Why this ride
A 358 km round trip from Caudete - roughly 6 h 54 in the saddle. The stops in between: Abric de Gontrán, Barranc de les Coves- Abric I, Barranc de les Covatelles and Cueva de los Arcos. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Olula and Cueva de los Arcos
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 358 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 6 h 54
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. 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. Olula
Caudete and Almansa sit in a corridor of land where Castile-La Mancha, Valencia and Murcia meet, and for centuries this was frontier country, where kingdoms and armies passed and fought. Olula is a point in the hills near Caudete, linked on the rides with rock-art shelters in the surrounding sierras, part of the extensive UNESCO listing of prehistoric art in Mediterranean Spain.
Read the complete Olula write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Olula is where the day begins. Next is Abric de Gontrán.
2. Abric de Gontrán
Head south-west from Xàtiva along the old road to Castile and you climb gently into a corridor between two mountain ranges, the Serra Grossa on one side and the Serra de Enguera on the other. The town of Moixent sits where the corridor narrows, with Vallada just downstream and the vineyards of Fontanars dels Alforins on the plateau beyond. The Abric de Gontran lies in the hills just outside Moixent.
Read the complete Abric de Gontrán write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric de Gontrán comes up 37 km in. Next is Barranc de les Coves- Abric I.
3. Barranc de les Coves- Abric I
Ibi is the toy capital of Spain, a fact that surprises everyone who rides through this mountain town in the hills of Alicante. Since the early twentieth century, workshops here have produced dolls, tin toys and plastic figures, and the Valencian Toy Museum tells the story. The rock shelter named Barranc de les Coves Abric I lies in the hills between Ibi and Alcoy, in a ravine whose name simply means the gully of the caves.
Read the complete Barranc de les Coves- Abric I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
73 km in you reach Barranc de les Coves- Abric I. Next is Barranc de les Covatelles.
4. Barranc de les Covatelles
Guadalest is a tiny village on a rock, entered through a tunnel cut in the stone, with a castle, a bell tower perched on a pinnacle and a view over a turquoise reservoir below. It is one of the most visited places in the province of Alicante, and it sits at the heart of a valley surrounded by mountains: the Aitana, the highest in the province at over fifteen hundred metres, the Serrella and the Xortà. The Barranc de les Covatelles is one of the ravines in this mountainous country, near Benimantell, Sella and Castell de Castells, with rock shelters that hold prehistoric paintings, one component of the World Heritage inscription for the rock art of the Mediterranean Basin.
Read the complete Barranc de les Covatelles write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Barranc de les Covatelles, about halfway. Next is Cueva de los Arcos.
5. Cueva de los Arcos
Behind the Costa Blanca, only a few kilometres from the busy beaches of El Campello and the high-rises of Benidorm, the land climbs steeply into limestone mountains that feel surprisingly wild. The Cabeçó d'Or, a jagged massif above the village of Busot, dominates the area, and its slopes are riddled with caves and shelters. The Cueva de los Arcos is one of the sites in this area included in the World Heritage inscription of the rock art of the Mediterranean Basin, with faint painted motifs on the rock. Nearby, the Cuevas del Canelobre, a huge cave with towering stalactites, is open for visits and is one of the most impressive show caves in the region.
Read the complete Cueva de los Arcos write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cueva de los Arcos sits at 146 km, about halfway. Next is back through Barranc de les Covatelles.
6. back through Barranc de les Covatelles
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc de les Covatelles write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Barranc de les Covatelles comes up 183 km in. Next is back through Barranc de les Coves- Abric I.
7. back through Barranc de les Coves- Abric I
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc de les Coves- Abric I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
219 km in you reach back through Barranc de les Coves- Abric I. Next is back through Abric de Gontrán.
8. back through Abric de Gontrán
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Abric de Gontrán write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Abric de Gontrán, late in the day. Next is Olula.
9. Olula
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Olula write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 358 km.
Leg by leg
Olula to Abric de Gontrán
Olula → Abric de Gontrán is 36 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abric de Gontrán to Barranc de les Coves- Abric I
Abric de Gontrán → Barranc de les Coves- Abric I is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barranc de les Coves- Abric I to Barranc de les Covatelles
Barranc de les Coves- Abric I → Barranc de les Covatelles is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barranc de les Covatelles to Cueva de los Arcos
Barranc de les Covatelles → Cueva de los Arcos is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cueva de los Arcos to back through Barranc de les Covatelles
Cueva de los Arcos → back through Barranc de les Covatelles is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barranc de les Covatelles to back through Barranc de les Coves- Abric I
back through Barranc de les Covatelles → back through Barranc de les Coves- Abric I is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barranc de les Coves- Abric I to back through Abric de Gontrán
back through Barranc de les Coves- Abric I → back through Abric de Gontrán is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Abric de Gontrán to Olula
back through Abric de Gontrán → Olula is 36 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.