Excursiones
Caves, elephants and dinosaurs in Menorca? Just ask Kiko about it
We leave for Cala Morell. It is a small urbanization located on the north of Ciutadella where we will see some caves, a prehistoric town and, if the sun continues shining like now, take a walk along the beach. Will you join us?
It was Cuqui´s idea to come here. Some friends told him about the necropolis of Cala Morell so we decided to organize an excursion.
"Cuqui, what is a necropolis?" I asked.
It is a place where people who died got buried. Almost 4000 years ago the inhabitants of Cala Morell excavated caves in the rocks and used them as burial grounds. There are more which are more modern and have been around for about 2500 years. Now you can see them and enter them.
15 caves in the ravine
We arrived at the parking lot which is located in an upper area on top of the cove and walk down towards the ravine. As soon as we enter, we can see the caves.
During the tour you get to see 15 different sizes of caves...Some of them you have to climb down by taking the stone steps. Cuqui wants to play and hides inside the caves.
"I brought a flashlight!" He says.
"As the caves are not very deep, it is not necessary," I reply.
With a smiley face he replies: "It is that I am an explorer and I need to explore every corner of this cave. Here they buried the dead and left offerings and gifts such as pottery vessels. I'll find something, for sure! "
"I do not think so. These caves were used until the Romans conquered Menorca, but the archaeologists have already been here and have taken the remains to the museums on the island".
Cuqui peers through the caves shouting my name and laughing. I hide among the trees in silence until I see him running past with a startled face. He thought I had gone and left him alone!
A walk among trees and rocks
The path is signposted and we can see the caves when walking through some paths full of trees and rocks. From the top of the ravine the views are beautiful. You can see the blue sea in the distance, the green and yellow fields, the white houses and the cliffs of the cove.
We have returned to the parking lot, and from here the signals lead us towards the village. It is at the top of a cliff, 35 meters above the sea. There is no clear path but it is easy to see that it is necessary to go down among some stones before going up towards the rock.
Stoves and a lighthouse on top of the cliff
The road is not easy. We take almost 10 minutes to go down the hill and about 5 minutes to climb up towards the village. They say it is one of the most spectacular archaeological sites in Menorca.
"Why would they choose this place so isolated from everything to build their houses?" Cuqui says, "They would have to carry their food and water up here."
"Look, they made the houses with small stones. Do you remember that I recently went to Torre den Galmés, near to Son Bou? There everything is made out of very large stones and they had Talayots and Taulas. Here there are only 13 houses."
"Of course, this village is more than 3000 years old and the Talayots had not been built yet" Cuqui says whilst climbing towards a lookout, "sure that from here they could watch the sea and land preventing anyone from approaching. It's like a little lighthouse. "
In one of the houses, where there are still archaeologists excavating, you can clearly see a small stove where they used to cook. They say they there they have found remains of animals such as cows and goats. In addition there is a stone to grind the cereals and a small raft where they could collect rain.
Of to the beach!
It is hot and the walk has made us sweat so we are looking forward to reach the beach that we see from above.
It is small and between two high cliffs. Cuqui has taken off his shoes and puts his feet in the water. He laughs and says that it is very cold.
Very close to here are you can find the beaches of Algaiarens, do you remember the excursion to the beach of La Vall we made? We really enjoyed it.
Are there dinosaurs?
Some guys are playing with a big tree trunk that the sea has washed up onto the sand. We approach them and talk to them. They point to a cliff and tell us that the left side of it is called Punta del Elefante because the form of the rock at the top looks like a great elephant, protecting the cove.
Curiously, Cuqui asks them why one part of the cliff is almost white in color and the other in a strong reddish color.
"Ah, it's because they are two that belong to different eras. The rocks that are light gray belonged to the Jurassic ...."
Cuqui does not let him finish his sentence and with his eyes wide open asks: "are there dinosaurs?", which made the boys laugh.
"No, there are no dinosaurs. According to geology, science used to study the earth, the Jurassic corresponds to an age of about 150 million years ago. Right here, in Cala Morell the lands that join with others lands are those that belong to the Miocene, from about 20 million years ago. That is why there is so much contrast between some rocks and others. "
I do not know if Cuqui is convinced by the story because he keeps on looking around him when climbing up to the parking lot. We're going to go to Club Kikoland now but we will return to this cove in the summer, because we have been told that here it is great to snorkel and that there are usually many fish. Will you sign up for the tour? Do you like to snorkel and would you like to visit the caves of the necropolis?
