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 423 km round trip from Aldeaquemada - roughly 7 h 21 in the saddle. It goes by way of Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda, Abrigo del.melgar, Úbeda and back through Abrigo del.melgar. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,050 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Abrigo de D. Pedro mota
Aldeaquemada means the burnt village, which tells you something about how rough the Sierra Morena used to be. This is a thinly populated corner of Jaén province, on the edge of the Despeñaperros range, and the shelter named after D. Pedro Mota is one of a large group of painted rock shelters in the hills. The paintings belong to what archaeologists call Levantine and Schematic rock art, small red and black figures of people, animals and symbols made by prehistoric hunters and later farming communities, and UNESCO listed the whole Mediterranean-arc group in 1998.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abrigo de D. Pedro mota is where the day begins. Next is Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda.
2. Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda
Úbeda stands on a ridge above an ocean of olive trees. In every direction, the province of Jaén rolls away in silver-green rows, millions of trees planted in geometric lines up to the horizon, and on this sea floats a town of honey-coloured stone that looks as if it had been lifted from Florence. In the sixteenth century, powerful local families who served the Spanish crown, above all Francisco de los Cobos, secretary to Emperor Charles V, poured their wealth into palaces and churches here, and the architect Andrés de Vandelvira gave them a Renaissance style of rare purity. Úbeda and its smaller neighbour Baeza were inscribed together on the UNESCO list in 2003.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda comes up about 99 km into the recorded legs. Next is Abrigo del.melgar, 49 km on.
3. Abrigo del.melgar
Quesada is a white town at the foot of the Sierra de Cazorla, in the province of Jaén, surrounded by an ocean of olive trees. The groves stretch to the horizon in every direction, a landscape that makes Jaén the world's largest producer of olive oil. Behind the town, the mountains rise steeply, with pine forest and limestone cliffs, and the Guadalquivir river has its source not far away. The Abrigo del Melgar lies in the hills just outside the town.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 145 km into the recorded legs you reach Abrigo del.melgar. Next is Úbeda.
4. Úbeda
In the middle of an ocean of olive trees, Úbeda rises on a ridge like a Renaissance city that took a wrong turn on its way to Florence. This town in the province of Jaén, along with its neighbour Baeza, was listed by UNESCO in 2003 for its sixteenth-century architecture, much of it the work of Andrés de Vandelvira, who built palaces, churches and chapels for wealthy noble families and royal officials. The Plaza Vázquez de Molina is the showpiece, a harmonious square lined with palaces and the extraordinary Sacra Capilla del Salvador, a funerary chapel built for Francisco de los Cobos, secretary to Emperor Charles V.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abrigo de D. Pedro mota closes the day.
Leg by leg
Abrigo de D. Pedro mota to Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda
Abrigo de D. Pedro mota → Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda is 99 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda to Abrigo del.melgar
Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda → Abrigo del.melgar is 46 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abrigo del.melgar to Úbeda
Abrigo del.melgar → Úbeda is 67 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Úbeda to back through Abrigo del.melgar
Úbeda → back through Abrigo del.melgar is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Abrigo del.melgar to back through Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda
back through Abrigo del.melgar → back through Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda is 66 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda to Abrigo de D. Pedro mota
back through Renaissance Monumental Ensembles of Úbeda → Abrigo de D. Pedro mota is 98 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.