Dual Sport Gem

Brilliant mix of easy trails and tarmac heaven... a day’s ride from Santander

- Jim Patton

If you go down to the woods today, in Spain’s Serranía de Cuenca, you’re in for a big dual sport surprise. Ok, sorry for the cheesy intro, but bear with me, no pun intended (I'm starting to get grizzly... – Ed). Situated in an empty quarter midway between Madrid and Valencia (and only a day’s ride from Santander or Bilbao), late spring to early autumn provides a playground of (usually) sunkissed, super-smooth roads and a patchwork of adventure bike-friendly trails. It’s an area I’ve been returning to for years and I’ve stitched together a route which even novice off-roaders on big GSAs can enjoy.

I based myself for four nights at the wonderful La Utrera in the sleepy village of Las Majadas, about 40km north of Cuenca. It’s run by a diminutive, but formidable Señora who was convinced my panniers were there to keep the beer cool. An alternative is the Parador Nacional hotel in medieval Cuenca, which has great views.

The route runs from the pretty lakeside village of Uña on the south-western fringe of the Serranía de Cuenca to Taravilla in the Alto Tajo. It’s 165km long and can be ridden in a single day if you are determined, but two days would be better.

To get to Uña from Cuenca, it’s a beautiful ride along the CM-2105, including a roller-coaster section just after Villalba. The village has several good restaurants, but I prefer to fill up at the tiny supermercado with ice-cold water, bread, pâté and fruit for when I hit the trails. Be warned though, this is rural Spain and the opening times of shops are somewhat arbitrary. As I left the supermercado around 11am, the owner followed me out and locked up. Customers would find a post-it note on the shop door declaring ‘Vuelvo en un rato’ (Back in a while), whenever that might be.

LAS MAJADAS LOOP