Keep on climbing!
Tales of the Tramuntana
Mallorca – March 2025
Sometimes, when you’re in the middle of something long or challenging, it can be easy to lose sight of how far you’ve come.
I was fortunate enough to visit Mallorca earlier this year. The Serra de Tramuntana (Tramuntana mountains) and the GR221 long distance hiking trail that runs through them, are a walker’s paradise.
Early one morning, we took a taxi from our hotel in Port de Sóller, to the village of Biniaraix in the foothills of the Tramuntana. From there, we took an ancient, cobbled path up the Barranc de Biniaraix (Biniaraix gorge) to the Coll de L’Ofre pass.
We climbed for 3 hours solid. Each time we thought we’d got to the top, there would be another bit to climb. And another. But eventually we made it to the summit and out of the mist.
Psychologically, it took a lot of effort to push onwards and upwards through that final section – momentarily demoralised by each false summit, but choosing to set the disappointment to one side and keep on climbing.
When we finally broke over the crest of the pass, we could see for miles. The view from the top was impressive. (You’ll just have to imagine how much more amazing it would have looked if the weather had cleared a couple of hours earlier!)
Retracing our steps to Biniaraix and beyond, our original plan had been to catch the bus from Sóller. Exhausted, we plonked ourselves on the bus shelter seats and waited. But, after frying in full sun for 25 minutes with no bus in sight, we reluctantly set off for Port de Sóller on foot.
As we trudged those final five kilometres, we came to an elevated walkway, and I happened to glance back through a gap in the trees. Wow! What a view! A single image that put our whole journey in perspective.
In the 8 hours since we’d been dropped off, we’d climbed up and over the saddle of the ridge, seen what was on the other side, walked across the entire of Sóller and through beautiful citrus groves to our current location. No wonder my feet hurt!
There are times when just putting one foot in front of another is a real effort. It might feel like you’re never going to get there. Pause. Breathe. And look back at how far you’ve come. Recognise all the hard work and effort it’s taken you to get this far. Celebrate the progress you’ve made and the steps you’ve taken towards your goal. You may not be there yet, but you can still look back and be proud of the journey so far.
Whilst it can be exciting to set up your own business, it can also feel overwhelming. You’re being pulled in so many different directions that it’s hard to keep tabs on everything. You’ve got to sort out your own insurance, IT issues, training, marketing, branding; make sure you’re complying with any legal and professional requirements relevant to your business; put together a business plan, manage your finances, keep bookkeeping records and complete a tax return. Some of those tasks may be things you’ve never have had to deal with before.
Through Springreach, I’m creating a range of practical courses, resources, software demos, videos and blogs designed especially for self-employed individuals and small owner-managed businesses in the UK.
My aim is to take the stress out of the bookkeeping and tax side of being self-employed, offering you the tools and a process for keeping on top of your business record-keeping and making it as easy as possible to complete the self-employed pages of your Self Assessment Tax Return.
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© Springreach Training & Coaching – November 2025