Why this ride
From Benasau it runs 218 km to Benasau; allow about 4 h 30 of riding. It goes by way of Barranc de la Penya Blanca, Benirrama- Abric I, Sierra de Alfaro and Barran de Parets.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Barranc de frainos- Abric I and Barran de Parets
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 218 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 30
- 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. Barranc de frainos- Abric I
The mountains behind Benidorm are a world away from the high-rise hotels and the beaches. Inland from the Costa Blanca, the land rises quickly into a jumble of limestone ridges, the highest of which, the Serra d'Aitana, reaches over fifteen hundred metres, the roof of the province of Alicante. Between Sella, Benilloba and Relleu, deep in this rugged country, the Barranc de Frainos holds a rock shelter with prehistoric paintings, part of the UNESCO listing of Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula. The sites here are small and fragile, and access is usually limited to guided visits, but the landscape is worth the journey.
Read the complete Barranc de frainos- Abric I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Barranc de frainos- Abric I is where the day begins. Next is Barranc de la Penya Blanca.
2. Barranc de la Penya Blanca
Planes is a small village in the hills of the Comtat in northern Alicante province, crowned by a castle and looking out over a valley of olive and cherry orchards. The Barranc de la Penya Blanca, the ravine of the white rock, lies close by, among the folded limestone ridges between Planes, Benimarfull and the reservoir at Beniarrés.
Read the complete Barranc de la Penya Blanca write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Barranc de la Penya Blanca comes up about 29 km into the recorded legs. Next is Benirrama- Abric I.
3. Benirrama- Abric I
In the Vall de Gallinera, a long, narrow valley in the mountains of northern Alicante, the Benirrama shelter is one of a cluster of rock art sites, part of the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin World Heritage listing. The valley is particularly rich in macro-schematic art, a distinctive style found only in this region, with large, abstract human figures and symbols painted in red, and the nearby Pla de Petracos is the most famous site of this style. Benirrama itself is also the name of a ruined Moorish castle on a hill above the valley.
Read the complete Benirrama- Abric I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 49 km into the recorded legs you reach Benirrama- Abric I. Next is Sierra de Alfaro.
4. Sierra de Alfaro
The Sierra de Alfaro is a long limestone ridge in the mountains of northern Alicante, between Castell de Castells, Benimantell and Planes, a rugged, empty landscape of rock, scrub and pine, with terraced valleys and small villages tucked into its folds. Its slopes hold several shelters with prehistoric paintings, and the area is part of one of the richest regions for rock art in Spain, with Levantine, schematic and the unique macroschematic styles found nowhere else. The ridge is also crossed by walking trails, and the views from the top over the mountains and the sea are wide.
Read the complete Sierra de Alfaro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sierra de Alfaro, about halfway. Next is Barran de Parets.
5. Barran de Parets
The Vall d'Ebo is a pocket of mountains behind the Costa Blanca where the sea is only half an hour away, yet the villages look as if they belong to another century. Adsubia and Vall d'Ebo are tiny settlements of a few hundred people, in a landscape of steep ravines, terraces and bare limestone walls. The Valencian word barranc, a ravine, is on the map everywhere, and each one has its own name. The Barranc de l'Infern, the Hell Ravine, nearby, is a famed walk on a path of thousands of stone steps that the Moriscos, Muslim farmers, built to link villages. They were expelled in 1609, and the terraces and steps are a legacy of their work.
Read the complete Barran de Parets write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Barran de Parets sits at 66 km, about halfway. Next is back through Sierra de Alfaro.
6. back through Sierra de Alfaro
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sierra de Alfaro write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Sierra de Alfaro comes up about 135 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Benirrama- Abric I.
7. back through Benirrama- Abric I
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Benirrama- Abric I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 163 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Benirrama- Abric I. Next is back through Barranc de la Penya Blanca.
8. back through Barranc de la Penya Blanca
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc de la Penya Blanca write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Barranc de la Penya Blanca, late in the day. Next is Barranc de frainos- Abric I.
9. Barranc de frainos- Abric I
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc de frainos- Abric I 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 218 km.
Leg by leg
Barranc de frainos- Abric I to Barranc de la Penya Blanca
Barranc de frainos- Abric I → Barranc de la Penya Blanca is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barranc de la Penya Blanca to Benirrama- Abric I
Barranc de la Penya Blanca → Benirrama- Abric I is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Benirrama- Abric I to Sierra de Alfaro
Benirrama- Abric I → Sierra de Alfaro is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sierra de Alfaro to Barran de Parets
Sierra de Alfaro → Barran de Parets is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barran de Parets to back through Sierra de Alfaro
Barran de Parets → back through Sierra de Alfaro is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Sierra de Alfaro to back through Benirrama- Abric I
back through Sierra de Alfaro → back through Benirrama- Abric I is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Benirrama- Abric I to back through Barranc de la Penya Blanca
back through Benirrama- Abric I → back through Barranc de la Penya Blanca is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barranc de la Penya Blanca to Barranc de frainos- Abric I
back through Barranc de la Penya Blanca → Barranc de frainos- Abric I is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.