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.
From Dreta de l'Eixample it runs 270 km to Dreta de l'Eixample; allow about 4 h 33 of riding. On the way it passes La Pedra de les Orenetes, Cova dels Segarulls, Cova de Vallmajor and back through Cova dels Segarulls. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Scenic road chapters
Monserrat Mountain Road
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For about 35 km this is Monserrat Mountain Road, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
Length
35 km
Named road
Monserrat Mountain Road
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Casa Milà \La Pedrera\
La Pedrera, the stone quarry, is what Barcelonans call Casa Milà, and the nickname is fair. The building, designed by Gaudí for Pere Milà and his wife Roser Segimon and built between 1906 and 1912, has a facade of pale limestone that rolls along the corner of Passeig de Gràcia and Carrer de Provença like a frozen wave, with balconies of twisted wrought iron that look like seaweed. There are no straight lines on the facade, and no load-bearing walls inside, since the structure is carried by columns and the floors can be arranged freely.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Casa Milà \La Pedrera\ is where the day begins. Next is La Pedra de les Orenetes.
2. La Pedra de les Orenetes
La Pedra de les Orenetes, the Swallows' Stone, is a granite boulder in the hills above La Roca del Vallès, and its surface is covered with small carved hollows and other marks left by people in prehistory. Nobody knows exactly what they meant; such engraved rocks are found across Catalonia, and theories range from ritual offerings to maps of the stars. The rock sits among cork oaks and pines in the Serralada Litoral, the coastal range that separates the Vallès plain from the sea, and the walk to reach it is short and pleasant, through scented forest with views over the plain.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
La Pedra de les Orenetes comes up about 35 km into the recorded legs. Next is Cova dels Segarulls.
3. Cova dels Segarulls
The vineyards of the Penedès roll out in every direction from Vilafranca, and the Cova dels Segarulls lies among them, a few kilometres outside the town in the low hills toward the coastal range.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 107 km into the recorded legs you reach Cova dels Segarulls. Next is Cova de Vallmajor.
4. Cova de Vallmajor
Inland from the Costa Daurada, behind the beach towns of El Vendrell and Calafell, the land rises into the low hills of the Baix Penedès, a landscape of vineyards, almond and olive groves, pine woods and small villages. The Cova de Vallmajor, near Albinyana and Bonastre, is a rock shelter in these hills with prehistoric paintings, part of the Levantine rock art of the Mediterranean that is recognised as a World Heritage Site. The paintings are faint and the shelter is protected, so visits are usually by arrangement.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Casa Milà \La Pedrera\ closes the day.
Leg by leg
Casa Milà \La Pedrera\ to La Pedra de les Orenetes
Casa Milà \La Pedrera\ → La Pedra de les Orenetes is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
La Pedra de les Orenetes to Cova dels Segarulls
La Pedra de les Orenetes → Cova dels Segarulls is 72 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Cova dels Segarulls to Cova de Vallmajor
Cova dels Segarulls → Cova de Vallmajor is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cova de Vallmajor to back through Cova dels Segarulls
Cova de Vallmajor → back through Cova dels Segarulls is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Cova dels Segarulls to back through La Pedra de les Orenetes
back through Cova dels Segarulls → back through La Pedra de les Orenetes is 73 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through La Pedra de les Orenetes to Casa Milà \La Pedrera\
back through La Pedra de les Orenetes → Casa Milà \La Pedrera\ is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.