Caudete and Almansa sit in a corridor of land where Castile-La Mancha, Valencia and Murcia meet, and for centuries this was frontier country, where kingdoms and armies passed and fought. Olula is a point in the hills near Caudete, linked on the rides with rock-art shelters in the surrounding sierras, part of the extensive UNESCO listing of prehistoric art in Mediterranean Spain.
Caudete, about eight kilometres away, is a town of around ten thousand people, historically linked to Valencia although it now belongs to Albacete province, and its people still speak with a Valencian accent. The town is known for its Moors and Christians festival in September, with parades, music and gunpowder, and a sanctuary dedicated to the Virgin of Gracia. Almansa, to the northwest, is dominated by a spectacular castle perched on a limestone crag right in the middle of town, and it was the scene of a decisive battle in 1707 during the War of the Spanish Succession, a victory for the Bourbon side that changed the political history of Spain.
The riding here is a mix of open plateau and hill roads. The main roads, including the A-31 motorway, run through the corridor between Albacete and Alicante and are busy with trucks, while the smaller roads toward La Font de la Figuera, Villena and the Sierra de Salinas are quieter, with curves and climbs through pine forest. The climate is continental, with hot summers, cold winters and strong winds in the open, so plan for wide swings in temperature between morning and afternoon.
Caudete has fuel, supermarkets and restaurants, and Almansa offers more services, including hotels and bike repair shops. Local food reflects the meeting of regions: gazpacho manchego, a hearty game stew with flatbread, alongside Valencian rice dishes and Murcian vegetables. Villena, a short ride south, has another impressive castle and a museum with the treasure of Villena, a collection of Bronze Age gold vessels and jewellery that is among the most important in Europe.