The Sierra de Albarracín is big sky country. At over a thousand metres, the plateau is cold in winter and bright in summer, with pine forest, juniper and limestone outcrops, and a population so thin that you can drive for half an hour without meeting a house. Abrigo del Ciervo, the Shelter of the Deer, lies four kilometres from the town of Albarracín, in the sandstone landscape of the Rodeno, and its name suggests that the animal was an important one for those who painted here. The group of Levantine rock art sites in this area is part of the Mediterranean Basin rock art that UNESCO listed in 1998.
Deer still live in these woods, and so do wild boar, foxes and, on the high cliffs, the Spanish ibex, which has returned to many of its old haunts. Golden eagles and griffon vultures work the ridges, and in the early morning or at dusk you have a decent chance of seeing deer at the edge of a clearing, especially from a quiet road. The pine forest smells of resin in the heat, and the red earth lights up in the evening.
The roads of the sierra are some of the best in Teruel for riding. They are open and quick, climbing in long, easy bends over the plateau and dropping into river gorges, with a good surface and very little traffic. Winters are hard, with snow and ice, and some roads can close, so check before you set out in the cold months. In summer the heat is dry but the nights are cool. Mornings in spring and autumn are clear and sharp.
Albarracín is a small place of about a thousand people, with a modest range of shops and restaurants, and the nearest place with more choice, including fuel, is Cella, a town of nearly three thousand. Teruel is farther, about forty kilometres. Local food includes cured ham, lamb, truffles in season and almond cakes. The ride links this shelter with the Balma de la Fabriqueta, so you can spend a long day among the pines.
Take water on any walk, and keep to the marked trails to protect the fragile paintings and the vegetation.