Walking in Menorca - Paddy Dillon

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formed in a shallow sea in the Miocene period, approximately 25 million years ago. Where the limestone reaches the coast, it generally forms sheer cliffs and rock-walled coves, often with blindingly white sandy beaches at their head. This limestone provided the building material for the vast bulk of the island’s archaeological sites.

      Areas of dense woodland are separated by rugged fields criss-crossed with drystone walls. The southern half of Menorca is more accessible than the north, and and is where most of the resorts are to be found.

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      One of the two Navetes de Rafal Rubi, which can be reached by a short detour from the first stage of the Coast to Coast walk

      There are over a thousand ancient monuments dotted around Menorca, to say nothing of more recent historical structures. The island has been settled for thousands of years, as well as being attacked and colonised by almost every neighbouring Mediterranean power. The most absorbing ancient sites are talaiotic settlements, dominated by stone towers, or talaiots, and T-shaped taulas. Later periods are notable for the construction of fortifications, especially around the coast. The table below lists the key events.

4000BC Neolithic hunters also herd goats on Menorca.
2300BC Bronze Age people build navetas to bury their dead.
1400BC Stone talaiot towers are built, along with T-shaped taulas.
900BC Phoenician traders establish links with Menorca.
800BC Greeks supplant Phoenicians and dominate trade.
650BC Carthaginians supplant Greeks and settle in Menorca.
123BC Romans, led by Metellus, completely conquer Menorca.
404AD The islands become the Roman province of Balearica.
425AD Vandals exert their influence over the islands.
534AD Menorca comes under Byzantine control.
707AD The first of many Moorish raids on the islands.
859AD Vikings raid the islands, but the Moors remain dominant.
903AD The islands become part of Moorish Al-Andalus.
1085 The islands become a Moorish Emirate.
1114 First of a series of Christian raids on the islands.
1232 Jaume I assumes control of Menorca without conquering it.
1276 Jaume II inherits the Balearic Islands from his father.
1287 Alfonso invades Menorca and remaining Moors are evicted.
1311 Sancho rules Mallorca and Menorca, which both flourish.
1349 The plague reaches Menorca from mainland Europe.
1350 Under Aragonese control, the islands’ fortunes suffer.
1479 The kingdoms of Aragon and Castile are united.
1492 America is discovered; the islands decline further.
1535 Barbarossa lays siege to Maó and enslaves many inhabitants.
1558 Pirali raids Ciutadella and enslaves most of the inhabitants.
1571 Turkish ships are destroyed, bringing an end to Turkish raids.
1652 The plague once again ravages Menorca.
1708 The British invade Menorca and meet little resistance.
1722 Island governance is transferred from Ciutadella to Port Mahon (Maó).
1756 The British are expelled by French forces.
1763 The British regain Menorca in exchange for other islands.
1782 The British are expelled by the Spanish.
1798 The British again invade and recapture Menorca.
1802 Menorca is ceded to Spain under the Treaty of Amiens.
1836 Religious institutions throughout Spain are suppressed.
1936 Spanish Civil War, in which Menorca supports the Republicans.
1939 Menorca surrenders last in the war, through British intervention.
1960s and 70s Menorca’s tourist infrastructure develops.
1978 Spain’s new constitution establishes Balearic autonomy.
1983 The Catalan language is restored to everyday use in Menorca.
1986 Spain joins the European Union.
1991 Laws are passed protecting nearly half of the island.
1993 Menorca is declared a World Biosphere Reserve.
1995 Parc Natural de s’Albufera des Grau is established.
1999 Reserva Marina del Nord de Menorca is established.
2000 Legislation is enacted to restore the Camí de Cavalls.
2002 Spain switches from pesetas to the Euro.
2010 The Camí de Cavalls is fully waymarked and opened.
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      The attractive, narrow, rocky inlet of Cala Alcalfar and the village of Alcalfar (Walk 1)

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      A large car park surrounded by farmland at Alfurí de Dalt

      The underlying geology and thousands of years of human influence have shaped the landscape of Menorca. Seen from the air, the island is compact and almost entirely surrounded by cliffs, broken by occasional sandy or pebbly beaches. Inland a patchwork of fields is criss-crossed by drystone walls,

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