CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
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Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
468 km from Vall de Gallinera to Vall de Gallinera, about 8 h 19 of riding. It goes by way of Penya del Vicari, Coves Santes de Dalt, Cueva de los Arcos and Cueva de las Arañas del Carabassi. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Marina Alta is the part of Alicante that most visitors know from the beach, but behind the coast the landscape rises into limestone ravines that feel closer to Mallorca than to a resort. The Barranc d'en Grau is one of those clefts, in the hills above Villalonga and the upper reaches of the Vall d'Ebo. The painted shelter in the neighbouring ravine is among a number of rock-art sites in the region, sharing the Levantine style with sites farther north: red figures of hunters, animals and symbols that were painted long before any Roman set foot here.
Read the complete Barranc d'en Grau write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Barranc d'en Grau is where the day begins. Next is Penya del Vicari.
On a map of the Costa Blanca, the Serra de Bernia looks like a wall dropped between two very different worlds. On one side, high-rise Benidorm and the busy coast; on the other, the quiet valleys of Jalón and Guadalest. The Penya del Vicari is one of the rocky outcrops in these hills above Altea and Calp, a place where the limestone is cut by caves and shelters, some of which carry traces of prehistoric painting. It is a small, quiet site in an area otherwise famous for sun loungers.
Read the complete Penya del Vicari write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Penya del Vicari comes up 48 km in. Next is Coves Santes de Dalt.
The Montgó is the great limestone hulk that rises between Dénia and Jávea on the Costa Blanca, a mountain that looks like a sleeping elephant from some angles and dominates every view along this stretch of coast. On its flanks, in shelters and small caves, are prehistoric paintings, and the Coves Santes de Dalt, the upper holy caves, are among the sites in the area recorded as part of the UNESCO Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin. The paintings here are mostly schematic, simpler and more abstract than the hunting scenes found inland, and the shelters are protected, so viewing usually needs a guided visit.
Read the complete Coves Santes de Dalt write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
95 km in you reach Coves Santes de Dalt. Next is Cueva de los Arcos.
Behind the Costa Blanca, only a few kilometres from the busy beaches of El Campello and the high-rises of Benidorm, the land climbs steeply into limestone mountains that feel surprisingly wild. The Cabeçó d'Or, a jagged massif above the village of Busot, dominates the area, and its slopes are riddled with caves and shelters. The Cueva de los Arcos is one of the sites in this area included in the World Heritage inscription of the rock art of the Mediterranean Basin, with faint painted motifs on the rock. Nearby, the Cuevas del Canelobre, a huge cave with towering stalactites, is open for visits and is one of the most impressive show caves in the region.
Read the complete Cueva de los Arcos write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Cueva de los Arcos, about halfway. Next is Cueva de las Arañas del Carabassi.
The Carabassí is one of the last stretches of wild-ish coast between Alicante and Santa Pola: a line of dunes held together by pine and marram grass, a long beach, and the sea glittering under the flight path of Alicante airport. In the low rocky ground behind it lies a small cave known for painted marks, the Cueva de las Arañas del Carabassí, close to the village of El Altet and a short hop from Santa Pola.
Read the complete Cueva de las Arañas del Carabassi write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Cueva de las Arañas del Carabassi sits at 191 km, about halfway. Next is back through Cueva de los Arcos.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc d'en Grau write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Cueva de los Arcos comes up 238 km in. Next is back through Coves Santes de Dalt.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Coves Santes de Dalt write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
286 km in you reach back through Coves Santes de Dalt. Next is back through Penya del Vicari.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Penya del Vicari write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Penya del Vicari, late in the day. Next is Barranc d'en Grau.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc d'en Grau write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
The route ends here after 381 km.
Barranc d'en Grau → Penya del Vicari is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Penya del Vicari → Coves Santes de Dalt is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Coves Santes de Dalt → Cueva de los Arcos is 77 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Cueva de los Arcos → Cueva de las Arañas del Carabassi is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cueva de las Arañas del Carabassi → Back to Barranc d'en Grau is 92 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Coves Santes de Dalt → back through Penya del Vicari is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Penya del Vicari → Barranc d'en Grau is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.