Abrigo de la fuente de montañoz I and Abrigo del milano
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
296 km
Riding-time estimate
5 h 49
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.
296 km from Nerpio to Nerpio, about 5 h 49 of riding. It goes by way of Solana del molinico, Abrigo del milano and back through Solana del molinico. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,400 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Abrigo de la fuente de montañoz I
Nerpio is about as far from anywhere as you can get in mainland Spain. The village sits in the southwestern corner of Albacete province, where Castilla-La Mancha meets Andalusia and Murcia, in the mountains of the Sierra de Segura, at the end of long, winding roads. It is known for its walnut trees, which line the valleys and give the village its pride, and for its rock art: the hills around are full of shelters with prehistoric paintings, and Nerpio is one of the most important centres for Levantine art in Spain. The Abrigo de la Fuente de Montañoz is one of these shelters, near a spring in the hills above the Taibilla river.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abrigo de la fuente de montañoz I is where the day begins. Next is Solana del molinico.
2. Solana del molinico
Socovos is the sort of village you only find by getting a little lost: a cluster of white houses below a ruined castle in the far southeast of Albacete province, where the plains of La Mancha give way to the tangled ridges of the Sierra de Segura. Solana del Molinico, close by, is one of the rock-art shelters in this corner of Spain that belong to the UNESCO listing for Levantine rock art. The word solana means a sun-facing slope, and many of these painted overhangs face south, catching the warmth on winter days just as they must have done when hunters and gatherers sheltered here.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Solana del molinico comes up about 80 km into the recorded legs. Next is Abrigo del milano.
3. Abrigo del milano
Bullas is wine country, and the vineyards of Monastrell grapes roll over the hills around the town in the northwest of Murcia, producing robust red wines under their own denomination of origin. The Abrigo del Milano, the kite's shelter, named after the bird of prey that circles over these hills, lies in the countryside between Bullas, Mula and Pliego. It is one of the many rock shelters in Murcia with prehistoric paintings, part of the UNESCO listing of Mediterranean rock art, though access to many shelters is restricted to protect them, so ask locally before trying to visit.