Vélez-Blanco is a white town under a limestone wall, and the castle above it is one of the oddest in Spain. The Marquises of Los Vélez built it in the early sixteenth century, in a hurry to look both fortified and Italian, so the outside has round towers and the inside had a marble Renaissance courtyard that was later sold, piece by piece, and ended up in New York's Metropolitan Museum. Below the castle the town clings to the slope, with narrow lanes and a church, and the Sierra María-Los Vélez rises behind, a natural park of pine, juniper and bare crags. At about a thousand metres, it is cold in winter and delicious in summer.
The caves hold older things. The Cueva de los Letreros, a short way outside the town, has painted figures that include the little man with outstretched arms known as the Indalo, which gave its name to the lucky charm of Almería province and which you will see on doors and tourist shops all along the coast. The caves belong to the Mediterranean-arc rock art that UNESCO listed in 1998.
Riding in the Sierra María is a long series of climbs and descents on quiet roads, with views over high plains of almond and cereal. The A-317 and local lanes link up in loops, with generous bends and little traffic. The road surface is generally decent, though patches of loose stone appear after storms. Spring is glorious, with blossom and green slopes, and autumn is mild. Winter brings ice and sometimes snow, so check the forecast.
Vélez-Blanco has about two thousand people, and Vélez-Rubio, four kilometres away, is a bigger town of seven thousand with fuel, supermarkets and a handsome baroque church. Fill the tank there. The bars in Vélez-Blanco serve strong coffee and plates of local cured meats, and it is a perfect place for a slow breakfast with the castle on the skyline above. Early morning light on the pale rock is unforgettable.