{"id":13097,"date":"2021-04-20T10:50:58","date_gmt":"2021-04-20T08:50:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.albarracin.es\/?page_id=13097"},"modified":"2023-02-07T13:48:01","modified_gmt":"2023-02-07T12:48:01","slug":"routes-by-car-motorbike","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.albarracin.es\/en\/routes-by-car-motorbike\/","title":{"rendered":"Routes by Car & Motorbike"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row full_width=”stretch_row” css=”.vc_custom_1650035962568{padding-top: 80px !important;padding-bottom: 100px !important;background-image: url(https:\/\/www.albarracin.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/fondo-8-rincones-white-2.jpg?id=3062) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}” el_class=”ffm bg8″][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1673963429681{margin-bottom: 20px !important;}”]<\/p>\n

Route 1 \u00b7 65 km.<\/h3>\n

El Rodeno<\/h1>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”6278″ img_size=”full” css=”.vc_custom_1650012456050{margin-top: 30px !important;}”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text]First off we propose the route that is closest to Albarrac\u00edn, although to cover it fully and without rushing we suggest taking a whole day, and if the weather is on your side, stop to eat at Fuentebuena (for example, buying bread, chops etc. in Albarrac\u00edn and cooking them there).<\/p>\n

Leave Albarrac\u00edn through El Arrabal, and after passing through this neighbourhood, set out on a steep road that leads to the Protected Landscape of Los Pinares de Rodeno.<\/p>\n

The first examples of rock art can be found at Fuente del Cabrerizo, right at the start of the pine forest, next to some farrowing pens. Park your car on the esplanade next to the houses and take the signposted path between the two houses. To reach the first shelter, you need to go down some steps to the bottom of the ravine. Beforehand, you can admire the contrast of the stone and the Rodeno pine forest from a vantage point (see \u201cpanoramic view\u201d). When you reach the bottom, you will see a small spring and the signposted path to cross the ravine. Taking the direction towards Albarrac\u00edn (path GR-10), which leads to the shelter where you can see some rock engravings (the only ones here) of a deer and an equine animal.<\/p>\n

You are now heading to the area with the greatest number of rock art shelters, where there is an information centre. Of these sites, at the very least you should try to visit the shelters at Toricos del Navazo<\/em> (see “panoramic view”) and the Arquero de los Callejones<\/em>; the latter is in the Arrastradero area, where also there is a small botanical garden and a viewing point (see “panoramic view”) to Gea de Albarrac\u00edn, which are worth seeing.<\/p>\n

Leave this area and follow the road, taking in the beautiful landscape of pine forests and sandstone, especially around the section that curves to the right where you can admire an impressive sandstone landscape. You will arrive at a crossroads (\u2018cuatro caminos\u2019) where you need to take a right turn, which takes you to the old forest house, now converted into the Rodeno Visitor Centre, and which is well worth a quick visit. Leaving the Centre, a few metres ahead you will come to another crossroads. Turn right again and after one kilometre you will reach a poplar grove where to the left of the road is the spring (Fuentebuena) and to the right a picnic area with tables and barbecues.<\/p>\n

The second part of the tour will take you first to Pe\u00f1a de la Cruz (1,538 m), where you can see some remains of the Civil War and enjoy an excellent view. Leave Fuentebuena on the return trip to Albarrac\u00edn. Before reaching the last crossroads, turn right onto a dirt road (in good condition) that leads to Torm\u00f3n. After approximately 2 km you will come to another crossroads with a sign that confirms that on the right the path starts that will take you to the summit (hopefully during the journey you will be able to spot some roe deer). Apart from the fabulous view that you can see from the peak (see “panoramic view”), the sandstone promontory that you have to skirt, which at one point leads you up steps made from the same stone, until you reach the cross and the forest lookout house are equally stunning.<\/p>\n

Once back down, on the dirt road, continue in the direction of Torm\u00f3n (at certain moments, if you look back you can see the Pico de la Cruz peak and its amazing shape). The Bezas lagoon can be reached from two roads (take care with low cars), both signposted. The first route, which is shorter and recommended for off-road vehicles, starts a few metres ahead to the left, although depending on the time of year and the weather conditions (water, ice or snow) it may be difficult to traverse. For the second route, follow the dirt road, until you reach a tarmac road in 4 kilometres. Take a left towards Rubiales, and after some derelict houses you will see a turn signposted on the left indicating the direction via a dirt road which is 2.5 km to Bezas lagoon. Depending on the time of the year that you visit, the lagoon will be filled with more or less water, which originates from the melting ice and rain water, and with more or less quantity of wildlife (ducks, herons, etc.).<\/p>\n

To return to Albarrac\u00edn, you need to return to the previous road and continue in the direction of Rubiales until you reach a crossroads where you can visit another small lagoon formed of melting ice (the Rubiales lagoon). Continue left towards the road that leads to Teruel, and once you arrive at it take the left direction, which passes through Bezas and takes you back to Albarrac\u00edn.<\/p>\n

If you have any time left, turn off the road that goes down from the pine forest to Gea de Albarrac\u00edn, and you can climb up to another watchtower at Carbonera peak (1,540 m). The uphill road is paved and at the top there is a small space to park your car and to turn around. On one side you can see the whole plain of Teruel and, on the other, the Pinar de Rodeno pine forest. It’s a great view and excellent way to end the excursion.[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner content_placement=”middle”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Additional information<\/h3>\n

Route length:<\/strong> Approximately 65 kilometres.<\/p>\n

Road conditions:<\/strong> local roads, good condition except for a few stretches. Between Fuentebuena and the turn off to Torm\u00f3n forest dirt road in good condition. The access roads to Bezas lagoon are tracks and you need to be careful as they are not in very good condition (loose stones and potholes).<\/p>\n

Comments:<\/strong> The Protected Landscape of Los Pinares de Rodeno is located in the south-east of La Sierra de Albarrac\u00edn. It is an impressive area, consisting of an extensive pine forest on red sandstone from the Triassic period deposited more than 200 million years ago, and whose vibrant colour adopts wine-coloured hues, originating from the lichen colonies that blanket the rocks.<\/p>\n

The protected area measures 3,355 ha and runs from 1,095 m of altitude in the Tobias ravine to 1,602 m on the Cruz de Montoyo hill. The wooded area represents seventy percent of the total area. The most important group is the natural Rodeno pine forest, which is situated in the area on reddish conglomerates and sandstones. Other tree varieties here include wild pine, oak, juniper, and varieties of Juniperus thurifera.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”6292″ img_size=”full”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text]The most noteworthy groups of wildlife in this territory are birds and mammals. In the first group, the pine forest is home to small birds such as the wren, the great tit, the coal tit, the robin, the common chaffinch, the short-toed treecreeper and the red crossbill; as well as birds of prey such as the booted eagle, the northern goshawk, the Eurasian sparrowhawk and the Eurasian hobby; and nocturnal birds, like the long-eared owl and the tawny owl. In the oak forest you can spot the Eurasian blue tit, the long-tailed tit, the common blackbird, the common firecrest, the common chiffchaff, the woodlark and the rock bunting, among other species. Rock birds include the golden eagle, the peregrine falcon, the kestrel and the Eurasian eagle-owl. Mammals you can spot here include the squirrel, the hare, the wild boar, the fox and the beech marten.<\/p>\n

This singular place, with its towers, corridors, peaks and shelters, was occupied by prehistoric man. Inside the protected landscape is a collection of Levantine rock art recently declared a World Heritage Site. This rock art extends along the Mediterranean border from Catalonia to Andalusia, penetrating inland in the area of Arag\u00f3n and Castile La Mancha. In 1996, at the initiative of the Valencian Community, the autonomous communities of Arag\u00f3n, Catalonia, Valencia, Murcia, Andalusia and Castile-La Mancha decided to work together to apply for the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula to be included in the World Heritage List. The proposal was submitted to the meeting of the Historical Heritage Council on 15 March 1996, and it decided to initiate the inquiry. This agreement marked the beginning, for each of the six communities, of the work necessary to make the proposal to UNESCO.<\/p>\n

At the meeting of the World Heritage Committee held in Kyoto from 30 November to 5 December 1998, the group approved including the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Basin on the Iberian Peninsula in the World Heritage List. Among the reasons given for its inclusion are its exclusivity, the documentary value, how it is interwoven into a humanised but highly ecological landscape, and the fragility and vulnerability of these sites.<\/p>\n

The declaration affects 757 archaeological sites with rock art and commits the State Administration, six autonomous communities, 163 municipalities and all citizens to the conservation and protection of these sites as, despite being located on our lands, they are now considered universal heritage, a World Heritage Site.<\/p>\n

In our area, there are twelve shelters in less than 30 hectares. Since 1982, when E. Marconell discovered the first shelters with Levantine rock art of the Iberian Peninsula in Albarrac\u00edn, at Prado de los Torinos del Navazo and Cocinilla del Obispo, the group of rock paintings of Albarrac\u00edn, dated between 6000 \u2013 1500 BC, has distinguished itself from the rest of the representations of Iberian rock art on the peninsula by the use of the colour white, only found in this area, and by the large size of the bovids, their stillness, and for the simplicity in the design of human representations.<\/p>\n

Other places of interest:<\/h3>\n