The hill country around Albocàsser and Catí, in the north of Castellón province, is a landscape of terraced slopes, almond trees and limestone ravines that few visitors cross on their way from the coast to Morella.
The ravines were home to some of the earliest known art of the Mediterranean coast. The nearby Valltorta gorge, a short way south, is a famous concentration of Levantine paintings, small and lively red figures of archers, hunters and animals, and there is a museum at Tírig that explains them. Together they are part of the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin protected by UNESCO. The shelters themselves are often closed and fenced, and the paintings are fading, so see them with a guide or a local office rather than by climbing about on your own.
Catí is known for its cheese, a soft, tangy goat's cheese that is the pride of the district, and the village has a fine old centre with Gothic houses and a fair in its honour. Albocàsser has a church, a few bars and views over the surrounding ridges. Chert, or Xert, farther north, is a gorgeous small place with steep streets. The area has always been poor, and it shows in the stone shepherds' huts and the dry-stone walls that cover the hills in lines.
The riding is a pure delight for those who like empty roads. The CV roads between Catí, Albocàsser and Tírig rise and fall over small passes with lots of bends and no traffic, the surface is decent most of the way, and in spring the fields are green and the almond and cherry blossom lights up the valleys. The wind picks up in the afternoons, and winter nights are cold, with the odd frost on the shaded bends. In midsummer the heat is intense and the best time is early morning.
For fuel, the towns are small, so fill up before you leave the coast road. Alcalà de Xivert, sixteen kilometres away, has nearly seven thousand people and several stations, and Catí and Albocàsser have bars where you can get a coffee and a plate of local sausage or lamb. Plan your timing, because many places close from three to six in the afternoon.