Why this ride
From Tivissa it runs 439 km to Tivissa; allow about 7 h 33 of riding. It goes by way of Abric de Gallicant, The, Poblet Monastery and Roca Roja. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Balma d'En Roc and Roca Roja
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 439 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 7 h 33
- 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Balma d'En Roc
Inland from the Costa Daurada, the Serra de Llaberia rises abruptly above the coastal plain, a jagged wall of limestone separating the sea from the valley of the Ebro. The rock shelter of Balma d'En Roc lies in this rough country, part of the Levantine rock art inscribed by UNESCO, and like most of its kind it is small, fragile and best visited with local guidance. The nearest villages are scattered: Ginestar on the Ebro, El Perelló on the coastal side, and Mont-roig del Camp to the north-east.
Read the complete Balma d'En Roc write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Balma d'En Roc is where the day begins. Next is Abric de Gallicant.
2. Abric de Gallicant
Alforja is a village on the southern edge of the Prades mountains, where the plain of the Camp de Tarragona meets the steep slopes of the Serra de l'Argentera and the Serra de la Mussara. The Abric de Gallicant lies in the hills near Alforja, Vilaplana and Ulldemolins, and it is one of the many prehistoric shelters in these mountains that form part of the UNESCO listing of Mediterranean rock art. The name means rooster's song, a poetic touch typical of Catalan place names. The paintings in this area are generally schematic, with simple figures and geometric shapes, and many shelters are protected by fences.
Read the complete Abric de Gallicant write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric de Gallicant comes up about 72 km into the recorded legs. Next is The.
3. The
Inside a plain-looking farmhouse building is a domed hall from the fourth century, its cupola covered in mosaics of hunting scenes, biblical stories and figures that may represent the imperial family. Some scholars believe it was built as a mausoleum for Constans, son of Constantine the Great, who was killed in 350; others are not so sure, and the debate is part of the fun. The site belongs to the UNESCO listing for the Roman town of Tarraco.
Read the complete The write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 124 km into the recorded legs you reach The. Next is Poblet Monastery.
4. Poblet Monastery
Few places in Catalonia carry as much weight as Poblet. The Cistercian monastery was founded in the middle of the twelfth century on land granted by Count Ramon Berenguer IV, and over the following generations it became the royal pantheon of the Crown of Aragon, the place where kings chose to be buried under carved alabaster. It is still a working community of monks, which gives the vast walled complex a quietness that the coach parties never quite manage to break. UNESCO listed it in 1991, and walking through the outer gates, past the first enclosure and into the cloister, you feel the scale of medieval monastic power in a way that a textbook never conveys.
Read the complete Poblet Monastery write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Poblet Monastery, about halfway. Next is Roca Roja.
5. Roca Roja
Roca Roja, the red rock, is a fitting name for this corner of inland Catalonia, where sandstone and conglomerate cliffs glow rust-coloured in the evening light above pine forest and small terraced fields. The point lies in the hills between Querol and Mediona, where the comarques of Alt Camp, Alt Penedès and Anoia meet, a rugged, thinly populated upland that most people speed past on the motorway between Barcelona and Lleida without realising it exists.
Read the complete Roca Roja write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Roca Roja sits at 164 km, about halfway. Next is back through Poblet Monastery.
6. back through Poblet Monastery
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Poblet Monastery write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Poblet Monastery comes up about 275 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through The.
7. back through The
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 314 km into the recorded legs you reach back through The. Next is back through Abric de Gallicant.
8. back through Abric de Gallicant
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Abric de Gallicant write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Abric de Gallicant, late in the day. Next is Balma d'En Roc.
9. Balma d'En Roc
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Balma d'En Roc 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 439 km.
Leg by leg
Balma d'En Roc to Abric de Gallicant
Balma d'En Roc → Abric de Gallicant is 72 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abric de Gallicant to The
Abric de Gallicant → The is 52 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The to Poblet Monastery
The → Poblet Monastery is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Poblet Monastery to Roca Roja
Poblet Monastery → Roca Roja is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Roca Roja to back through Poblet Monastery
Roca Roja → back through Poblet Monastery is 56 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Poblet Monastery to back through The
back through Poblet Monastery → back through The is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The to back through Abric de Gallicant
back through The → back through Abric de Gallicant is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Abric de Gallicant to Balma d'En Roc
back through Abric de Gallicant → Balma d'En Roc is 74 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Cova de l'Escoda and Roca Roja · 439 km
- Cova de l'Escoda and Aqueduct · 448 km
- Balma d'En Roc and Aqueduct · 448 km