Calasparra is a rice town, which is not what most people expect of inland Murcia. The rice grown here, in terraced paddies along the Segura and Mundo rivers, was the first in Spain to receive a protected designation of origin, and it is prized for absorbing flavour without turning to mush, so paella cooks prefer it. The paddies shimmer green in summer and gold in autumn, with herons and egrets feeding in the flooded fields, and behind them rise bare limestone hills, so the effect is of a patch of Asia dropped onto a dry Spanish landscape.
The Segura here cuts through the Cañón de Almadenes, a narrow gorge with vertical walls, where the river runs green between cliffs and a sanctuary clings to the rock face. The Virgen de la Esperanza sanctuary, in a cave in the cliffs, is the most important pilgrimage site in the region, and the image is carried in a procession on feast days. A viewpoint above the gorge gives a fine look at the cliffs, and vultures and eagles often circle overhead.
The painted shelters of the Calasparra and Cieza area belong to the Levantine rock art tradition, part of the UNESCO listing of 1998, and the cliffs of the Segura valley are full of small overhangs where such paintings survive. As elsewhere, the sites are fragile and protected, access is limited and local advice is essential. The nearby town of Cieza, a larger place of about 35,000 people, is famous for its peaches and its spring blossom, when thousands of fruit trees come into flower together in February and March.
Calasparra, with about 10,000 people, is 11 km away and has fuel stations, shops and cafés. The riding is easy, on roads that follow the river and cross the dry hills, with the odd bend and good views, and in summer the heat is severe, so ride early. Try arroz con conejo y caracoles, rice with rabbit and snails, or a plain rice and vegetable dish, the best way to taste the local grain. Carry water, and stay out of the river after heavy rain, when the flow can rise fast.