In the far north-west corner of the Region of Murcia, where the land climbs towards the mountains of Albacete and Jaén, lies Moratalla, a town of whitewashed houses piled up a hillside beneath a castle tower. Its countryside is surprisingly wild for Murcia: pine forests, rivers, gorges and limestone ridges, some of the greenest land in a famously dry region. The rock shelter of Andragulla is one of many painted overhangs scattered through these hills, part of the Levantine rock art sites inscribed together by UNESCO. Many are protected behind fences and need a guide; the tourist office in Moratalla can advise.
Moratalla has a lively calendar. During Holy Week its streets fill with drummers, the tamboradas, who play for hours on end in an almost hypnotic rhythm, and in July the town holds bull runs through its streets as part of its main fiesta. Nearby Caravaca de la Cruz, a few kilometres east, is one of the holy cities of Catholicism, home to a relic of the True Cross, and its May festival features the Caballos del Vino, where teams of men race richly decorated horses up the hill to the castle.
The riding is excellent. Roads climb west from Moratalla into the Sierra de Moratalla and towards the Albacete border, through pine forest, over passes and down into deep valleys with rivers and orchards. Bends are plentiful, surfaces are mostly good, and traffic is minimal outside holiday weekends. The area is one of the least populated parts of Murcia, so the feeling of space is real. Watch for gravel, especially after rain, and for wildlife, including wild boar and the occasional ibex on the rocks.
The climate is more extreme than on the coast. Summer days are hot and dry, winter mornings can be frosty, and spring and autumn are glorious, with almond blossom in late winter and golden light on the hills in October. Rain, when it comes, can be heavy and sudden.
Moratalla, about twelve kilometres away, is a town of eight thousand people with fuel, shops and restaurants, and Caravaca is larger still. Try the local rice dishes with rabbit and snails, or a hearty stew, followed by sweets made by nuns or local bakeries, and take a walk up to the castle for the view.