Why this ride
A 296 km round trip from Eixample - roughly 5 h 12 in the saddle. On the way it passes Roca Roja, Abric de la Serra de la mussara and back through Roca Roja. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Casa Batlló and Abric de la Serra de la mussara
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 296 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 12
- 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. Casa Batlló
Passeig de Gràcia is the grand avenue of Barcelona, and on its sunny side stands a building that looks like it was made out of something living. Casa Batlló, remodelled by Antoni Gaudí between 1904 and 1906 for the textile industrialist Josep Batlló, is a facade of mottled glass and ceramic, with balconies shaped like masks or skulls and bone-like columns, and a roof ridge that arches like the back of a dragon, with a tower topped by a cross. Locals call it the House of Bones, and the roof is said to represent the dragon slain by Saint George, patron saint of Catalonia.
Read the complete Casa Batlló write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Casa Batlló is where the day begins. Next is Roca Roja.
2. 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 comes up about 83 km into the recorded legs. Next is Abric de la Serra de la mussara.
3. Abric de la Serra de la mussara
Climb out of Reus on a clear morning and the Serra de la Mussara rises ahead like a wall, a limestone escarpment that holds up the edge of the Prades plateau and drops steeply to the plain of the Camp de Tarragona. The rock shelters along this cliff line, close to the village of Vilaplana, are part of the prehistoric painted landscape of eastern Spain. The best reason to stop, though, is the view: on a good day you look straight down over hazelnut orchards and olive groves to Reus, Tarragona and the sea.
Read the complete Abric de la Serra de la mussara write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 148 km into the recorded legs you reach Abric de la Serra de la mussara. Next is back through Roca Roja.
4. back through Roca Roja
Return visit. Read the place description above.
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
back through Roca Roja, late in the day. Next is Casa Batlló.
5. Casa Batlló
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Casa Batlló write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Casa Batlló. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Casa Batlló to Roca Roja
Casa Batlló → Roca Roja is 83 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Roca Roja to Abric de la Serra de la mussara
Roca Roja → Abric de la Serra de la mussara is 65 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abric de la Serra de la mussara to back through Roca Roja
Abric de la Serra de la mussara → back through Roca Roja is 66 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Roca Roja to Casa Batlló
back through Roca Roja → Casa Batlló is 82 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.