Caló des Moro, the cove in Santanyi that influencers and Instagrammers have been doing their best to destroy. Unspoiled in that it is not an urban beach, it has been spoiled by the overcrowding which has been provoked at least in part by social media.
The town hall has been doing what it can to try and mitigate issues, but it doesn't have full control. Take all the rubbish that had accumulated, for instance. That's something for the government's coasts department, as the town hall has reminded it.
There are people who care, such as the members of the Foundation of Friends of Caló des Moro-s'Almonia. They are helping to try and keep the area as intact and well-maintained as possible. Intact? Yes, by seeking to limit the amount of sand that gets removed. It is carried away on shoes, on towels, on bags.
This disappearance of sand occurs everywhere and for the same reason, but in Caló des Moro it can be extreme. There is an information board which tells visitors that up to 70 kilos of sand can disappear daily from what is already a beach suffering from erosion. Up to six tonnes of sand can go over the course of the main season, carried away by up to 4,000 beachgoers per day.
This erosion is evident when comparing images of Caló des Moro from 2011 and 2023. These clearly show the beach receding and allowing the sea to encroach.
Coming off the beach there is a facility to allow people to remove sand from their feet using brushes. It's something. Sand, beachgoers too often fail to appreciate, is a precious commodity, and the available space in Caló des Moro is being ever reduced by its disappearance and by the force of occasional storms.
All the visitors on a daily basis, and there's barely room for them to lay a towel.