On a map of the Costa Blanca, the Serra de Bernia looks like a wall dropped between two very different worlds. On one side, high-rise Benidorm and the busy coast; on the other, the quiet valleys of Jalón and Guadalest. The Penya del Vicari is one of the rocky outcrops in these hills above Altea and Calp, a place where the limestone is cut by caves and shelters, some of which carry traces of prehistoric painting. It is a small, quiet site in an area otherwise famous for sun loungers.
Altea is the nearest town, and it is a pleasant surprise: an old village of whitewashed houses climbing to a church with blue-tiled domes, with a long seafront below. Calp, to the north, is dominated by the Penyal d'Ifac, a sheer rock rising from the sea that is now a nature reserve, home to peregrine falcons and seabirds. Between them, the Bernia ridge carries the ruins of a sixteenth-century fortress built under Philip II to watch the coast and the Morisco population of the valleys, later destroyed on royal orders. A walking trail circles the ridge and passes through a natural tunnel in the rock, the Forat.
The riding here is a game of contrasts. The coast road between Altea and Calp is busy and slow, with roundabouts and traffic lights, but turn inland and the roads become narrow, steep and twisting, climbing through almond terraces and pine woods with views that sweep down to the sea. The lane up to the Bernia area and the roads through Bolulla and Tàrbena are particularly good, with plenty of hairpins and a lot of elevation in a few kilometres. Watch for cyclists, goats and the occasional rental car taking the bend in the middle.
Fuel, cafés and everything else are easy in Altea and Calp. The coast is known for rice dishes and seafood, and a lunch on a terrace above the harbour is hard to argue with. In summer, the heat and crowds make early morning or evening the best times to ride; in winter, the climate is mild and the light is wonderful, which is why the cycling teams come. If you head out to the shelters, check access and wear decent shoes. And make time for a moment at a viewpoint above Altea, with the blue domes below, the Penyal d'Ifac on the horizon and the Mediterranean behaving like a postcard.