The Abrigo del Sabinar lies in the remote mountains of north-western Murcia, near Moratalla, where the Sierra de Segura and the Sierra del Taibilla meet, and its paintings of human figures and animals, including deer and goats, are among the finest examples of Levantine rock art in the region. The shelter is part of the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin listing, and the area around Moratalla and Nerpio is particularly rich in painted shelters. The landscape is wild and rugged, with pine forests, limestone cliffs and deep river valleys, and the villages are few and far between.
Nearby Caravaca de la Cruz is one of the holy cities of Catholicism, home to a relic of the True Cross, and it holds a jubilee year every seven years, attracting pilgrims from all over Spain. Its annual festival in May includes the Caballos del Vino, a race of horses decorated with embroidered cloaks, up the steep street to the castle. Moratalla, a town of narrow streets and white houses below a castle, is famous for its drumming during Holy Week.
The roads in this corner of Spain are among the best and least known in the country, winding through mountains and valleys with little traffic and spectacular scenery. The road from Moratalla to Nerpio, through the Sierra de Segura, is a classic, with endless curves, climbs and descents, and the roads on to the Sierra de Cazorla offer more of the same. The tarmac is patchy in places, and summer temperatures in these sierras can be fierce, so April, May and October make the most sense.
Moratalla, twenty-six kilometres away, has fuel, shops and restaurants, and Caravaca de la Cruz, a little further, has more. The villages have bars and simple restaurants serving local dishes, such as lamb, rice with rabbit and snails, and migas, fried breadcrumbs with sausage. Carry water and fuel, as services are scarce in the mountains. The rock shelters can be visited with a guide, and the interpretation centres in Moratalla and Nerpio explain the paintings and organise visits.