Why this ride
On the way it passes Río frío, Abrigo de las Cañadas II, mingarnao I and Cañaica del Calar l. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,450 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Cañada de la Cruz and Cañaica del Calar l
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 305 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 7 h 16
- 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. Cañada de la Cruz
The Cañada de la Cruz is a high valley or drovers' pasture in the Segura mountains; cañada is the word for the traditional livestock routes and grazing grounds used by shepherds moving their flocks between summer and winter pastures, and this part of Spain has a long history of transhumance.
Read the complete Cañada de la Cruz write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cañada de la Cruz is where the day begins. Next is Río frío.
2. Río frío
Cold water is a rare luxury in southern Spain, and a stream called Río Frío promises exactly that. It is a land of pine forests, limestone crags, deep river gorges and tiny villages, and the painted rock shelters scattered through these hills are part of the UNESCO listing of rock art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula.
Read the complete Río frío write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Río frío comes up about 24 km into the recorded legs. Next is Abrigo de las Cañadas II.
3. Abrigo de las Cañadas II
Nerpio is about as remote as mainland Spain gets. The village sits in the far southwest corner of Albacete province, in the Sierra de Segura, where the mountains of Andalusia, Murcia and Castilla-La Mancha meet, and the rock shelters scattered around it make up one of the richest concentrations of prehistoric art in the region. The Abrigo de las Cañadas II belongs to that group, an overhang in the hills between Nerpio and the high plateaus toward Huéscar and Yeste.
Read the complete Abrigo de las Cañadas II write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 97 km into the recorded legs you reach Abrigo de las Cañadas II. Next is mingarnao I.
4. mingarnao I
Everything about Nerpio feels remote, and Mingarnao pushes the feeling a little further. The shelter sits in the Sierra de Segura, where the road ends and tracks wander over limestone ridges, through pine woods and past small farms. A scattering of hamlets, such as Yeste, Letur and Nerpio itself, are the nearest signs of life, and the nearest big town in the data, Moratalla, is a long 38 km away. The sense of space is the point of coming here.
Read the complete mingarnao I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
mingarnao I, about halfway. Next is Cañaica del Calar l.
5. Cañaica del Calar l
Very few people get here. The Cañaica del Calar lies in the far north-west of the region of Murcia, near the border with Albacete and Andalusia, in a wild landscape of limestone plateaus, pine forests and deep valleys around Moratalla and Nerpio. The calar is the local word for a limestone plateau, and the rock shelters on its edges hold prehistoric paintings in the Levantine style, part of the World Heritage rock art of the Mediterranean. The area around Nerpio is one of the richest in Spain for rock art.
Read the complete Cañaica del Calar l write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cañaica del Calar l sits at 66 km, about halfway. Next is back through mingarnao I.
6. back through mingarnao I
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete mingarnao I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through mingarnao I comes up about 183 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Abrigo de las Cañadas II.
7. back through Abrigo de las Cañadas II
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Abrigo de las Cañadas II write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 209 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Abrigo de las Cañadas II. Next is back through Río frío.
8. back through Río frío
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Río frío write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Río frío, late in the day. Next is Cañada de la Cruz.
9. Cañada de la Cruz
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cañada de la Cruz 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 305 km.
Leg by leg
Cañada de la Cruz to Río frío
Cañada de la Cruz → Río frío is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Río frío to Abrigo de las Cañadas II
Río frío → Abrigo de las Cañadas II is 73 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abrigo de las Cañadas II to mingarnao I
Abrigo de las Cañadas II → mingarnao I is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
mingarnao I to Cañaica del Calar l
mingarnao I → Cañaica del Calar l is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cañaica del Calar l to back through mingarnao I
Cañaica del Calar l → back through mingarnao I is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through mingarnao I to back through Abrigo de las Cañadas II
back through mingarnao I → back through Abrigo de las Cañadas II is 26 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Abrigo de las Cañadas II to back through Río frío
back through Abrigo de las Cañadas II → back through Río frío is 73 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Río frío to Cañada de la Cruz
back through Río frío → Cañada de la Cruz is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.