Why this ride
A 275 km round trip from Tortosa - roughly 5 h 45 in the saddle. The stops in between: Roca dels moros, La fenellosa, Els Gascons and back through La fenellosa.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Prop de la Cova Pintada and Els Gascons
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 275 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 45
- 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. Prop de la Cova Pintada
The Ports massif rises abruptly at the meeting point of Catalonia, Aragón and Valencia, a tangle of limestone peaks, deep gorges and pine forest that feels surprisingly wild given how close it is to the Ebro delta and the coast. Prop de la Cova Pintada, meaning near the painted cave, sits on its southern side, between Mas de Barberans, Valderrobres and the old city of Tortosa.
Read the complete Prop de la Cova Pintada write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Prop de la Cova Pintada is where the day begins. Next is Roca dels moros.
2. Roca dels moros
In 1903, a young man from Calaceite named Juan Cabré, who would go on to become one of Spain's pioneering archaeologists, found painted figures of deer and other animals in a rock shelter in the Calapatá ravine, between Calaceite and Cretas. The Roca dels Moros became one of the first sites of Levantine rock art identified in Spain, and it helped open up a whole new field of study. Today it is part of the UNESCO listing of rock art of the Mediterranean Basin, and a visit here is a small pilgrimage to the beginnings of that story.
Read the complete Roca dels moros write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Roca dels moros comes up about 83 km into the recorded legs. Next is La fenellosa.
3. La fenellosa
People in Aragón like to call the Matarraña their Tuscany, and for once the comparison is not entirely marketing. It is a comarca of honey-coloured stone villages on hilltops, olive groves on terraces, almond trees and vineyards, with the limestone wall of the Ports de Beseit rising behind. La Fenellosa lies in this country, between Valderrobres, Fuentespalda and Mas de Barberans across the Catalan line, in the rough hills where the farmland gives way to the mountains.
Read the complete La fenellosa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 110 km into the recorded legs you reach La fenellosa. Next is Els Gascons.
4. Els Gascons
The Matarraña, or Matarranya in Catalan, is a river that runs from the high ground of the Ports de Beseit through southern Teruel and down toward the Ebro, and its valley is one of the most appealing corners of inland Spain. Els Gascons lies nine kilometres from Valderrobres and seven from Calaceite, in a country of olive groves, almond terraces and low stone walls. The painted shelters here are among the eastern outliers of the Levantine art that UNESCO listed in 1998, and the catalogue includes names such as Valcomuna and Albi, which turn up in this route.
Read the complete Els Gascons write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Els Gascons, about halfway. Next is back through La fenellosa.
5. back through La fenellosa
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete La fenellosa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through La fenellosa sits at 99 km, about halfway. Next is back through Roca dels moros.
6. back through Roca dels moros
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Roca dels moros write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Roca dels moros comes up about 194 km into the recorded legs. Next is Prop de la Cova Pintada.
7. Prop de la Cova Pintada
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Prop de la Cova Pintada write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Prop de la Cova Pintada closes the day.
Leg by leg
Prop de la Cova Pintada to Roca dels moros
Prop de la Cova Pintada → Roca dels moros is 83 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Roca dels moros to La fenellosa
Roca dels moros → La fenellosa is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
La fenellosa to Els Gascons
La fenellosa → Els Gascons is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Els Gascons to back through La fenellosa
Els Gascons → back through La fenellosa is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through La fenellosa to back through Roca dels moros
back through La fenellosa → back through Roca dels moros is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Roca dels moros to Prop de la Cova Pintada
back through Roca dels moros → Prop de la Cova Pintada is 83 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.