At last, we untied the lines and left the sweet little city of Sant Carles de la Rapita and mainland Spain behind. We took off for the 125 nautical mile sail to the island of Mallorca (part of the spanish owned Balearic Islands). We anticipated the sail to take about 24 hours and we were really close. We had great wind for about 75% of the time with enough moonlight to make the overnight passage nicely lit. Then, a beautiful sunrise as we approached land - plus some really cool cloud formations over the welcoming lighthouse made it a great passage. But, the absolute best part about the trip was the reunion with Equus and her crew! We'd seen Dan and Alison a couple of times since we "parted wakes" in the Azores in 2019 but this is the first time both boats were together. We'd no sooner dropped our anchor than they dinghied over with an amazing lunch. It couldn't have been more perfect!
We parked our bikes and spent several hours meandering around Palma also exploring the outdoor market and the nearby marina. While much smaller than many of the mainland cities, Palma was huge compared to where we'd been staying and was full of beautiful architecture and pretty parks. It was a great way to spend the day with our dear friends.
Next, we decided to rent a car so that we could explore a little further. Our first stop was Porto Cristo where we found an amazing spot overlooking the water to eat lunch. Alison (what can I say I have amazing taste in friends) packed a picnic which we supplemented with a bottle of Mallorcan wine. Between the food, wine, company and views, I'm sure there wasn't a better lunch to be found on the entire island. 
Our next stop was Arta This town was adorable and very different from the last one. The main section of town was full of quirky little shops and restaurants. We spent a little more time here and really enjoyed the vibrant feel of the town.
We spent a couple more days at our anchorage and playing on the beach nearby with our boat buddies. We took advantage of the light wind days to work on our paddle boarding skills. While Dan and Alison have a lot more skill on the paddle board, I have to say that I held my own - only falling once and luckily while no one else was watching. It was so great just to have our buddies around.
We had a great anchorage just off beach with all of the accompanying beachside attractions. So, we decided to rent bikes and explore the nearby city of Palma - Mallorca's capital and largest city. The bike path ran alongside the coast affording spectacular views and providing nice ocean breezes. It was perfect!
Fat and happy, we jumped back in the car and drove to the next stop on our list which was the town of Montuiri. This sweet little town afforded beautiful views of the surrounding countryside. We saw the cathedral (wasn't open to visit) and meandered the streets before hopping back into the car to continue our tour.
Our next stop was Arta This town was adorable and very different from the last one. The main section of town was full of quirky little shops and restaurants. We spent a little more time here and really enjoyed the vibrant feel of the town.
Next on our list was the town of Soller. This town was even larger than Arta - still much smaller than Palma but impressive nonetheless. One of the coolest things about the town was the old fashioned wooden train which still runs numerous times a day between Palma and Soller. It really gave this sweet city an old worldly vibe. We especially enjoyed sitting in the town square with a beverage just taking in the sights and sounds.
The last stop was Puerto de Soller. This port city is just a couple of miles from Soller but worlds away in other aspects. It was somewhat more modern with the various condos built around the harbor but also a vibrant beachside village too. Still the wooden train coming right through the center of town took us back in time.
We spent a couple more days at our anchorage and playing on the beach nearby with our boat buddies. We took advantage of the light wind days to work on our paddle boarding skills. While Dan and Alison have a lot more skill on the paddle board, I have to say that I held my own - only falling once and luckily while no one else was watching. It was so great just to have our buddies around.
Alas, time had come for us to say "adios y nos vemos pronto." We wanted to sail back to France and Alison was flying to Ft. Lauderdale to watch her 91 year-old mother complete in the 5K bicycle race for the National Senior Olympics. She came in second, by the way, and reached her goal of breaking the previous national record - Go Geri!!!!
We "let" Alison fix dinner one last time (for now) and relaxed as we all watched the full moonrise over our anchorage. Equus (and Dan) would stay at anchor in Mallorca while Alison was gone and we'll all meet back up in a couple of weeks in either mainland France or Corsica.
Pulling up anchor the next morning, we decided to take a couple of days to sail a bit around Mallorca. This also gave us time to wait for our weather window with the right wind direction to take us back to the mainland. We left Palma and sailed to the northside of the island. On the tip of the island, we passed a rock formation named "Sa Dragonera." It's pretty funny to think about who first came up with this but if you use just a little imagination, it's pretty easy to see that it really does look like a dragon.
We made landfall (technically, we took a mooring ball from Club Vela but dinghied ashore) our first night in Port d'Andratx. Touted as the oldest harbor in Mallorca, this quaint little village was lively and welcoming. We enjoyed walking around and exploring another town. Back on the boat, we were obsessed with the moonrise over the city even staying up past our bedtime watching it.
The next night, we found a beautiful anchorage at Cala da Deya. We were awed by the beautiful rock formations all along this coast and this bay was no exception. While we were thankfully one of only a few boats in the anchorage, the nearby beach and waterfront restaurants were packed. There was even a small heard of goats exploring the cliffsides around us. This was definitely one our prettiest anchorages.
We made landfall (technically, we took a mooring ball from Club Vela but dinghied ashore) our first night in Port d'Andratx. Touted as the oldest harbor in Mallorca, this quaint little village was lively and welcoming. We enjoyed walking around and exploring another town. Back on the boat, we were obsessed with the moonrise over the city even staying up past our bedtime watching it.
Our last night in Mallorca, we spent anchored in Puerto de Soller harbor. The anchorage was protected and understandably more crowded but also allowed us the opportunity to again go ashore and walk around. The next day's weather forecast looked good for our two day passage to Marseille so we stocked up on a few fresh items and Spanish wine (hey, it's delicious and inexpensive).
The next morning, we pulled up anchor and had a mostly great (it started off slow but picked up nicely) sail. We had gorgeous moonrises both nights with only one minor repair to make while underway - they always seem to happen at night but this was luckily easy to fix. After almost exactly 48 hours, we sailed into France for the first time. Again, the moon entertained us during the passage and we arrived at sunrise. But, I'll fill you in on that next time.
All of my pictures: Sail to Mallorca
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