Why this ride
A 221 km one-way ride from near Venturada, about 3 h 17 of riding. It goes by way of Brea de Tajo and near Colmenar de Oreja. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,150 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Alto Tajo Gorge Ride · part 2
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 221 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 17
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Photo stop near Venturada
Venturada is a small municipality about fifty kilometres north of Madrid, just off the A-1 motorway to Burgos. It sits on the first rise of land where the plain begins to climb towards the Sierra de Guadarrama and the Sierra Norte de Madrid, and from the hills around it you get long views back across the plain to the city and forward to the mountains.
Read the complete Photo stop near Venturada write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Photo stop near Venturada is where the day begins. Next is Madrid / Central Spain return.
2. Brea de Tajo, on the way back
South-east of Madrid the land drops towards the Tagus in a broken country of chalky hills, olive groves and vineyards, and Brea de Tajo sits on a ridge above the valley, a small village of white houses and a big church. The river runs a few kilometres south, between Estremera and Driebes, in a wide valley of poplars and irrigated fields.
Read the complete Brea de Tajo, on the way back write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Madrid / Central Spain return comes up about 116 km into the recorded legs. Next is Food stop near Colmenar de Oreja.
3. Food stop near Colmenar de Oreja
Planning note
A break here. Next is Back to Alto Tajo Gorge.
4. Back to Alto Tajo Gorge
This final point lies on the south-western edge of Madrid, near Arroyomolinos and Navalcarnero, a long way from the Alto Tajo itself. The natural park that gives the ride its name is some hundred and fifty kilometres to the east, in the high limestone country on the borders of Guadalajara and Cuenca provinces, where the Tajo and its tributaries have cut deep, tree-lined gorges through a plateau of pale rock. Here, you are back in the commuter belt, among new housing estates and fields of cereal and olive.
Read the complete Alto Tajo Gorge write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back to Alto Tajo Gorge closes the day.
Leg by leg
Photo stop near Venturada to Brea de Tajo, on the way back
Photo stop near Venturada → Brea de Tajo, on the way back is 116 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Food stop near Colmenar de Oreja to Back to Alto Tajo Gorge
Food stop near Colmenar de Oreja → Back to Alto Tajo Gorge is 69 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.