Why this ride
A 512 km round trip from Amposta - roughly 8 h 50 in the saddle. On the way it passes Prop de la Cova Pintada, La fenellosa, Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin and Abric del mas dels Ous.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Abric de masets and Abric del mas dels Ous
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 512 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 8 h 50
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
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: planning record, not independently verified geometry.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distances and riding times are planning figures. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Abric de masets
The Montsià range rises like a wall behind the Ebro delta in southern Catalonia, a ridge of grey limestone with steep slopes and rocky crags, and in a shelter on its flanks, near Santa Bàrbara and Masdenverge, the Abric de Masets holds traces of prehistoric paintings. It is part of the World Heritage Site of Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin. The paintings here are faded and fragmentary, but the site is a reminder that people have lived and hunted in this landscape for thousands of years.
Read the complete Abric de masets write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric de masets is where the day begins. Next is Prop de la Cova Pintada.
2. Prop de la Cova Pintada
The Ports massif rises abruptly at the meeting point of Catalonia, Aragón and Valencia, a tangle of limestone peaks, deep gorges and pine forest that feels surprisingly wild given how close it is to the Ebro delta and the coast. Prop de la Cova Pintada, meaning near the painted cave, sits on its southern side, between Mas de Barberans, Valderrobres and the old city of Tortosa.
Read the complete Prop de la Cova Pintada write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Prop de la Cova Pintada comes up about 92 km into the recorded legs. Next is La fenellosa.
3. La fenellosa
People in Aragón like to call the Matarraña their Tuscany, and for once the comparison is not entirely marketing. It is a comarca of honey-coloured stone villages on hilltops, olive groves on terraces, almond trees and vineyards, with the limestone wall of the Ports de Beseit rising behind. La Fenellosa lies in this country, between Valderrobres, Fuentespalda and Mas de Barberans across the Catalan line, in the rough hills where the farmland gives way to the mountains.
Read the complete La fenellosa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 143 km into the recorded legs you reach La fenellosa. Next is Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin.
4. Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin
The Tinença de Benifassà is one of the emptiest corners of the Valencian Community, a group of tiny stone villages scattered across rugged limestone mountains in the far north of Castellón, right where Valencia, Catalonia and Aragón meet. The Cova dels Rossegadors, also called the Cova del Polvorí, lies on the edge of this country near Rossell, with Mas de Barberans and Canet lo Roig the other nearby villages.
Read the complete Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin, about halfway. Next is Abric del mas dels Ous.
5. Abric del mas dels Ous
Xert is the kind of village you pass through on the way to somewhere else and then wonder why you did not stop. It lies in the Baix Maestrat in northern Castellón, below a ridge of bare limestone, with the old village climbing the slope and a newer part down by the road. The shelter called the Abric del Mas dels Ous, the shelter of the farmhouse of the eggs, is out in the dry hills nearby, between Xert, Canet lo Roig and Rosell.
Read the complete Abric del mas dels Ous write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric del mas dels Ous sits at 256 km, about halfway. Next is back through Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin.
6. back through Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin comes up about 310 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through La fenellosa.
7. back through La fenellosa
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete La fenellosa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 363 km into the recorded legs you reach back through La fenellosa. Next is back through Prop de la Cova Pintada.
8. back through Prop de la Cova Pintada
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Prop de la Cova Pintada write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Prop de la Cova Pintada, late in the day. Next is Abric de masets.
9. Abric de masets
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Abric de masets write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 512 km.
Leg by leg
Abric de masets to Prop de la Cova Pintada
Abric de masets → Prop de la Cova Pintada is 92 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Prop de la Cova Pintada to La fenellosa
Prop de la Cova Pintada → La fenellosa is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
La fenellosa to Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin
La fenellosa → Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin is 54 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin to Abric del mas dels Ous
Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin → Abric del mas dels Ous is 57 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abric del mas dels Ous to back through Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin
Abric del mas dels Ous → back through Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin is 57 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin to back through La fenellosa
back through Cova dels Rossegadors o del Polvorin → back through La fenellosa is 54 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through La fenellosa to back through Prop de la Cova Pintada
back through La fenellosa → back through Prop de la Cova Pintada is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Prop de la Cova Pintada to Abric de masets
back through Prop de la Cova Pintada → Abric de masets is 92 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.