The Sierra de Albarracín is one of the highest and emptiest corners of eastern Spain, a limestone and sandstone country at the headwaters of the Tagus and the Turia, and it holds an exceptional concentration of rock art. The Barranco de las Olivanas shelter is one of many painted sites in these hills, and it is part of the Mediterranean Basin rock art listed by UNESCO. The pictures of bulls and hunters belong to a tradition of red paintings made thousands of years ago, though the exact age is still debated, and the shelter is far from the nearest village, so reaching it takes planning and a walk.
The land here is wide, rolling and lonely, with pine forests, dry meadows and outcrops of red sandstone known as rodeno, which gives the region its warm colour. Just to the north is Albarracín itself, a medieval town of pink-washed walls, steep lanes and ramparts climbing a rocky spur above the Guadalaviar river, which is one of the loveliest towns in Spain and well worth a detour. Villel, Villastar and Gea de Albarracín are small farming villages, each only a few hundred people, quiet and often shuttered at midday.
For a rider the area offers open, beautiful roads. The highway climbs and rolls across the high plateau, with long views and few other vehicles, and side roads wind into forested valleys with a pleasing mix of bends and straights. At altitude, the weather can be cold and changeable, and frost or snow is possible from late autumn to spring. The surface is usually decent, though rough on minor roads, and wildlife such as deer and wild boar can wander across at dusk.
There is little fuel in the villages themselves, and the nearest real services are in Teruel, Albarracín or Cuenca, so fill up before heading deep into the sierra. Albarracín has plenty of cafés and restaurants serving the local roast lamb and cured ham. Summer is warm during the day and cool at night, and the best months are May, June and September, when the light is clear and the hills are quiet.