CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
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.
A 305 km round trip from Albocàsser - roughly 5 h 48 in the saddle. On the way it passes Villaroges, Barranco de Gibert II, Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d and back through Barranco de Gibert II. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,400 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
A cova gran is a big cave, and in the limestone of the Alt Maestrat that is an easy thing to find. This whole upland is karst, pale rock that rain has been dissolving for millions of years, leaving ravines, sinkholes, springs that vanish underground and a good number of overhangs deep enough to sleep under. The Cova Gran del Puntal sits about six kilometres from Albocàsser in the ravine that the rides call the Barranco Hondo, the deep one, and it belongs to the family of Levantine rock-art shelters that UNESCO has listed across eastern Spain. Paintings of this kind sit in shallow recesses rather than in the dark depths of a cave, so do not expect Altamira. Expect a modest rock wall, a lot of faded red, and a very good view down the gully.
Read the complete Cova Gran del Puntal write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Cova Gran del Puntal is where the day begins. Next is Villaroges.
Villaroges is one of those names that appears on a map of prehistoric sites rather than a road atlas, somewhere in the high country of the Alt Maestrat between Benassal, Culla and Vilafranca. It belongs to the extraordinary concentration of rock art in the mountains of Castellón, where small painted shelters are scattered through the ravines, protected as part of the UNESCO-listed rock art of the Mediterranean Basin. Exactly where the panel lies, and whether it can be visited, is a question for the local tourist office or the museum at Tírig; treat the name as an invitation into one of the emptiest and most beautiful corners of eastern Spain.
Read the complete Villaroges write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Villaroges comes up about 32 km into the recorded legs. Next is Barranco de Gibert II.
Up on the roof of the Maestrazgo, where Teruel and Castellón meet, the land rises above fourteen hundred metres into a bleak, beautiful plateau of pasture, pine and limestone. Mosqueruela, on the Aragonese side, is one of the highest villages in the area, and Vilafranca, on the Valencian side, sits in a valley below. The Barranco de Gibert cuts into the hills between them, close also to La Iglesuela del Cid, and its second shelter holds prehistoric paintings.
Read the complete Barranco de Gibert II write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
about 67 km into the recorded legs you reach Barranco de Gibert II. Next is Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d.
The Guadalope river cuts a deep canyon through the limestone of the Maestrazgo in eastern Teruel, and the Abrigo del Arenal de la Fonseca lies in this wild country near the hamlet of Ladruñán, between the villages of Castellote and Cantavieja. It is one of the important rock-art shelters of Aragon, part of the UNESCO listing of Mediterranean prehistoric art, with Levantine paintings of animals and human figures in red pigment on the rock. The setting is spectacular: a narrow gorge with towering cliffs, the river flowing below, and pine and holm oak clinging to the slopes. Access involves a walk, and the paintings are protected by a fence.
Read the complete Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d, about halfway. Next is back through Barranco de Gibert II.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranco de Gibert II write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Barranco de Gibert II sits at 125 km, about halfway. Next is back through Villaroges.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Villaroges write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
back through Villaroges comes up about 275 km into the recorded legs. Next is Cova Gran del Puntal.
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cova Gran del Puntal write-up.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Cova Gran del Puntal closes the day.
Cova Gran del Puntal → Villaroges is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Villaroges → Barranco de Gibert II is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barranco de Gibert II → Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d is 86 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abrigo del Arenal de la fonseca ó Abrigo d → back through Barranco de Gibert II is 67 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barranco de Gibert II → back through Villaroges is 55 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Villaroges → Cova Gran del Puntal is 31 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.