Cala Pregonda

The sand comes out orange, stained by the red whetstone rock that rings the inlet, and the water over it runs turquoise. White rock islets stand off the beach, sharp and stylised, and they take the wind and the heavier swell before it reaches the sand. The nearest is close enough to swim out to.

On the second-largest islet a rock pinnacle stands up like a hooded figure at prayer, which is probably where the cove got its name. Along the coast the Cavalleria lighthouse is in view, marking the northernmost point of Menorca. Snorkelling along the sides of the cove turns up a good variety of fish, none of them large. The cove also carries the sleeve of Mike Oldfield's Incantations from 1978; the 2011 reissue recentred the picture on the landscape itself.

• No facilities — no toilets and no drinking water at the cove, and none nearby either; nothing is sold on the sand.
• Cars stop at Binimel·la — the tracks on to the cove are private, so the last stretch is on foot along the Camí de Cavalls, or you arrive by boat.
• Food on the way in — a café on the walk serves lunch food; at the cove itself there is nothing, so carry water for the hours you plan to stay.
• The sun turns — from a certain point in the day it sits behind the beach, which some people find uncomfortable.
• Shade — the pines and tamarisks at the back of the sand are the only cover.

From Es Mercadal you take the Fornells road, turn off for Cavalleria beach, then follow the signs for Binimel·la along the tracks and leave the car at the car park there. That is as far as a vehicle goes. The tracks on towards the cove are private, and the rest is the Camí de Cavalls along the coast — 20 to 30 minutes of it, with a few climbs and drops rather than a level stroll.

The gravel car parks sit roughly 1 500 m from the cove in a straight line, so the path takes you over a headland and out of sight of the road. The other way in is by water: boats anchor off the sand through the day. No bus serves the cove.

Best: earlier in the day, while the sun is still in front of you across the water.

Avoid: the later hours if you have come to lie out or take pictures.

From a certain point in the day the sun swings round behind the sand, which some people find uncomfortable and which makes photographs harder. Otherwise the timing is yours: the walk in takes 20 to 30 minutes whenever you set out, and how full the sand feels depends largely on how many boats have come in.

The cove sits inside one of Menorca's Natural Areas of Special Interest — the protected stretch of north coast running from Ets Alocs to Fornells. The approach follows from that: the tracks between the Binimel·la car park and the beach are private, so driving them is not open to visitors. You walk the Camí de Cavalls or you come by boat.

Nothing is provided at the cove — no water, no toilets, nobody on duty — so everything you carry in comes back out with you.