Coll de Femenia & Sa Batalla Loop

Coll de Femenia is the gateway to the Tramuntana — the climb that opens up the entire northern part of the range from Port de Pollença. Seven and a half kilometres at 5.5% average, honest from the first pedal stroke: steady gradient, excellent asphalt, and the views build gradually behind you — Pollença Bay, Cap de Formentor, the Alcúdia peninsula. At the top, an almost alpine plateau of limestone walls and deep valleys, with the turn-off down to Lluc monastery a few kilometres further on.

At the top of Sa Batalla sits the Repsol station and the cycling café — the classic gathering point where everyone reconvenes, fills bottles and waits for the group. Then the descent begins. Fast and technical: tight hairpins through dense pine forest, rock faces on all sides. There are few better descents in the northern Tramuntana.

We rode this on the day we arrived in Port de Pollença in late April 2023 — six of us, still finding our feet after the flight. The perfect first day on the island: long enough to feel like a proper ride, but manageable enough to keep the legs fresh for the days ahead.

The roll out from the harbour westward towards Pollença town is a good warm-up — flat, quiet, through agricultural land, with the Tramuntana rising ahead of you. Then Femenia begins. One of my favourite climbs on the island — never brutal, always honest. The views open up behind you: Pollença Bay, Cap de Formentor, the peninsula stretching to the horizon. By the top, you have earned the panorama.

We stopped at the Repsol station and waited until everyone had gathered. That is always how it goes — each rider arrives at their own pace, fills bottles, eats something, and then you ride the Sa Batalla descent together. Tight hairpins through dense pine forest, dramatic rock faces, fast and technical. We stopped at a café in Caimari on the way down — the right call after the mountain. The return follows quiet inland roads via Pollença back to the coast, with the sea alongside for the final kilometres. A perfect way to start a week on Mallorca.