CAPTAIN`S BLOG

Autumn afloat around Mallorca…..

Vintage travel poster for Cala Figuera, Mallorca, featuring a boat docked in a harbor at night with lit buildings and mountains in the background.
Sunset over the ocean with clouds and a silhouette of a mountainous island, viewed from a boat with a small inflatable, into a darkening sky.

We cast off from Port de Sóller before sunrise, the bay still half-asleep. The Kelvin engine turned over steady and true — that deep, reassuring heartbeat that means we’re underway. Southward, the Tramuntana coast slipped by in soft greys and greens, high cliffs tumbling into calm, glassy water as the sun rose behind me.

View of the deck of a sailing yacht at sea, with equipment, ropes, and a sunshade over the cockpit, under a clear blue sky.
Open ocean with choppy waves, a sailboat in the distance with blue and white striped sails, and landforms or islands far away on the horizon under a partly cloudy sky.
A small boat docked at a marina with a group of people standing and walking on the dock. In the foreground, a blurred coffee cup is visible.

By mid-morning we were off Dragonera, that familiar rugged shape standing guard at the western edge of Mallorca. We passed through the narrow gap between Dragonera and Sant Elm — a favourite stretch. We picked up a mooring in Sant Elm and had a quick run ashore to take the dog. Then we were off again to cross the Bay of Palma, headed south towards our final destination.

A dog and a cat on a boat with water and green trees in the background.
A sailboat docked at a marina during nighttime, with illuminated buildings reflected in the water.
A person walking a dog across a small bridge at night, illuminated by a streetlamp and surrounded by a residential building with flower pots and window shutters.
A nighttime scene of a small harbor with boats docked along both sides, illuminated by street lights, with a full moon and partially cloudy sky reflected on the water.

The miles slipped by, the sea relatively calm and the sky grey. Into her rhythm now, Bonnie Lass almost doing seven knots. We were quickly making good progress towards Cala Figuera. We rounded the most southern point of Mallorca, Cap de ses Salines, for the first time in a very long while, then headed northeast — a short hop up the coast to the entrance of Cala Figuera.

We made our way slowly into the tiny harbour, looking for our mooring — and there it was, right on the fishing dock in the centre of the cala. Surrounded by tiny whitewashed houses, almost every one with its own little boathouse below. A truly beautiful Spanish fishing village. The whole dock was full of people working away, preparing for the shooting the following day. This organised chaos was going to be part of our daily life for the next couple of days.

Boats docked at a marina with buildings and trees in the background on a partly cloudy day.
Person lying on a boat's deck with a dog, overlooking the ocean with cloudy sky.
Vintage travel poster for Cala Figuera, Mallorca, showing a boat moored in a harbor with colorful buildings along the waterfront at night.