Why this ride
151 km from Totana to Totana, about 3 h 10 of riding. On the way it passes Cueva de la Plata, Los Grajos and back through Cueva de la Plata.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
maina and Los Grajos
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 151 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 10
- 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. maina
Maina is an obscure name on the map in the Murcian hills north-west of Totana, where the Sierra Espuña rises above the valley of the Guadalentín. It refers to a rock shelter or painted site in the dry limestone country, part of the cluster of prehistoric art sites around here included in the World Heritage listing of Levantine rock art. As with many such places, there is often little to see without a guide, but the landscape around it is worth the ride.
Read the complete maina write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
maina is where the day begins. Next is Cueva de la Plata.
2. Cueva de la Plata
Aledo is a tiny village on a rocky spur in the hills of Murcia, a place that punches well above its weight in history. In the eleventh century, it was a fortress on the frontier between Christian Castile and the Muslim taifa kingdoms, and the siege of Aledo in 1088 was a major episode in the struggle for the peninsula. A tower still stands above the village. The Cueva de la Plata, the silver cave, lies in the hills nearby, between Aledo, Totana and Alhama de Murcia.
Read the complete Cueva de la Plata write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cueva de la Plata comes up about 32 km into the recorded legs. Next is Los Grajos.
3. Los Grajos
Jackdaws gave this place its name, grajos in Spanish, and they still wheel and chatter around the limestone cliffs where prehistoric people once sheltered and painted. Los Grajos lies in the hills near Alhama de Murcia, in the valley of the Guadalentín, where dry mountains rise above a plain of orchards, greenhouses and towns. The rock shelters here hold paintings in the Levantine style, and access is generally restricted to protect them.
Read the complete Los Grajos write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 77 km into the recorded legs you reach Los Grajos. Next is back through Cueva de la Plata.
4. back through Cueva de la Plata
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cueva de la Plata write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Cueva de la Plata, late in the day. Next is maina.
5. maina
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete maina write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at maina. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
maina to Cueva de la Plata
maina → Cueva de la Plata is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cueva de la Plata to Los Grajos
Cueva de la Plata → Los Grajos is 45 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Los Grajos to back through Cueva de la Plata
Los Grajos → back through Cueva de la Plata is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Cueva de la Plata to maina
back through Cueva de la Plata → maina is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.