Distance | Elevation gain | Difficulty | Epic rating |
5 km (ascent) | 310m (ascent) |   |   |
Distance | Elevation | ||||
5 km | 310 m | ||||
Difficulty | Epic rating | ||||
| | |
You get to Port des Canonge via a narrow, sinuous road that descends from the MA-10 to the sea, through tight switchbacks.
Like its more famous siblings further north in the Serra Tramuntana, i.e. the Sa Calobra and Port de Valldemossa, the road to Port des Canonges is a glorious combination of twisting asphalt and azure sea views.
Of the three descents, this is the least known.
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Port Des Canonge: HIGHLIGHTS
There’s a ladder of switchbacks around half way down/up. They look particularly impressive as you descend as you can see them snaking backwards and forwards through the pine trees.
The view from Port des Canonge village over the beach and to the vertical cliffs and oh-so-blue sea is also lovely.
RIDE LOG
1. Descent to Port de Canonge
The first kilometre is pretty flat and unremarkable.
You hit the switchbacks after a couple of kilometres - enjoy the tight bends but watch out for rock debris! The road is also super narrow.
After the switchbacks, it’s a bit of a surprise to find residential roads branching off either side of the main road; dropping down the mountain felt really rural and we weren’t expecting lots of houses at the bottom!
If you follow the road right to the end, you come to Playa Port des Canonge, a small stoney beach. There are boats moored in the water and it’s a pretty cove backed by green forest. If you wonder what the ramshackle looking buildings are at the rear of the cover, they’re escars - old stone boathouses, which are now apparently protected.
2. Climb from Port de Canonge to MA-10
Though it’s 4.8km to the MA-10, in truth the actual climb is just under 4km - the last kilometre is pretty flat.
The average gradient for the 3.8km climb is 7.5%, with the steepest part of the climb coming just after the end of the switchbacks: from here, you’re into a kilometre with an average 10% gradient.
Sea views are not as common on this climb as the Valldemossa and Sa Calobra climbs, so there’s little to distract you from the burn as you pedal to the top.
CAFÉ STOPS
There are two restaurants in town. We got a frosty reception when we headed into Bar Restaurante can Toni Moreno in search of coffee - and we didn’t get further than that (they weren’t impressed by us wheeling our bikes in - we’d failed to spot the bike rack outside)!
If you know more about the restaurants at Port Canonge, do add your comments below!
ACCOMMODATION
This climb is accessed via the MA-10, near Banyalbufar in the southern half of the Serra Tramuntana mountains.
You could do it on your Andratx to Port Pollenca ride or as an extension of our Deia loop. Otherwise, you’d probably want to be staying in the centre of Mallorca to do this ride: we did it while staying in Alaro.
Our best towns for cyclists article should help you decide where to stay for the cycling you want to do.
TIPS
Read our tips for cycling in Mallorca before you set out.
The road to Port Canonge is narrow - while it’s a quiet road, there are quite a few houses near the sea so there will probably be a few cars about.
The crumbly red cliffs either side of the road also mean you should expect small rock debris on the road. The road is surrounded by pine woodland, so expect pine needles and little branches too.
While we liked Port Canonge, we found it a bit less dramatic than Port de Valldemossa and Sa Calobra: do it, but do the other two first!
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