Benassal and Culla are mountain villages in the Alt Maestrat, in the interior of the province of Castelló, a region of limestone plateaus, deep gorges and stone walls that feels a world away from the beaches of the coast. La Covassa del Molinell, a large rock shelter near Benassal, is one of many in the Maestrat with prehistoric paintings. The region is one of the richest areas for Levantine rock art, with the famous shelters of the Valltorta gorge, near Tírig, just to the east.
The Maestrat takes its name from the Maestre, the Grand Master of the military orders, the Templars and later the Order of Montesa, who controlled this area after the Christian reconquest in the thirteenth century. The villages are built of stone, often on hilltops, with churches, castles and arcaded squares. Culla, perched on a hill with its castle ruins, is one of the most beautiful, with views across the mountains. Benassal is known for the Font d'en Segures, a spring whose water is bottled and sold across Spain.
The riding in the Maestrat is superb. The roads wind across high plateaus and through deep valleys, with tight bends, steep climbs and descents, and spectacular views. Traffic is almost non-existent, and the surfaces are generally good. The landscape is wild and empty, with stone walls, farmhouses and sheep. The climate is continental, with hot summers and cold winters, and snow is possible on the high ground. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, with mild temperatures and clear skies.
Benassal is a village of thirteen hundred people with basic services, and fuel may be limited in the mountains, so fill up in larger towns on the way. Culla is smaller. The local cuisine is hearty: lamb, cured meats, cheeses and truffles, which grow in the oak forests of the Maestrat and are harvested in winter. The Valltorta museum at Tírig is a good place to learn about the rock art. In the evening, the light on the stone villages and the mountains is golden, and the silence is broken only by the bells of the church.