Walking in Menorca. Paddy Dillon

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,