Walking in Menorca. Paddy Dillon
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formed in a shallow sea in the Miocene period, approximately 25 million years ago. Where the limestone reaches the coast, it generally forms sheer cliffs and rock-walled coves, often with blindingly white sandy beaches at their head. This limestone provided the building material for the vast bulk of the island’s archaeological sites.
Areas of dense woodland are separated by rugged fields criss-crossed with drystone walls. The southern half of Menorca is more accessible than the north, and and is where most of the resorts are to be found.
History
One of the two Navetes de Rafal Rubi, which can be reached by a short detour from the first stage of the Coast to Coast walk
There are over a thousand ancient monuments dotted around Menorca, to say nothing of more recent historical structures. The island has been settled for thousands of years, as well as being attacked and colonised by almost every neighbouring Mediterranean power. The most absorbing ancient sites are talaiotic settlements, dominated by stone towers, or talaiots, and T-shaped taulas. Later periods are notable for the construction of fortifications, especially around the coast. The table below lists the key events.
| 4000BC | Neolithic hunters also herd goats on Menorca. |
| 2300BC | Bronze Age people build navetas to bury their dead. |
| 1400BC | Stone talaiot towers are built, along with T-shaped taulas. |
| 900BC | Phoenician traders establish links with Menorca. |
| 800BC | Greeks supplant Phoenicians and dominate trade. |
| 650BC | Carthaginians supplant Greeks and settle in Menorca. |
| 123BC | Romans, led by Metellus, completely conquer Menorca. |
| 404AD | The islands become the Roman province of Balearica. |
| 425AD | Vandals exert their influence over the islands. |
| 534AD | Menorca comes under Byzantine control. |
| 707AD | The first of many Moorish raids on the islands. |
| 859AD | Vikings raid the islands, but the Moors remain dominant. |
| 903AD | The islands become part of Moorish Al-Andalus. |
| 1085 | The islands become a Moorish Emirate. |
| 1114 | First of a series of Christian raids on the islands. |
| 1232 | Jaume I assumes control of Menorca without conquering it. |
| 1276 | Jaume II inherits the Balearic Islands from his father. |
| 1287 | Alfonso invades Menorca and remaining Moors are evicted. |
| 1311 | Sancho rules Mallorca and Menorca, which both flourish. |
| 1349 | The plague reaches Menorca from mainland Europe. |
| 1350 | Under Aragonese control, the islands’ fortunes suffer. |
| 1479 | The kingdoms of Aragon and Castile are united. |
| 1492 | America is discovered; the islands decline further. |
| 1535 | Barbarossa lays siege to Maó and enslaves many inhabitants. |
| 1558 | Pirali raids Ciutadella and enslaves most of the inhabitants. |
| 1571 | Turkish ships are destroyed, bringing an end to Turkish raids. |
| 1652 | The plague once again ravages Menorca. |
| 1708 | The British invade Menorca and meet little resistance. |
| 1722 | Island governance is transferred from Ciutadella to Port Mahon (Maó). |
| 1756 | The British are expelled by French forces. |
| 1763 | The British regain Menorca in exchange for other islands. |
| 1782 | The British are expelled by the Spanish. |
| 1798 | The British again invade and recapture Menorca. |
| 1802 | Menorca is ceded to Spain under the Treaty of Amiens. |
| 1836 | Religious institutions throughout Spain are suppressed. |
| 1936 | Spanish Civil War, in which Menorca supports the Republicans. |
| 1939 | Menorca surrenders last in the war, through British intervention. |
| 1960s and 70s | Menorca’s tourist infrastructure develops. |
| 1978 | Spain’s new constitution establishes Balearic autonomy. |
| 1983 | The Catalan language is restored to everyday use in Menorca. |
| 1986 | Spain joins the European Union. |
| 1991 | Laws are passed protecting nearly half of the island. |
| 1993 | Menorca is declared a World Biosphere Reserve. |
| 1995 | Parc Natural de s’Albufera des Grau is established. |
| 1999 | Reserva Marina del Nord de Menorca is established. |
| 2000 | Legislation is enacted to restore the Camí de Cavalls. |
| 2002 | Spain switches from pesetas to the Euro. |
| 2010 | The Camí de Cavalls is fully waymarked and opened. |
The attractive, narrow, rocky inlet of Cala Alcalfar and the village of Alcalfar (Walk 1)
Landscape
A large car park surrounded by farmland at Alfurí de Dalt
The underlying geology and thousands of years of human influence have shaped the landscape of Menorca. Seen from the air, the island is compact and almost entirely surrounded by cliffs, broken by occasional sandy or pebbly beaches. Inland a patchwork of fields is criss-crossed by drystone walls,