Menorca lies 20 miles east-northeast of Mallorca, and is the most easterly of the Islas Baloeares. It is 26 miles long and 11 miles wide and for the most part is a fairly low plateau with a few small hills near the north coast and one peak, Monte Toro (358 m), near the centre of the island. Menorca has the greatest concentration of prehistoric remains in the entire Mediterranean. There are a number of Neolithic caves and villages on the island and many megalithic monuments, consisting of towers, burial mounds and T-shaped monuments, which were probably built for religious or funerary purposes by the Bronze Age civilisation, which inhabited the land before the Iberians established themselves. As in large parts of the Mediterranean basin, Menorca saw successive waves of invasion and colonisation by Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Vandals, Byzantines, Visigoths and Moors!
The Moors remained until driven out by King Alfonso 111 of Aragon in 1287, by which time Menorca was the last Muslim territory in eastern Spain. The following centuries were even more difficult for the islands with devastating pirate raids, droughts and epidemics. due to the strategic position of Mahòn as a naval base in the western Mediterranean, it was coveted by all maritime nations and Menorca changed hands frequently. The British occupied in 1708 and the island remained in their hands for forty years. In 1756 a French army marched across the island and forced Admiral Byng to surrender. however it only remained in French hands for 7 years when it was returned to Britain by the Treaty of Paris. The British were challenged in 1782 by a Franco-Spanish force and surrendered but 16 years later, the British recaptured the island. Under the Treaty of Amiens, Menorca was returned by the British to Spain in 1802. A direct result of this ongoing rivalry was the construction of forts and other large defensive works in and around the port of Mahòn, many of which can still be seen. Under Spanish rule, the island reverted to a simple pastoral and fishing existence. During the Spanish Civil war, Menorca remained in the hands of the Republicans and much damage was done to the island's churches.

We are now in the true cruising phase of this holiday, with much shorter distances to cover and more time for swimming and relaxing. Puerto de Mahòn was quite pretty because of its position on the wonderful waterway, but we yearned to explore the north coast of Menorca and so we stayed just long enough to take advantage of the marina facilities. We headed out of the harbour on yet another beautiful morning and enjoyed the sail to Es Grau, on the north-east coast. This was a wide protected bay and there was quite a large gathering of yachts already there, mostly on moorings for which you paid 50 euro per night. The water was clear and all enjoyed a great time swimming, cooling off after the hot day. In the cool of the evening Garth and Ros went for a little discovery tour of the bay and poked up into a sheltered bay, obscured by a headland from Trilogy's view, that was filled with people, both adults and children, out enjoying the evening, either swimming, eating or chatting. This was clearly a traditional village that had become a popular holiday destination for families. Next morning, we all went in the tender to get more tender fuel and Garth and Peter took a taxi ride to Mahòn, in order to resolve internet connectivity issues. Meanwhile John, Sue and Ros relaxed at the local cafe overlooking the vista and explored the town. On return of the boys, we all enjoyed a meal of calamari and octopus frites, washed down with the local beer!
Next stop was Cala Tirant, which had a lot of modern two level housing clusters along the headland and a wide sandy beach. We anchored as close as we dared to the beach and snorkelled around the rocks and to the shore in the afternoon. For the first time in the Med, we saw lovely schools of good size fish around the rocks! The usual pleasantries on board followed at the close of day...GNTs, stuffed drumsticks with a crisp Mediterranean salad and Baileys on ice. Life's good!!
As we were all keen to see what was ashore, next morning we checked out the supermarcat and settled in a breezeway of a cafe, enjoying coffees, gelatos and lots of chilled water. This rolled into lunch, as the free wifi was very attractive and our yearning for family talk time was well satisfied. Back on board, we set sail and we had a wonderful lively sail in the south winds to Cala Algaiarens. By now the crew were all performing well and the skipper agreed with Peter's request to pole out the headsail. There were smiles all round when this was achieved and Trilogy lifted her performance to 9.5 knots. The high cliffs on the coastline captivated us, which were a deep red colour mixed with patches of a light yellow colour.
On arrival at Cala Algaiarens, Trilogy's motor would not start after furling the headsail! This was a bit alarming, as we were in about 30 metres of water and needed to anchor. With no power, this was done manually and then the guys did all the checks and concluded that there was no water in the inlet pipe for the engine. The most likely cause was a blockage and the skipper dived underneath the hull and freed the propeller of a large handful of shredded blue plastic! With great relief Trilogy's engine purred again so we raised the anchor, dropped the main and headed into the bay.
The beach was full of people but there was no sign of any housing. We swam and relaxed in the usual manner, very pleased with the success of the day. Spaghetti Bolognaise, which has become a favourite meal for the men, was served with salad and lots of red wine, as the sun set slowly over the hill.
As we knew the wind direction was due to change back to the northeast in mid morning, we readied ourselves to sail. As we could see the white caps already from the bay, the main was hoisted before we lifted the anchor, to ready us for the powering up. Shortly, the headsail was unfurled and with the sails trimmed, Trilogy took off like a rocket on a beam reach! This was such an exhilarating time, everyone relishing the 10.5 knots of speed in 17 knots of wind. Trilogy seemed to lift her skirts and smile herself!! It is time to mention that the girls are now teamed up together to perform their sailing duties and the guys are kept out of the decision making, except for the watchful eye of the skipper! We rotate the teams from cockpit to foredeck, thus building the knowledge and skills of everyone. What satisfaction this is for the girls being allowed to do this.....girl power feels justified and deserved! Trilogy jibed as she rounded the north-east Cabo Nati, adorned with one of the many lighthouses located along this coast, and turned south, sailing past Cabo Binicous before entering Puerto de Ciudadela.
Menorca's population is around 60,000, with more than one third living either in Mahòn or Ciudadela. Ciudadela was originally the capital but in 1722, this was switched to Mahòn. However, Ciudadela has an even more picturesque harbour and it was a delight to make our way into this most attractive natural harbour, consisting of a narrow cala, leading to a small inner area edged with ancient quays. As the southwest winds can still be felt right up this snug cala, securing mooring lines was quite challenging, as the yachts are all positioned tightly together and the fenders were all squished into place.
Once shopping, washing and marina duties were complete, the crew all dined at Cas Ferrer de sa Font, a delightful restaurant tucked away in an 18th century building, with low beams and soft curves, in what was once a blacksmith's forge. This was a restaurant that promised genuine Menorcan fare and sourced largely from the owner's own organic farm. We were all delighted with our meals, which included lamb, pork, beef and fish, along with fresh and delicious vegetables. Sue was on wine duty and both organic wines she selected were deliciously smooth and full of flavour. The streets were alive when we left the restaurant, with large crowds milling in the narrow streets, enjoying the balmy evening, the street markets and cafe life. The soft street lighting on the pastel coloured facades of buildings, has left a lasting impression of a happy evening spent in Ciudadela.