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CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE

Abrigo de Zaén II and Cueva de las Palamas

Plan this ride

Recorded distance
122 km
Riding-time estimate
2 h 48
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.

Open this ride in CurveScout

Why this ride

122 km from Socovos to Socovos, about 2 h 48 of riding. It goes by way of Las Cazuelas, Cueva de las Palamas and back through Las Cazuelas. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,200 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. 1. Abrigo de Zaén II

    Zaén is a quiet valley in the north-western corner of the Murcia region, in the municipality of Moratalla, where pine-covered sierras close in and the streams run clear and cold. The Abrigo de Zaén II is one of several painted rock shelters here, and like the others it belongs to the World Heritage Site of Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin, inscribed in 1998. Levantine art, found along the eastern side of the Iberian Peninsula, shows lively figures of humans and animals, often in scenes of hunting, gathering and, sometimes, conflict.

    Read the complete Abrigo de Zaén II write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Abrigo de Zaén II is where the day begins. Next is Las Cazuelas.

  2. 2. Las Cazuelas

    Moratalla is the kind of hill town that looks as though it was poured down a slope: white houses tumbling below a castle tower, narrow lanes too steep for comfort, church bells echoing off the hills. Ten kilometres out, in the rugged country of north-west Murcia, the shelter of Las Cazuelas holds prehistoric paintings, part of the region's contribution to the UNESCO-listed Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin. The paintings are fragile and protected, and access is usually by guided visit, arranged in Moratalla or through the regional authorities.

    Read the complete Las Cazuelas write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Las Cazuelas comes up about 31 km into the recorded legs. Next is Cueva de las Palamas.

  3. 3. Cueva de las Palamas

    Cehegín, in the north-west of the Murcia region, is a town of two faces: a modern lower town, and an old town on a hill, with steep streets, noble houses and churches, declared a historic site. The Cueva de las Palomas, the cave of the doves, lies on the edge of the town, less than a kilometre from the centre, with the larger town of Caravaca de la Cruz about five kilometres away.

    Read the complete Cueva de las Palamas write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    about 61 km into the recorded legs you reach Cueva de las Palamas. Next is back through Las Cazuelas.

  4. 4. back through Las Cazuelas

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Las Cazuelas write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    back through Las Cazuelas, late in the day. Next is Abrigo de Zaén II.

  5. 5. Abrigo de Zaén II

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Abrigo de Zaén II write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Back at Abrigo de Zaén II. That is the ride.

Leg by leg

Abrigo de Zaén II to Las Cazuelas

Abrigo de Zaén II → Las Cazuelas is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Las Cazuelas to Cueva de las Palamas

Las Cazuelas → Cueva de las Palamas is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

Cueva de las Palamas to back through Las Cazuelas

Cueva de las Palamas → back through Las Cazuelas is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

back through Las Cazuelas to Abrigo de Zaén II

back through Las Cazuelas → Abrigo de Zaén II is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.

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