Morella is one of the great walled towns of eastern Spain, a stack of grey stone houses wound round a conical hill in the high country where Castellón meets Teruel, and the whole thing is crowned by a castle that looks like it was carved from the summit. The medieval walls run for more than two kilometres, the main street is lined with arcades, and a Gothic basilica dedicated to Santa María holds a remarkable choir in the middle of the nave. Every six years the town holds a festival called the Sexenni, with processions and dancing in honour of the Virgin of Vallivana. Outside the festival years, the place keeps a quiet, mountain dignity, and the cheese, truffles and lamb are all good.
The Cingle de Palanques is a rock band in the hills a few kilometres away, in the Ports region, and the shelters in it are part of the Mediterranean Basin rock art that UNESCO protects. The paintings are in the Levantine tradition, red figures of archers and animals, and the setting is dramatic, with cliffs above a dry ravine and views across oak woods. Access is on foot and usually needs local guidance, and the paintings are fragile, so touching is out of the question.
Riders know this area as some of the best in the whole Spanish east. The roads out of Morella climb over passes among rolling pastures, with long, open bends and the occasional steep hairpin, and the villages are sparse, so the road feels empty and generous. At more than a thousand metres, it is cooler than the coast by many degrees, and spring brings snow on the tops while the valleys are green. Autumn gives clear light and gold in the oak leaves. Winter can be icy, and mist is common.
Morella is the nearest place for fuel, with petrol stations, supermarkets and several restaurants serving local specialities such as flaó, a sweet cheese tart, and the town's hearty stews. Forcall and Aguaviva are smaller, with a bar or two. Fill the tank in Morella before heading into the hills, and if you stay overnight, stand on the walls at dusk, when the lights come on and the wind drops.