Abric mas de la Roca and Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
330 km
Riding-time estimate
6 h 12
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: 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.
A 330 km round trip from Chert/Xert - roughly 6 h 12 in the saddle. The stops in between: Abric del.mas Blanc, Barranco de Gibert II, Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d and back through Barranco de Gibert II. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,400 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Abric mas de la Roca
Northern Castellón is a hard, empty, beautiful part of Valencian Spain, a country of limestone ridges and terraced slopes some thirty kilometres back from the Mediterranean, and the Abric Mas de la Roca belongs to it, about six kilometres from the village of Xert, whose name is spelled Chert in Catalan and Valencian. Xert has fewer than a thousand people, Canet lo Roig and Catí are similar, and everything here is small and old.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric mas de la Roca is where the day begins. Next is Abric del.mas Blanc, 32 km on.
2. Abric del.mas Blanc
Benassal is a stone village on a high plateau in the Alt Maestrat, in the interior of Castellón, at around eight hundred metres above sea level, and it is known throughout the region for its spring water, the Font d'en Segures, which is bottled and sold across Spain. The Abric del Mas Blanc, the shelter of the white farmhouse, is one of the many rock-art sites in the area, part of the UNESCO listing of Mediterranean prehistoric art. The nearby Valltorta gorge, about twenty kilometres to the east, has some of the most famous Levantine paintings, including dramatic hunting scenes, and the Valltorta museum in Tírig is the best place to learn about them.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric del.mas Blanc comes up about 39 km into the recorded legs. Next is Barranco de Gibert II.
3. Barranco de Gibert II
Up on the roof of the Maestrazgo, where Teruel and Castellón meet, the land rises above fourteen hundred metres into a bleak, beautiful plateau of pasture, pine and limestone. Mosqueruela, on the Aragonese side, is one of the highest villages in the area, and Vilafranca, on the Valencian side, sits in a valley below. The Barranco de Gibert cuts into the hills between them, close also to La Iglesuela del Cid, and its second shelter holds prehistoric paintings.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 78 km into the recorded legs you reach Barranco de Gibert II. Next is Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d.
4. Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d
The Guadalope river cuts a deep canyon through the limestone of the Maestrazgo in eastern Teruel, and the Abrigo del Arenal de la Fonseca lies in this wild country near the hamlet of Ladruñán, between the villages of Castellote and Cantavieja. It is one of the important rock-art shelters of Aragon, part of the UNESCO listing of Mediterranean prehistoric art, with Levantine paintings of animals and human figures in red pigment on the rock. The setting is spectacular: a narrow gorge with towering cliffs, the river flowing below, and pine and holm oak clinging to the slopes. Access involves a walk, and the paintings are protected by a fence.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric mas de la Roca closes the day.
Leg by leg
Abric mas de la Roca to Abric del.mas Blanc
Abric mas de la Roca → Abric del.mas Blanc is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abric del.mas Blanc to Barranco de Gibert II
Abric del.mas Blanc → Barranco de Gibert II is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barranco de Gibert II to Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d
Barranco de Gibert II → Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d is 86 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d to back through Barranco de Gibert II
Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d → back through Barranco de Gibert II is 67 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barranco de Gibert II to back through Abric del.mas Blanc
back through Barranco de Gibert II → back through Abric del.mas Blanc is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Abric del.mas Blanc to Abric mas de la Roca
back through Abric del.mas Blanc → Abric mas de la Roca is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.