A pleasant walk around Deià through a complex network of paths reflecting the traditional trades and uses of the Serra

“Paths are the memory of our steps, and paths that are not walked are lost,” said my good friend Miquel Rayó in his book Memòria de Camins (2022, Nova Editorial Moll). In this itinerary, we set out to ‘reach the summit’ at the Pla de Sa Bassa, an important crossroads with a history of sacrifice. Indeed, the extensive network of paths in the Serra de Tramuntana existed solely to provide access to places of charcoal and lime production, wood and càrritx harvesting, and grazing for flocks, mainly sheep. Where today we seek hiking trails, in another time we would have found a kind of industrial zone built through the determined efforts of people with a single goal: the sustainable use of the environment for the community’s benefit. This has left us a significant legacy in the form of cultural landscapes, with toponymy as a key element for interpretation. For this route, my guide has been Bernat Coll Homar, from Deià—a good friend, teacher, and seasoned walker. We will also uncover the unexpected boundaries of estates like Can Prohom, in Sóller, an important part of the former Muslim hamlet of Castelló. According to the Archduke, in 1865 Can Prohom covered 221 hectares, including 136 hectares within Deià’s territory. As always, public transport is available to reach Deià via the L-203 bus line (check schedules at tib.org).

The route

[00 min] We start walking along Can Canals street, just behind the TIB bus stop, leaving Deià toward Sóller. The paved, steep, and winding road climbs the hillside beneath the buttresses of Teix, between the grounds of the luxury hotel La Residència—which combines two estates, Can Canals and Son Moragues—and a group of chalets mostly built on the old lands of Son Fony. Nearby, we also find Can Fussimany, partially urbanized. [05 min] When the road levels out a bit, look to the left for a narrow, steep stone staircase that connects to the residential road, blocked by an impassable barrier.

The track ends at a chalet’s gates. About a hundred meters before, on the left, is the start of a cobbled path that initially leads to the Sa Senyora spring. Soon after, we pass a gate without a barrier [20 min] marking the boundary between Can Fussimany and Ca l’Abat. We walk through a wooded area and well-spaced olive terraces. After a short zigzag, we find a covered round cistern to the left of the path and a few meters above, the spring on the right [30 min]. According to the Fonts de Tramuntana website, water from Sa Senyora spring began being bottled in the 1980s and is collected from three nearby mine springs. We continue ascending along an old mule track—with yellow paint marks—that brings us to a wide, sunny terrace area called Ses Rotes [40 min]. Shortly after, to the left above a small valley leading down to Ca l’Abat, we find the old porch of ‘Ses Rotes del Coix Boi.’ A bit further up, next to the path, is ‘Ses Rotes del Jai.’ Here, the path turns left, diagonally uphill, into the mountain forest.

We pass a gate without a barrier—likely marking the boundary between Deià and Can Prohom [50 min]. The path takes us to a fork at the foot of a steep little valley, where once passed a cart track connecting a whole charcoal-making area. Undaunted and with steady steps, we climb, following the almost invisible trail. We find a couple of left forks; at the first, we see the remains of an old narrow-gauge cart used to transport pine logs about 2.10 meters long. We keep straight uphill until we meet a new, wide, clean path crossing the valley’s highest part [1 h 05 min].

To the right, the path leads to Pas d’en Marc, a vertiginous route to the Puig de Sa Galera (908 m). We turn left and shortly after right toward Pla de Sa Bassa, arriving quickly [1 h 10 min]. In the middle of a key crossroads, an old porch with a small cistern and a large watering pond for animals. This infrastructure clearly reveals the intense activity that must have taken place here for managing the forest through what we now call the Serra’s ‘traditional trades’: charcoal and lime production, wood and càrritx harvesting, along with the constant movement of herders with pigs, sheep, and even oxen. We leave the plain heading northeast (gregal) along a cart track that quickly narrows into a steep valley; to left and right are paths leading to the s’Osca de Ca l’Abat passes—the descent to Son Coll—and the cliffs of Can Prohom—the ascent to Puig del Moro and Sa Galera.

Can Prohom and Son Mico

We pass a lime kiln on the left and a few meters down reach a metal gate with a latch on the left [1 h 30 min]. Leaving behind the mountain forest, we enter the former terraced farmland. The path leads us to a final barrier, beyond which lies the Camí de Castelló—GR-221— [1 h 55 min]. To the right are the houses of Can Prohom and Son Mico, plus the Castelló oratory. Before continuing left toward Deià, we take a moment to visit the Son Mico viewpoint. To access it, we go through the gate left of the roundabout formed by the cart track and take a trail leading directly to the cliff overlooking the Alconàsser sea. To the left of the path, another trail takes us to the viewpoint [2 h 00 min].

We return to Camí de Castelló and head toward Deià. First passing the Ses Mentides spring, then the old Son Coll estate, formerly owned by Na Matona. Finally, the path leads to the roads of the Ses Coves urbanization, where we reconnect directly to the Ma-10 highway between kilometers 60 and 61 [3 h 00 min]. Turning left and staying on the pavement, we arrive in Deià, finishing the route exactly where we started [3 h 20 min].