Albarracín is one of the loveliest villages in Spain, a town of pink-ochre houses on a rock bend above the Guadalaviar river, with medieval walls climbing the hill behind. The Sierra de Albarracín around it is high and cold, at about 1,200 metres, a land of pine forest, red sandstone outcrops called rodeno, and wide empty plateaus. The Guadalaviar, which becomes the Turia in Valencia, rises in these hills, and the Tagus and the Júcar are not far from their sources. The rock shelters of this region, including the Huerto de las Tajadas, hold some of the oldest paintings of the Levantine and Schematic styles, and they are part of the Mediterranean-arc group UNESCO listed in 1998.
The ride up is the pleasure. From Teruel, the road follows the Guadalaviar to Albarracín, with long bends and big views, and onwards to Gea de Albarracín and the plateau. Traffic is light, apart from weekend visitors to Albarracín itself, and the surface is generally good. Winter brings snow and ice, so check the weather. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, the air cold and clean, and the light low on the stone.
Teruel is the nearest real town, twenty kilometres from the shelter, with fuel, supermarkets and the Mudéjar towers that UNESCO has also listed. The village of Albarracín has a handful of fuel stops nearby, but do not count on them, and Gea de Albarracín is tiny. Fill up in Teruel. For lunch, try the cured ham of Teruel, which has its own designation of origin, or a plate of roast lamb, and finish with a coffee in a square.
Albarracín is crowded on weekends and quiet on midweek mornings. Park below the walls and walk in. The old streets are steep, and the house fronts lean in a way that makes the light curious. A walk along the ramparts at the end of the day is a good way to see the sun on the hills.