Gravel loop in Saja-Besaya natural park

This Route takes you to discover the Saja-Besaya Natural Park, which takes its name from the rivers that delimit it.

The starting and ending point of the route is the town of Ruente, well connected to Cabezón de la Sal, where we can get there by train or bus.

After taking the track that goes up the Bayones river valley, you must turn south and start the first ascent of the day that will take you to the top of the Moral hermitage. As you gain altitude, the landscape unfolds, passing from dense valley bottoms to bare mountains.

After a nice descent towards the Saja river valley, take a stretch of road to Bárcena Mayor. Here begins one of the most spectacular parts of the Route: the climb through the beech forest to the Cruz de Fuentes.

The return, almost all downhill, is going to be done along the beautiful road that winds through the Saja river valley passing through the towns of El Tojo, Renedo and Valle until returning to Ruente.

When you complete the lap, you will have pedaled just over 85 kilometers and added more than 2000 meters of positive elevation gain. It is therefore a route in which good physical preparation is needed to face it safely.

It is an ideal route to do with a gravel bike, as it combines good tracks with sections that run along quiet roads.

I recommend you do the route in autumn, if it is not too cold, to enjoy the beautiful display of colors of the beech forests in their annual leaf shedding.