Why this ride
From Calasparra it runs 113 km to Calasparra; allow about 2 h 23 of riding. On the way it passes Los Grajos I, Abrigo del Canto Blanco and back through Los Grajos I. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Cueva de las Cabras and Abrigo del Canto Blanco
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 113 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 23
- 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. Cueva de las Cabras
The Segura river does something dramatic near Calasparra: it squeezes into the Almadenes canyon, a narrow gorge in grey limestone, and the first time you see it from the rim it is a quiet shock in a district otherwise made of dry hills and irrigated bottoms. The Cueva de las Cabras sits in that territory, in the dry uplands of Murcia where the Spanish Levant starts to blur into the interior plateau, and its rock paintings belong to the same family as those further north in Castellón.
Read the complete Cueva de las Cabras write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cueva de las Cabras is where the day begins. Next is Los Grajos I.
2. Los Grajos I
The painted women of Los Grajos are among the most famous figures in Spanish rock art. In a shelter in the limestone hills just outside Cieza, prehistoric painters depicted a group of human figures, several of them women with wide skirts and raised arms, often interpreted as dancers, alongside animals and other motifs. The Los Grajos shelters are part of the UNESCO-listed Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula, and they are protected, so visits need to be arranged with the local tourist office in Cieza.
Read the complete Los Grajos I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Los Grajos I comes up about 21 km into the recorded legs. Next is Abrigo del Canto Blanco.
3. Abrigo del Canto Blanco
Jumilla is wine country, and you know it as soon as you arrive. The town sits in the north of the Murcia region, surrounded by a high, dry plateau of vineyards growing the Monastrell grape, which produces powerful, dark red wines. A castle tops the hill above the old town, and the bodegas on its outskirts welcome visitors. The Abrigo del Canto Blanco, the shelter of the white stone, lies in the hills about five kilometres away.
Read the complete Abrigo del Canto Blanco write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 55 km into the recorded legs you reach Abrigo del Canto Blanco. Next is back through Los Grajos I.
4. back through Los Grajos I
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Los Grajos I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Los Grajos I, late in the day. Next is Cueva de las Cabras.
5. Cueva de las Cabras
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cueva de las Cabras write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Cueva de las Cabras. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Cueva de las Cabras to Los Grajos I
Cueva de las Cabras → Los Grajos I is 21 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Los Grajos I to Abrigo del Canto Blanco
Los Grajos I → Abrigo del Canto Blanco is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abrigo del Canto Blanco to back through Los Grajos I
Abrigo del Canto Blanco → back through Los Grajos I is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Los Grajos I to Cueva de las Cabras
back through Los Grajos I → Cueva de las Cabras is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.