In May 1846, due to the blockade imposed on Barcelona by the Carlist armies during “La Revolta dels Mariners”, there was a shortage of salt that endangered Barcelona.

A well-known Barcelona businessman had the original idea of calling together the most famous sailors of the time and presenting them with a challenge: he would pay for the services of transporting salt from the Salinas Pitiüses to El Garraf (Barcelona), but on a first-come, first-served basis. The first to arrive would be paid in gold, but the last ones might not even be able to pay the salaries of the sailors.

The Ruta de la Sal, officially called La Ruta de la Sal-Trofeo Pepe Ferrés, is an offshore regatta with destination Ibiza (Spain), which has been held annually since 1989 at Easter. It has three versions or departures: from Barcelona, which is the original, from Denia and from Mallorca and is organised by the Asociación de Navegantes de Altura Mediterráneos (ANAM), the Real Asociación Nacional de Cruceros (RANC).

From 1992 to the present day, the number of participants has been increasing, constituting a true sociological phenomenon among our country’s enthusiasts.

Every year, the Ruta de la Sal mobilises more than 2,000 sailors and a colourful fleet of boats sails the Mediterranean to commemorate the voyages of the last century in search of the White Gold: the salt of life!

The Ruta de la Sal is the most popular offshore regatta in the Mediterranean and the most important thing is that it has managed to maintain the charm of the first day. It is not an easy race. The crossings are long and the timing of the race is a difficult time of the year in terms of weather. This gives it the charm of adventure and the incentive that the fact of qualifying is already a victory in itself.