Moleta of Son Cabaspre, watched over hills and hollows

PalmaThe following itinerary proposes the ascent to the moleta of Son Cabaspre, following a section of the GR 221 between Esporles and Valldemossa via the mola of Son Pacs. We cross lands and historical possessions such as Son Dameto and Son Cabaspre, which reveal the extensive and deep human footprint on the territory. A walk for the pace and the gaze to feel the aromas and smell the territory. The moleta of Son Cabaspre allows us to survey the hills and slopes surrounding Esporles and, also, to contemplate the mountains that make up the western sector of the Tramuntana mountain range-World Heritage. Consider that we have public transport to get us to the starting and ending point of our itinerary. The line 202 that connects Estellencs and Palma stops at the central promenade of Esporles. You can go to the website tib.org for any consultation of timetables and availability of the routes.

The route

[00 min] We begin the walk in front of the Town Hall, in Plaça d’Espanya. Here, the sculpture of the Spinner (1982), by Remígia Caubet (1919-1997) – an artist who had a workshop in Esporles – summarizes the contemporary history of Esporles: the spinner's trade and the importance of water in the context of the industrial revolution that the town experienced at the end of the 19th century. The work was a donation from Caixa de les Balears ‘Sa Nostra’ to the town on the occasion of the financial institution's centenary. On the other side of the street, we have the church of Sant Pere, designed by the architect Gaspar Bennàssar at the beginning of the 20th century. The works of the temple, in neo-Gothic style, were promoted by Mn. Mateu Tugores and began in 1904 on the same site that housed two previous churches, one from the 13th century and another from the 18th century. Two decades later they were consecrated, although the works are still unfinished.

After a first glance at our starting point, we head into the old town of Esporles following Carrer Nou de Sant Pere. We cross the Sant Pere stream and pass the intersection with Carrer de la Creu, on the right, and Carrer Major, on the left, the epicenter of the most primitive Esporles. We arrive at Plaça del Pla [05 min], with a central fountain on the left, and Can Arboç, the houses of an ancient estate located in the Esporles countryside within the lands of Son Dameto, on the right. We pass in front of the houses and, via Carrer de Mateu Font, head towards Plaça de la Teulera, which we reach via a bridge over the Can Gira ravine, also called Son Cabaspre stream (from its source, under the Coll de la Basseta, to Son Dameto) or na Sastre stream (in the final stretch through the town). We turn left and, parallel to the stream, continue the walk along the Son Simonet path, a steep, shady path surrounded by orchards and terraces.

This first stretch of the route is signposted as GR 221. The wooden signs of the Ruta de Pedra en Sec guide us without any problem until, based on the route's indications, we have to leave it to climb to the top of the moleta. Meanwhile, if we look back, we have a beautiful perspective of the town and the Fita del Ram (na Ferrana's mola), crowned by the Cor de Jesús and Maristella's hermitage. [10 min] Soon, on the right side of the path, Ca n’Alenyar appears to us, a manor house from the first half of the 20th century with a tall tower. A little further up, we leave the asphalt and continue straight ahead, following the GR signs, until we reach the road to Son Cabaspre [20 min], which we join on the left.

We leave the entrance to the Son Dameto estate on the left [30 min], from the 16th century, and its imposing cistern, a few meters from our path. Near the houses, the old road that connected Esporles with Valldemossa through the Coll d’en Claret used to pass. We continue climbing until we pass the modern gate of the Son Cabaspre urbanization and shortly after we turn right, where we continue ascending along a wide, paved path that climbs the inner slopes of the Son Cabaspre moleta.

Meanwhile, we can admire, on our left, the wide and extensive valley that opens at the foot of the Moletó, to the northwest, and the rocky outcrop of the Son Pacs mola. Centered at the head of the valley are the estate houses that give the area its name, the lineage of a family of knights, the Cabaspres, documented in the 15th century in Mallorca. Joan Cabaspre i Santjoan (1449-1523) stood out as a humanist thinker and Lullian scholar and was a professor of Lullian doctrine at the Estudi General from 1503. His tomb is in the church of Sant Francesc in Palma. We are in the ideal place to recall some verses by Bartomeu Fiol, imbued with aromas, sensations, and experiences of the countryside: “Madona de Son Cabaspre, / madona of the rough spaces, / madona of the green spaces, / if you don't give us ingredients / and your best recipe book, / even if we stir it a lot, / with spoons, little spoons, / we'll make a mess / typical of bad cooks”. (Capell de ferro a Son Cabaspre. Bartomeu Fiol i Móra, 1983).

Steps of the Stairs

We leave two entrances on the right, the third is ours. [50 min] We leave the GR 221 and pass a gate without a barrier. A dirt path that three hundred meters later forks. We continue on the left one. We get closer and closer to the rocky outcrop until the dirt path ends [1h 10 min]. We must pay attention because right here begins a small path that, oriented to the west, takes us through the Escalons pass. At the exit of the pass, we come across a dry stone wall and a small gate that gives access to an old charcoal burner's hut. After this point, we turn left and shortly after to the right. The path advances in a somewhat labyrinthine way and we must follow it with our eyes wide open, oriented towards the northeast. Upon seeing the first silos, we must follow a leafy and short gully that ends at the foot of the last rocky outcrop before the summit, where we find an old cistern [1h 25 min].

We will ascend to the summit of the Moleta de Son Cabaspre via the stepped rocky outcrop that emerges from behind the cistern, to the right, following some scattered cairns, in a clear upward diagonal. [1h 35 min] The classic summit cairn indicates the highest point of our hike, at 593 meters above sea level, from where we can enjoy a wide and extensive panorama that reaches as far as the Bay of Palma. We will return by the same path we came. It is, in short, a matter of retracing our steps back to the village [3h 30 min].

@Fita_a_Fita