizan
love of storehouses hidden close to
sea-roads, ample enough for every
manner of illicit treasure.
11
The Cala Comte Beach Patrol
A rave cave and a hermit cave
h
After 100m the path splits. Take the left fork up to the top of the hill and
then veer left to carry on. Walk downhill until your progress is blocked by
a fence next to an asphalt road. Walk right to where the fence ends, and
join the indistinct track that runs parallel to the asphalt road.
j
The track will eventually become a small path and lead you slightly away
from the road. After 250m you will meet a downhill section and will need
to follow your nose through the low bushes to arrive at a dirt road after
about 200m. Turn left, walk to the asphalt road and carefully cross to join
the dirt road on the other side.
k
After about 750m on this dirt road, go right onto a dirt road that heads
downhill. There are gateposts and a sign directing you down to Cala
Codolar.
l
Once down at Cala Codolar follow the path at the front of the beach to
the right, heading away from the sea and up the steps. At the top, walk
ahead to the road and turn left.
;
After 50m take the right fork where the road splits. Do not turn off this
road but fork right again after about 100m past the tennis courts. At the
next junction go left to walk slightly downhill, then turn right where you
see the sign for Sant Antoni. You will still be on an asphalt road.
2)
On the first bend go left onto the rocky headland. Follow one of the paths
to the sea and turn right to walk along the coast with the sea on your left.
2!
After a good 2km you will arrive back at the beautiful beaches of Cala Comte.
132
NOT TO MISS
S.11
RAVE CAVE
Along this stretch of coast is what
is known as ‘The Rave Cave’, where
last-minute secret parties are
organised beating out techno and
house until the early hours. The
cave is actually a huge arched cavity
(tunnel) that goes right through
the cliff on a promontory opposite
the coastal path, reached via some
rickety steps. Well worth exploring.
THE PITSTOP
SUNSET ASHRAM
As the name suggests, this is the
perfect place to sit back and watch
the sun sink into the western
horizon between offshore islands.
In high season the daily spectacle is
accompanied by live music or DJs
playing chilled Balearic beats. The
menu is relatively expensive, but
the spicy Indian-themed food is top
quality.
661 347 222 / sunsetashram.com