Why this ride
304 km from Bolulla to Bolulla, about 6 h 26 of riding. On the way it passes Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I, Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I and back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Penya Escrita and Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 304 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 6 h 26
- 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 Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I.
2. Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I
The painted shelter of Barranc d'Alpadull sits in the folds of the Serra de Mariola, the limestone massif that rises between Bocairent, Alfafara and Agres in the inland corner where Valencia, Alicante and the old kingdom's hill country all meet. It is one of the many small overhangs in eastern Spain that carry Levantine rock art, the group of sites inscribed together by UNESCO as the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin. Do not expect a museum. These are faint, reddish figures under a lip of stone, usually fenced, often hard to read unless the light is low and raking, and part of the pleasure is simply knowing that hunters drew here thousands of years before anyone thought of building a road up this valley.
Read the complete Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I comes up about 70 km into the recorded legs. Next is Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I.
3. Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I
Bicorp is a small village in the folds of the Valencian interior, west of Xàtiva, in a country of pine, scrub and deep ravines that falls towards the Júcar and the Sierra de Martés. The Cueva de la Araña, the Spider Cave, is one of the most famous rock art sites in Spain, and the main reason to come. In its shelter is a painted scene of a figure climbing a rope or ladder of plant fibre to collect honey from a wild hive, with bees flying around. It is thought to be several thousand years old, and it is one of the finest and most human images of the Levantine rock art, listed by UNESCO in 1998.
Read the complete Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 146 km into the recorded legs you reach Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I. Next is back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I.
4. back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I, late in the day. Next is Penya Escrita.
5. 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
Back at Penya Escrita. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Penya Escrita to Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I
Penya Escrita → Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I is 70 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I to Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I
Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I → Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I is 76 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I to back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I
Cueva de la Araña- Abrigo I → back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I is 89 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I to Penya Escrita
back through Barranc d'Alpadull- Abric I → Penya Escrita is 69 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.