The Serranía de Cuenca does not advertise itself, and that is half its appeal. Marmalo lies in the south-eastern corner of Cuenca province, where the high limestone plateau begins to break up into pine-covered ridges and gorges as it falls toward the Cabriel river and the border with Valencia. Villar del Humo, a village of only a few hundred people, is the nearest settlement of any note, and the shelters around it hold Levantine rock paintings, small, vivid figures of hunters and animals in red, a tradition UNESCO lists among Europe's major rock art. Marmalo I is one of several sites here, and there are more nearby.
The riding is on quiet roads through big, empty country. Pine forests roll away in every direction, broken by small farms, dry stone walls and the occasional sheepfold, and the Cabriel cuts a deep green gorge through the landscape, a river famous for its clear water and for being one of the last wild rivers in this part of Spain. The altitude is around a thousand metres or more, so mornings are cold even in summer and winter brings frost and snow. The roads are mostly narrow and winding, with patches of rough surface, and there is almost no traffic, so a breakdown here would be a long wait.
Plan your fuel carefully. Villar del Humo has only a few hundred people and Carboneras de Guadazaón, about thirteen kilometres off, has a bit under a thousand, so neither is a safe bet, and the nearest reliable towns are some distance away, Cuenca to the north-west and the Requena area to the east. Fill the tank at the last big town, carry water and tell someone where you are going. Phone signal is patchy.
In return, you get skies of astonishing clarity and the sound of the wind in the pines. Autumn is superb, with mushrooms in the woods and golden light, and spring brings wildflowers and birdsong. Approach the shelters quietly, keep to any marked paths, and leave the paintings untouched.