Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I and La Joquera

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I

   West of Valencia, the river Turia leaves the mountains through a series of deep gorges, and around the villages of Gestalgar, Sot de Chera and Chulilla, the landscape turns dramatic: limestone cliffs, pine-covered slopes and the river winding green below. In a side ravine near Gestalgar, the Barranco de las Colochas shelters a handful of painted panels that UNESCO counts among the Mediterranean rock art of Iberia. The figures are faint, but the setting is worth the effort on its own.

   Read the complete Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I is where the day begins. Next is Peñón de Santo Espíritu.

2. 2. Peñón de Santo Espíritu

   Behind the orange groves of the Camp de Morvedre, a few kilometres inland from Sagunto, the land rises into the Sierra Calderona, a low range of pine woods, scrub and red sandstone that separates the coastal plain from the dry interior. The Peñón de Santo Espíritu is a rocky outcrop in these hills above the village of Gilet, and it carries prehistoric rock art in the Levantine tradition, the style of painted hunters, animals and human figures found in shelters along the Mediterranean side of Spain and listed by UNESCO as the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula. The paintings are fragile and often protected, so do not expect to wander up and touch anything.

   Read the complete Peñón de Santo Espíritu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Peñón de Santo Espíritu comes up about 80 km into the recorded legs. Next is La Joquera.

3. 3. La Joquera

   Just behind Castelló de la Plana, where the coastal plain meets the first hills, the ravine of La Joquera cuts into the limestone near the village of Borriol. Its shelters hold prehistoric paintings, part of the UNESCO-listed rock art of the Mediterranean basin, and the area has been studied for its archaeology for decades. It is unusual to find such ancient art so close to a large modern city, and the contrast between the busy plain below, with its orange groves, factories and motorways, and the quiet hills above is striking.

   Read the complete La Joquera write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   about 144 km into the recorded legs you reach La Joquera. Next is back through Peñón de Santo Espíritu.

4. 4. back through Peñón de Santo Espíritu

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Peñón de Santo Espíritu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through Peñón de Santo Espíritu, late in the day. Next is Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I.

5. 5. Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Barranco de las Colochas- Abrigo I. That is the ride.