This
Girl
Can
Sonja Jones
& Crew
Circumnavigate
Menorca
Earlier this year we heard on the
grapevine that Sonja Jones, winner of
last year’s John MacGregor Award, was
planning another adventure. It seemed
somewhere a little further afield was
on the cards – somewhere with warmer
climes and beautiful scenery. So Sonja
hopped on Google Earth for a nosey
of what Europe had to offer – she
was instantly struck by the idea of
circumnavigating Menorca…
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www.britishcanoeing.org.uk
Menorca is a highly compact island, but one of immense
contrast; every few kilometers, it felt like we were paddling
through different countries. I remember staring into the
horizon looking at such a lush, green and hilly landscape
thinking, “I feel like I’m paddling towards a tropical rain
forest,” to then paddling through a Country and Western film
set. Other times you could be mistaken for thinking you were
on the South Devonshire Coast or even in Scotland.
The pure frequency and quality of the caves along the coast
between Canutells and Cala en Porter, upon exploration, were
out of this world – and the deep purple colour of the cave
walls, if dark enough, sparkled like something from a fictional
land. At one point, we entered a cave in Cala Galdana which
was 180 metres deep; I will never forget the smell of rotting
sea weed at the end.
Canoe Focus Autumn 2016
Some parts were so dark that even head
torches did not light our path sufficiently, but
fortunately our own Ray Mears, Mr Wilkinson,
happened to have a lunar sized lamp attached
to his person which lit the way sufficiently.
Absorbing its beauty and varied landscape,
Menorca isn’t a stereotypical Balearic island.
When I first considered an expedition in the Balearic Sea, I
immediately thought of glassy waters and glorious sunshine.
The more I read about Menorca and its windy tendencies and
researched the subject matter in depth, I began to realise that
it may not be as placid as one imagined. However for me,
the challenge of intense sea states does nothing but stir the
senses – the choppier the better.
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