Why this ride
120 km from Mérida to Mérida, about 2 h 24 of riding. It goes by way of Cornalvo Dam, Thermal Baths at Alange and back through Cornalvo Dam. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
The Roman Circus and Thermal Baths at Alange
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 120 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 24
- 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.
Scenic road chapters
Ruta de la Plata
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For about 16 km this is Ruta de la Plata, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 16 km
- Named road
- Ruta de la Plata
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. The Roman Circus
Mérida was founded in 25 BC as Augusta Emerita, a city for veterans of the Cantabrian Wars, and it grew into the capital of the Roman province of Lusitania. Few places in Spain carry their Roman past so openly. The circus lies on the eastern side of town, a long, flat oval of grass more than four hundred metres from end to end, with the low remains of the central barrier and the seating banks around it. It once held tens of thousands of spectators for chariot races, and though the stands are mostly gone, you can still walk the track and picture the teams thundering around the turning posts.
Read the complete The Roman Circus write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Roman Circus is where the day begins. Next is Cornalvo Dam.
2. Cornalvo Dam
Nearly two thousand years after Roman engineers built it, the dam at Cornalvo still holds water. It lies in the rolling countryside north-east of Mérida, in Extremadura, and it supplied the Roman city of Augusta Emerita, capital of the province of Lusitania. The dam is an earthen embankment faced with stone, with a tower in the reservoir that controlled the outflow, and it is part of the Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Read the complete Cornalvo Dam write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Cornalvo Dam comes up about 16 km into the recorded legs. Next is Thermal Baths at Alange.
3. Thermal Baths at Alange
The Romans, who were serious about hot water, found a warm spring at Alange in what is now Extremadura and built a bathing complex around it, and the place is still used today. The Roman baths, about twenty kilometres from Mérida, include a domed chamber with stone benches and a pool fed by the spring, and the water comes out pleasantly warm, a gift in a dry country. The baths date from the time when Mérida, then called Emerita Augusta, was one of the great cities of Roman Spain, and wealthy citizens would travel here to relax and be cured.
Read the complete Thermal Baths at Alange write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 60 km into the recorded legs you reach Thermal Baths at Alange. Next is back through Cornalvo Dam.
4. back through Cornalvo Dam
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Cornalvo Dam write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Cornalvo Dam, late in the day. Next is The Roman Circus.
5. The Roman Circus
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Roman Circus write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at The Roman Circus. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
The Roman Circus to Cornalvo Dam
The Roman Circus → Cornalvo Dam is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Cornalvo Dam to Thermal Baths at Alange
Cornalvo Dam → Thermal Baths at Alange is 44 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Thermal Baths at Alange to back through Cornalvo Dam
Thermal Baths at Alange → back through Cornalvo Dam is 44 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Cornalvo Dam to The Roman Circus
back through Cornalvo Dam → The Roman Circus is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.