Why this ride
From Bolulla it runs 222 km to Bolulla; allow about 4 h 56 of riding. The stops in between: Barraac de la Palla, Cova Jeroni, Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l and Abric de la Paella.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Penya Escrita and Abric de la Paella
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 222 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 56
- 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. Penya Escrita
In the folded limestone hills behind the Costa Blanca, far enough inland that the resorts feel like another country, a rock shelter called Penya Escrita holds prehistoric paintings. The name means something like the written rock, which is what the people of Tàrbena and Bolulla called it long before archaeologists arrived. The figures belong to the rock art of the Mediterranean Basin of the Iberian Peninsula, a UNESCO site made up of hundreds of shelters scattered from Catalonia down to Andalusia, painted by hunter-gatherers and early farmers thousands of years ago. They are small, faded and easy to miss, and they are best appreciated with patience rather than expectation.
Read the complete Penya Escrita write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Penya Escrita is where the day begins. Next is Barraac de la Palla.
2. Barraac de la Palla
Tormos and Sagra are tiny villages at the foot of the mountains in the north of Alicante province, at the point where the plain of the Marina Alta meets the hills. They are surrounded by orange groves and orchards, with the mountains of the Vall de Laguar and the Serra del Migdia rising steeply behind. The Barranc de la Palla, the ravine of the straw, cuts into the hills near Tormos, close also to Orba and the town of Pego.
Read the complete Barraac de la Palla write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Barraac de la Palla comes up about 28 km into the recorded legs. Next is Cova Jeroni.
3. Cova Jeroni
Cova Jeroni belongs to that quiet tangle of valleys behind Pego and Dénia where the Marina Alta hides its oldest stories. The shelters in this part of Alicante, along the ravines of Famorca, Ebo and Gallinera, carry some of the finest prehistoric art in eastern Spain, and they are listed together with hundreds of others as the rock art of the Mediterranean Basin. Do not expect a visitor centre and a car park; expect a dirt track, a short walk, a rock overhang and a few ochre figures that reward a long look.
Read the complete Cova Jeroni write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 51 km into the recorded legs you reach Cova Jeroni. Next is Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l.
4. Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l
Castelló de Rugat sits on the southern rim of the Vall d'Albaida, a broad valley in the south of Valencia province hemmed in by mountain ridges. On one side rises the long saw-toothed crest of the Benicadell, on the other the Serra de la Solana, and between them lies a patchwork of vineyards, olive groves and small towns with church towers. The Barranc de les Coves, the ravine of the caves, cuts into the slopes near Castelló de Rugat, Ràfol de Salem and Beniarrés, and its first shelter holds painted figures.
Read the complete Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l, about halfway. Next is Abric de la Paella.
5. Abric de la Paella
Muro de Alcoy and Cocentaina sit side by side in the valley of the Serpis river, in the Comtat, a district of northern Alicante surrounded by mountains. Cocentaina is crowned by a castle with a tall tower, and below it lies an old town with a palace of the Counts of Cocentaina and a Franciscan convent. The Abric de la Paella, named after the paella pan perhaps because of its shape, lies in the hills between the two towns.
Read the complete Abric de la Paella write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Abric de la Paella sits at 68 km, about halfway. Next is back through Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l.
6. back through Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l 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 Coves- Abrigo l comes up about 138 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Cova Jeroni.
7. back through Cova Jeroni
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cova Jeroni write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 171 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Cova Jeroni. Next is back through Barraac de la Palla.
8. back through Barraac de la Palla
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barraac de la Palla write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Barraac de la Palla, late in the day. Next is Penya Escrita.
9. Penya Escrita
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Penya Escrita 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 222 km.
Leg by leg
Penya Escrita to Barraac de la Palla
Penya Escrita → Barraac de la Palla is 28 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barraac de la Palla to Cova Jeroni
Barraac de la Palla → Cova Jeroni is 23 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cova Jeroni to Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l
Cova Jeroni → Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l to Abric de la Paella
Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l → Abric de la Paella is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Abric de la Paella to back through Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l
Abric de la Paella → back through Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l to back through Cova Jeroni
back through Barranc de les Coves- Abrigo l → back through Cova Jeroni is 33 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Cova Jeroni to back through Barraac de la Palla
back through Cova Jeroni → back through Barraac de la Palla is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barraac de la Palla to Penya Escrita
back through Barraac de la Palla → Penya Escrita is 29 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.