Calamocha has a reputation in Spain, and it is not for its nightlife. This town in the Jiloca valley of Teruel province is one of the coldest places in the country in winter, a high, open basin where the air pools at night and frost bites hard. In summer that same altitude makes it pleasant when the coast is sweltering. The Cañada de Marco is a site in the hills just outside town, and the name hints at the old drove roads, the cañadas, that once carried flocks of sheep across Aragon between summer and winter pastures.
The Jiloca is a long, gentle valley running from near Monreal del Campo down towards Calatayud, flanked by bare sierras of grey and red rock. It has a quiet history of wool, saffron and mudéjar brick churches. Monreal del Campo, just upstream, has a small museum dedicated to saffron, which was once grown widely here, and the brick towers in villages along the valley are part of the mudéjar heritage that Aragon is so proud of. Calamocha itself has a fine old bridge over the river and a solid parish church.
If you have half an hour spare, ride northwest to the Laguna de Gallocanta, about half an hour away. It is a shallow salt lake on the high plateau, and every autumn and late winter tens of thousands of common cranes stop there on migration. Arrive at dusk and the sound alone is worth the trip. The roads there are straight, quiet and fast, with fields of cereals stretching to the horizon and wind that can be relentless.
The riding in the valley itself is easy cruising: the A-23 motorway carries most traffic, leaving the old N-234 and local roads largely to farmers and the odd lorry. For more interesting curves, head east into the Sierra de Cucalón or south towards the Montes Universales, where the roads climb and twist through pine and oak. Watch for deer at dawn and dusk.
Calamocha has fuel, a couple of supermarkets and several bars serving hearty Aragonese food: lamb, migas, and the cured ham from Teruel, which carries its own designation of origin. In winter, wear more than you think; the thermometer here can sit below zero all morning. In summer, it is a fine place for a long lunch in the shade before heading onwards across the plateau.