Lluc-Inca

My flight home was very late, so I had plenty of time to play with. On the other hand, my research suggested the annual pilgrimage from Palma was scheduled for this weekend, so I was unsure about the buses. I toyed with the idea of completing the GR221 to Pollenca, but in the end took an even more obvious option: the newly laid out GR222 to Inca. This proved a perfect way to finish the trip, very satisfying in that it marked a notable change in the landscape, leaving the Serra de Tramuntana mountains behind and heading to the baked plains of central Mallorca. Although a short day, it exceeded my expectations scenically, at least at first. The weather had changed, and after breakfast there was even a little hint of rain in the air: cool and cloudy initially as I headed back to the refuge and the Col de Batalla before heading south on the GR222. The route left the road and took a superb contouring dry stone path towards the Mirador Llangonnisa, which feels like a real gateway. Indeed, the two peaks of Escuder and Albellons even seem like a gateway. The Cami vel del Lluc is an ancient route, and feels like it, an obvious point of pilgrimage through this deep valley. Lower down, olive groves and terracing as the landscape starts to change. At Caimari, it changes completely, and takes a series of quiet lanes through pan flat terrain around Selva marked by ltitle goat farms, almond and orange groves. Eventually, the tower blocks and housing estates of Inca is reached: quite a sizeable town and a complete contrast. Inca is a working city in the centre of Mallorca, but has a railway station, and it was satisfying to end up there and get a cheap ticket to Palma, where I spent my remaining time walking and dining before the flight.