High in the interior of Castellón, where the coastal orange groves are long forgotten and the land climbs toward the Penyagolosa massif, the shelter known as Cova de Gargán sits in a country of limestone ledges, holm oak and dry-stone terraces. Vistabella del Maestrazgo is the nearest village, a handful of kilometres away on its high plateau, with Villahermosa del Río down in its valley to the other side and Lucena del Cid a little further south. It is quiet up here in a way that the coast never is.
The shelter belongs to the great family of Levantine rock art, the painted overhangs that run down the eastern side of Spain and were listed together by UNESCO in 1998. The figures in these shelters are small, often only a hand's length, painted in reds and blacks by people who hunted and later herded in these hills thousands of years ago: archers in mid-stride, deer and ibex, scenes that feel more like quick sketches than formal art. Many shelters are protected by grilles, and the usual way to see the paintings close up is with a local guide arranged through the village or a visitor centre, so treat the ride as the main event and any viewing as a bonus you plan ahead.
And the riding is the reason to come. The roads that thread between Vistabella, Villahermosa and Lucena are narrow, twisting and lightly used, climbing through pine and oak with the grey bulk of Penyagolosa, the highest summit in the province, never far from view. Surfaces are generally decent but patched in places, with gravel washed onto the inside of bends after storms and the occasional flock of sheep that has absolutely no intention of moving for you. Spring is lovely, with broom flowering yellow on the slopes; high summer is hot in the valleys but fresher on the plateau; winter brings frost and even snow above a thousand metres.
Villages this size have bars and sometimes a small shop, but fuel is another matter. Plan to fill in l'Alcora, about twenty kilometres away toward the coast, or in one of the larger towns on your approach, and carry water on a hot day. As a start and finish point it works well because everything around it is good riding, and the loop back past the same rock walls in a different light can feel like a second route entirely.