Parque Natural de la Serra d'Irta — Vuelta desde Peñíscola por el Castillo de Xivert

Alone on the road today. I didn't just torture my old Santa over the trails in the mountains of the Parque Natural de la Serra d'Irta. First, I went from the Ribamar campsite along the coast to just before Peniscola. A very nice area, with small, flat, sandy coves amidst the rugged rock that dominates here, reminiscent of the Nagelfluh (conglomerated rock) here in the Allgäu region. Then the fun was over; it's a steep climb to the Ermita de Sant Antoni, luckily on a long concrete track. After that, pure trails. Trails like you'd find in Mediterranean countries. Steep, technically rocky, then easy to ride again, overgrown... With an e-bike, over 90% of it would have easily been rideable (but I keep my bike at home), so I pushed my bike for at least half the uphill stretch. At the Castell d'Alcalá de Xivert, there are suddenly people again. The return trip takes me downhill on fast, easy-to-ride paths, where I encounter countless rabbits in the orchards. Sometimes they're alone, sometimes they're in groups of three or four.