Camí de Cavalls


The Camí de Cavalls is an ancient path of that encircles the island of Menorca, Spain. This long-distance walking route is the GR 223 of the Senderos de Gran Recorrido network in Spain and it is also used to reach some of the most inaccessible beaches of Menorca.

History

It is widely accepted that the Camí de Cavalls was built in order to connect the watchtowers, fortresses and cannons distributed along the coast of the island and to make the transport of troops and artillery easier. However, the date of its origin is not so clear. The most accepted theory attributes it is the French invaders during the different periods they lived in the island, but according to some studies, it could have been created in the 14th century.
Since its original function was the defence and the control of the island, it was patrolled by soldiers mounted on Menorquin horses, hence the word cavalls in the name of the path.

Restoration

During decades part of the path belonged to private properties and could not be used by everybody. However, after an agreement between the island's government and the landlords, the path became public. Then, the Government started the restoration of the whole path, spending €934,977.37 in a first stage and €800,159 in a second stage completed in May 2011.

Stages

The path is divided in 20 different stages, each of them between 5 and 14 km. All the start and arrival points can be gained access to by road traffic, making possible to cover only one or some stages of the path at a time.

StageStartFinishDurationDistanceDifficulty
1MaóEs Grau3 h 30 minMedium
2Es GrauFavàritx3 h 30 minMedium
3FavàritxArenal d'en Castell5 hMedium
4Arenal d'en CastellCala Tirant4 hEasy
5Cala TirantBinimel·là4 hMedium
6Binimel·làEls Alocs5 hDifficult
7Els AlocsAlgaiarens4 h 30 minMiddle
8AlgaiarensCala Morell2 h 10 minMiddle
9Cala MorellPunta Nati3 hEasy
10Punta NatiCiutadella4 hEasy
11CiutadellaCap d’Artrutx5 hEasy
12Cap d'ArtrutxCala en Turqueta5 hMedium
13Cala en TurquetaCala Galdana2 h 30 minEasy
14Cala GaldanaSant Tomàs4 h 30 minMedium
15Sant TomàsSon Bou2 h 30 minEasy
16Son BouCala en Porter3 h 30 minMedium
17Cala en PorterBinisafúller4 h 30 minEasy
18BinisafúllerPunta Prima3 h 30 minEasy
19Punta PrimaCala de Sant Esteve2 h 40 minEasy
20Cala de Sant EsteveMaó2 h 20 minEasy

Events

Once the whole path is restored, activities and events around it are arousing. Between April 28, 2012 and May 1, 2012, the world champion in adventure racing Arnau Julià went in 82 h 30 min three times around the path, one running, one in mountain-bike and the last one in kayak, covering in total more than.
The Trail Menorca Camí de Cavalls was held for the first time between the 18th and the 20th of May 2012 and 140 participants took part in the five different races of this event: Trail Cami de Cavalls 185.3 km, Trail Costa Nord - 94.2 km, Trail Costa Sud - 91 km, Trekking Costa Nord - 46.6 km and Trekking Costa Sud - 43.5 km.