Even in a dry year the Guadalest valley is surprisingly green, with fruit trees and water in the channels, and the road that climbs from Callosa d'en Sarrià up to the village of Guadalest is a classic of the Costa Blanca hinterland. A little to the west of it, in the Marina Alta, the Barranc de la Fita carries a series of painted shelters of which Abric I is the first, less than three kilometres from Castell de Castells. Its figures form part of the rock art of the Mediterranean arc of Spain, listed by UNESCO in 1998.
Water is the thread of the area. The Fonts de l'Algar, near Callosa, are a set of waterfalls and clear pools that make a good swim on a hot day, and the reservoir at Guadalest, an intense turquoise, supplies the coast. The old village of Guadalest itself stands on a rock crowned by a castle and a bell tower, and its small square is crowded with visitors from the beach resorts. Beyond it, the road toward Castell de Castells and Tàrbena is quieter, with olive and almond terraces and views of the sea far below.
You can make a fine loop of it. From Benidorm or Altea, follow the CV-70 inland to Guadalest, then take the narrow road over the Serrella foothills to Castell de Castells, and return by the Coll de Rates, a famous climb from the Tàrbena side, with long bends and a viewpoint over the Jalón valley. The surface is mostly good, and there are some stretches where the road has been widened. Cyclists are everywhere, so give them room.
Castell de Castells and Benimantell do not have fuel, so fill the tank in Callosa d'en Sarrià or in Pego, fifteen kilometres from the shelter. Local food is simple and good, with rice dishes, olive oil and a sweet wine made from muscatel grapes, and the villages along the road have small bars that open for lunch. Take water on the walk to the shelter, and look out for the lizards that bask on the rocks.