“The light turned golden, with all the foam of the waves against the lighthouse. It was the best way to end the journey…”
Alba Estela Morales, Escapologist and golden hour obsessive. She’s a big advocate for little adventures, committed to the roam around 9-5 employment. A proper Roamer. Leading from the front with the badge(s) to prove it.
Our community has always been at the heart of the Roamers Collective. It was dreamed up as a space for people to come together, get stoked on adventure and share fireside stories. When mapping out the route up, we thought it only right to offer something big for those committed to the journey. A chance for community members to up sticks and explore further. A fund for adventurous types, a payback scheme for meaningful escape. So when Alba approached us with her idea of Chasing Lighthouses, we busted open the piggy bank and left space in the calendar to tell her story.
We thank Alba for her dedication to the Roamers Collective and to the roam. We hope her story inspires meaningful escapism in you; to go out there and find it… take the scenic route and embrace your journey. Wherever that might take you.
“When I think about the Roamers Collective, I see it as a mountain with loads of different paths interconnecting up to the summit. There’s not one way to get to the top, but the views sure are worth it. Alba has been with us for nearly a full year and is the first to reach the Escapologist tier, so we wanted to celebrate her sense of adventure and share her story with our wider community...”
Calling all Roamers, Storytellers, Content Creators and Community Engagers to join the Collective…
Go Further, Get More.
Written by Alba Estela Morales
I’m Alba and I’m from Menorca, a little paradise in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. When people hear about this island, they usually think about its crystal waters and sunny days, but they probably don’t know that the best time to be there is autumn. Autumn is when the light becomes softer, when the strong winds and sea storms arrive, and when fewer people are around. I love all of that.
Even though Menorca is only around 45 km from East to West, because of its cliffs and rugged landscapes there are many lighthouses around the island. Lighthouses are the first thing that inspired me in photography. I think that every lighthouse is different, unique, solitary, and has its own light and soul. From darkness to light and from light to darkness, every day. They symbolize the waiting, the loneliness, but they’re also guiding lights in darkness. The lighthouse is the watchman of its coastline. They know all the secrets and stories that have happened there and, if you stay a while with it, the wind whispers some of them back to you.
So, if we mix Menorca, autumn light and lighthouses, I can not ask for anything else. For that reason, we decided to chase some lighthouses around the island, find the best light and spend some time there.
“We arrived at dawn, although the day was foggy. We set out to prepare the paddle surf…”
We start our journey at Illa de l'Aire Lighthouse. It is the most difficult lighthouse to access since it’s located on a small island that can only be reached by sea. It’s also the tallest lighthouse in Menorca and is home to a black lizard that is indigenous to the island.
We arrived at dawn, although the day was foggy. We set out to prepare the paddle surf to paddle in, but the sea conditions did not allow us to do so. We were just happy to see how its light was turning off while the sun came up. Clouds, wind and some rain haunted us until the end of the day when the clouds finally opened up and let some sunshine through. We decided to go in search of the next lighthouse, Punta Nati.
“We had some luck and the sky cleared, so we could enjoy the golden hour…”
This lighthouse is located to the northeast of the island; erected in an arid, almost magical place. On good days you can even see neighboring Mallorca in the background and it’s probably one of the most beautiful places on the island to catch sunset. We had some luck and the sky cleared, so we could enjoy the golden hour and see how the sun ended up falling over the sea.
On the way back, suddenly the sky became overcast and a heavy shower began to fall. We rushed back to the car but when we were on the way, we saw the lighthouse light turn on and were fascinated to see how its light passed through the rain, creating a truly magical scene. We really appreciated bringing cozy clothes on this day!
Our trip continued and we had planned to visit Cavalleria’s Lighthouse during sunrise, but we weren’t lucky and got bad weather again. Since we are stubborn, we return at sunset and whoever follows, gets it. Cavalleria's lighthouse is located at the northernmost tip of the island. It is surely the most known of Menorca, but it still has secret corners in which to enjoy the sunset without anybody else.
It is reached by a spectacular road surrounded by immense cliffs and with the lighthouse guiding you at the end. It is probably one of the most spectacular locations on the island as it’s elevated 40 meters above the sea. Once there, we searched for my favorite spot, just behind the lighthouse from where you can see the whole panoramic view of the enclave. We prepared a good coffee and enjoyed an incredible sunset without any clouds. It was worth repeating to be able to live this moment!
“But... the storm came back, strong ‘Tramuntana’ winds (the typical north wind of Menorca)”
I reserved my favorite lighthouse for the last one, this is none other than Favaritx. This lighthouse is located on the north coast of the island and is surrounded by imposing black slate cliffs that make it look like something from Mars.
But... the storm came back, strong ‘Tramuntana’ winds (the typical north wind of Menorca) and heavy rains delayed our visit to the Lighthouse. I was worried about not having time to visit it but finally, on our last day on the island, the bad weather gave us a break, but not the wind. We decided to play this one last card and go.
The wind and the waves were so powerful that they were covering part of the Lighthouse when crashing against the rocks and this stopped us from reaching my favorite spot. The spectacle was one of the most incredible we had ever seen, the light turned golden, with all the foam of the waves against the lighthouse. It was the best way to end the journey!
