Majorca is the largest of the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Spain. The island has a popular image of high-rise hotels and hard sell commercialism, but this reputation is undeserved, as it only applies to a small strip of beach around Palma. The island takes on a completely different character away from the capital. The central mountain range approaches 5000 ft. and the scenery is spectacular, particularly to the north where sheer limestone cliffs edge the coastline.

Unfortunately, the island can be a frustrating place for the caver. The caves were formed in a period which pre-dates the present surface features by many years. They appear to have been distributed around the island in a purely random manner, since there is no logical relationship between the surface features and the underlying caves. The major river valleys intersect many cave systems and contains vestiges of vast caverns or large phreatic passages.

The strangeness of the terrain and vegetation coupled with the random arrangement of the cave entrances makes it difficult to find even the most well-known caves.

Cova sa Campana

This is the largest cave on the island and also the deepest (317m). The best parts of the cave are in the upper galleries so making it ideal for the caver on a holiday to Majorca which has caving as the underlying theme but not as the main aim. This is not to say the cave is uninteresting, but it does cater for all tastes.

Route to the cave entrance

This is the hardest part of a visit to the cave and can lead to a total failure to find the entrance if the precise route is not followed. Referring to the area map, park the car at the sharp left-hand bend in the road, marked 'A'. There is a small layby littered with the usual assortment of cavers'rubbish. From here there is no obvious track through the thick bushes. However, if you look up the face of the limestone outcrop ahead of you there are two distinct pinnacles on the ridge. The path over the top of the ridge lies between the two peaks, vertically up from the road approximately 300 ft. There are no markers to show the correct line up the ridge except for a small, low wall which goes part of the way up. Unfortunately, this is not visible from the road.

A small pass leads between the two rock pinnacles to the other side of the ridge, overlooking the Torrente de Pareis. From here the cave is about 120 ft. to the right and 50 ft. lower down the far side of the ridge. The path is marked by red paint on the rocks, but much of this has faded.

The entrance is an obvious hole in the side of a small cliff and is impossible to miss from the path.

The Cave

The entrance pitch is a 50 ft. ladder climb down a steep slope into a large chamber partially blocked at the far end by massive stalactite formations. The climb can be done using a handline if preferred. From here the way on is walking through the stalactite formations into the Salla Gracias, an immense chamber full of fallen blocks and old gour pools. The stillness and imprenetrable darkness of the chamber make it easy to become disorientated.

There are two ways out of the chamber, the easiest route is along the left-hand wall to the top of a steep mud slope. The passage looks horrific from the top but is relatively straightforward, the mud slope leads on to calcite with easy steps cut into the rock. At the base of the slope is a flat bottomed chamber and a narrow passage ahead. The passage lowers to a muddy squeeze between boulders onto a rock slope. This descends gently downwards across mud, but with fine formations in the roof, until a large gallery. There are more formations in a nice walking passage and then another steep slope into Salla dos Gores. In this large chamber is a visitors' book and a source of fresh water. The visitors' book contains several interesting entries and is worth a quiet browse.

For the more adventurous, there are two 140 ft. pitches into the lower gallery, and then more small pitches to the bottom. However, the descent to the lower reaches will only be for the caving purist. All the best parts of the cave have already been done by this point.

Altogether the trip can be done in a few hours, but this time could be considerably lengthened if any serious photography is intended.

Summary

Majorca is an ideal place for a short winter break with a caving flavour. The weather between September and march is like a typical English summer and is conducive to walking and caving. Overall, the standard of caving is mild but can be more exacting if required. The local cavers are competant and have thoroughly explored and documented the caves of the island. It is unlikely that a casual visitor would discover any new passage. However, the random nature of the entrances means that any tiny crack in the rock could be a small window into an enormous chamber, so the chance of a lucky find is still there.

One general observation is that all the caves I visited had the same lifelessness about them. The ancient, crumbling stalactite, dry gours and lack of air movement create the atmosphere of a sealed tomb which has lain unentered for centuries. Anybody looking for the zest and life of an active streamway will be disappointed.

R.I.Crossley

Useful Address

Grupo Espeleologic Nord de mallorca,
La Placa 1,
Pollenca,
Mallorca.