South of Caspe, the lower Aragón country is a dry, sculpted landscape of ochre hills, flat-topped mesas and gullies cut into soft sandstone, with almond and olive groves clinging to the valley floors. In these sandstone outcrops, prehistoric people found shelter and left paintings, and the Abrigo del Plano del Pulido is one of the rock shelters of the area included in the World Heritage site of the rock art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula. The painted figures, in the reddish tones of Levantine art, are small and faded, and as at most of these sites, access is controlled and visits may need to be arranged in advance.
Caspe has a special place in Spanish history. In 1412, the Compromise of Caspe was agreed here, when delegates from Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia chose Ferdinand of Antequera as king of Aragon after the old royal line died out, a peaceful solution to a succession crisis that shaped the future of the Iberian kingdoms. The town sits beside the Mar de Aragón, the long reservoir formed by damming the Ebro at Mequinenza, which is famous among anglers for its giant catfish. To the south, the Matarraña region, sometimes called the Tuscany of Aragon, has medieval villages, olive groves and dramatic rock formations.
For riders, there is one name in the area that needs no introduction: Alcañiz, about thirteen kilometres to the south, is home to the MotorLand Aragón circuit, which hosts MotoGP and draws motorcyclists from all over Europe. The roads around it are equally tempting: long, empty stretches across the steppe, winding climbs through the hills of the Matarraña toward Valderrobres, and twisty roads along the reservoir. Surfaces are generally good, traffic light, and the views wide. Summer heat is fierce, and the cierzo, a strong, cold northwest wind, can blow hard across the open country.
Caspe, about ten kilometres away, is a town of roughly eight thousand people with fuel and a choice of places to eat, and Alcañiz has more. Local food includes Aragonese lamb, ternasco, roasted with potatoes, and the excellent olive oil of the Bajo Aragón, along with peaches from Calanda, a protected variety. Plan your visit to the shelter if possible, then ride the roads around the reservoir and into the hills. It is a dry, sunlit land, and on a motorcycle it feels wide open.