Albocàsser, Catí and Les Coves de Vinromà share a landscape of limestone ridges and wide, dry valleys, in the north of Castellón, where the first foothills of the Maestrat meet the plain. Cova de l'Arc, six kilometres from Albocàsser, is one of the shelters of this country, and its name, the cave of the arch, suggests the shape of the rock. The district is known to archaeologists for its painted shelters, which form part of the Mediterranean Basin rock art that UNESCO listed in 1998.
The people who painted here lived in a landscape quite like the present one, though more wooded, with deer, wild boar and wild goats on the slopes. Today the land is farmed with almonds, olives and some vines, and the stone farmhouses called masos, such as the Mas d'en Badenes that shares the ride, dot the hillsides. Drystone walls and small stone huts for shepherds and farmers are part of the pattern.
The riding is excellent for those who like open country. Roads link the villages over low passes, through avenues of almond trees that bloom in late winter and across plateaus where the wind blows steadily. The curves are easy and the surface is good on the main roads, though side lanes are narrower and rougher. Traffic is light, apart from tractors in the harvest season. In summer it is hot and dry, and in winter the nights can be frosty.
Albocàsser has about fourteen hundred people and the basics, with a few bars, a bakery and a shop. Cuevas de Vinromà, with nearly nineteen hundred, is nearby, and Catí, smaller, is famous for its cheese. For a bigger choice of fuel and food, you would head toward the coast or the main road. Local dishes include rice with rabbit, grilled lamb and the sweet pastries of the Maestrat.
Spring, with its green fields and blossom, and autumn, with a soft light, are the best times to visit.