Why this ride
A 293 km round trip from Montblanc - roughly 5 h 31 in the saddle. On the way it passes La Vall de la Coma, Camino de la Cova Plana II, Val de mamet I and back through Camino de la Cova Plana II. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Poblet Monastery and Val de mamet I
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 293 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 31
- 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. Poblet Monastery
Few places in Catalonia carry as much weight as Poblet. The Cistercian monastery was founded in the middle of the twelfth century on land granted by Count Ramon Berenguer IV, and over the following generations it became the royal pantheon of the Crown of Aragon, the place where kings chose to be buried under carved alabaster. It is still a working community of monks, which gives the vast walled complex a quietness that the coach parties never quite manage to break. UNESCO listed it in 1991, and walking through the outer gates, past the first enclosure and into the cloister, you feel the scale of medieval monastic power in a way that a textbook never conveys.
Read the complete Poblet Monastery write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Poblet Monastery is where the day begins. Next is La Vall de la Coma.
2. La Vall de la Coma
The Garrigues is the dry heart of Lleida province, a land of terraced hills, stone walls and endless olive groves, and La Vall de la Coma is one of its quiet valleys, in the municipality of L'Albi. In a few rock shelters here, prehistoric people painted small figures in red, part of the Levantine rock art of the Mediterranean basin that is recognized as a World Heritage Site. The paintings are fragile and modest in size, and access is usually organized through local guides or interpretation centres, so plan ahead rather than expecting to wander in.
Read the complete La Vall de la Coma write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
La Vall de la Coma comes up about 27 km into the recorded legs. Next is Camino de la Cova Plana II.
3. Camino de la Cova Plana II
Three rivers come together near Mequinenza: the Ebro, flowing in from the west, and the Segre and Cinca, arriving together from the Pyrenees to the north. The meeting point, now swallowed by the reservoirs behind the dams, has always been a strategic place, and the much-restored castle on the hill above the town has watched over it for centuries. The Camino de la Cova Plana is a track in the hills east of town, towards the Catalan border, and the site recorded here is one of the many prehistoric rock shelters scattered across this dry, rugged landscape.
Read the complete Camino de la Cova Plana II write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 114 km into the recorded legs you reach Camino de la Cova Plana II. Next is Val de mamet I.
4. Val de mamet I
The Ebro river cuts through Aragon in a wide, dry valley, and where it meets its tributaries the Segre and Cinca around Mequinenza it was dammed in the twentieth century to make long, narrow lakes among bare hills. Val de Mamet is a dry side valley in this country, with a shelter that holds prehistoric paintings. The surroundings are arid and open, with low limestone cliffs, thyme and rosemary scrub, and scattered pines and almonds, and the silence is broken mostly by the wind and the occasional hawk.
Read the complete Val de mamet I write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Val de mamet I, about halfway. Next is back through Camino de la Cova Plana II.
5. back through Camino de la Cova Plana II
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Camino de la Cova Plana II write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Camino de la Cova Plana II sits at 149 km, about halfway. Next is back through La Vall de la Coma.
6. back through La Vall de la Coma
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete La Vall de la Coma write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through La Vall de la Coma comes up about 265 km into the recorded legs. Next is Poblet Monastery.
7. Poblet Monastery
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Poblet Monastery write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Poblet Monastery closes the day.
Leg by leg
Poblet Monastery to La Vall de la Coma
Poblet Monastery → La Vall de la Coma is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
La Vall de la Coma to Camino de la Cova Plana II
La Vall de la Coma → Camino de la Cova Plana II is 87 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Camino de la Cova Plana II to Val de mamet I
Camino de la Cova Plana II → Val de mamet I is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Val de mamet I to back through Camino de la Cova Plana II
Val de mamet I → back through Camino de la Cova Plana II is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Camino de la Cova Plana II to back through La Vall de la Coma
back through Camino de la Cova Plana II → back through La Vall de la Coma is 88 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through La Vall de la Coma to Poblet Monastery
back through La Vall de la Coma → Poblet Monastery is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
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