Mediterranean Epic Gran Fondo 2026

The route

The Mediterranean Epic Gran Fondo reaches its fifth edition on 25 April in Oropesa del Mar, Castellón. It starts literally at the Mediterranean and climbs into the Castellón interior through the passes of the Maestrazgo, a territory of dry landscape, medieval villages, and roads that rarely appear on most cyclists' radar. Three distances are available: 198 km, 160 km, and 110 km. The Gran Fondo at 198 km is one of the longest on the national calendar, and starting from sea level gives the elevation profile a cumulative gain that is straightforward to read: a great deal of climbing and descending over the course of the day.

The 198 km long route builds its difficulty progressively: the opening kilometres near the coast are flatter and allow the group to stay together, before the Maestrazgo passes begin with climbs reaching 800-1,200 m of altitude and gradients of 6-9%. The Maestrazgo is a comarca with its own classic passes, less famous than those in the Pyrenees or the Alpujarra but with genuine character: long straight valley roads, sustained climbs, and extended descents that demand attention. The landscape is dry and open, with little shade, and the medieval villages appearing in the valleys are a reminder that this is an area with centuries of history. The 160 km and 110 km routes shorten the distance while keeping the Maestrazgo as the central experience.

April in Castellón brings pleasant coastal temperatures of 15-22°C, with the interior somewhat cooler, 10-16°C on the higher passes. Wind is the most variable element. The Maestrazgo passes have irregular orientations and the wind changes direction frequently throughout the route: in a single day you can face headwind on the climb and a tailwind on the descent, or vice versa, depending on how the valleys align with the day's wind axis. On the return sections toward the coast, the Levante breeze from the E/SE Mediterranean can either help or hinder depending on the exact direction of the road, running at 15-25 km/h on the most exposed stretches. The final kilometres along the coast almost always carry a fresh marine breeze, welcome at the end of a long day but enough to make the final kilometres harder than they look.

Registration is at medepicseries.com/mediterranean-epic-gran-fondo. Oropesa del Mar has beach-tourism accommodation at very reasonable April prices before summer arrives. Castellón city, just over 20 km away, offers a wider range of options. For the 198 km distance, preparation has to be serious: arriving at that distance without having done long rides in the previous month is a genuine risk. Having at least two or three rides of over 120 km in your legs from recent weeks is the minimum. Bring your own food in addition to what the feed stations offer — shops are not around every corner in the Maestrazgo.

Variants and GPX

Past editions

Real Open-Meteo weather on each edition day.

How to register

Registration, price and rules are on the official website of the organization. Official march website →

More information

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