With autumn knocking on the doors of the capital, it is time to recover our walks through nature, when the temperature drops and the trees begin to take on impossible tones, perhaps the best time to go hiking: here are seven proposals near Madrid, including its neighboring provinces.
La Pedriza
We begin in one of the most demanded hiking areas in the Community of Madrid, at the southernmost gateway to the Guadarrama National Park. Following the La Pedriza road, west of Manzanares El Realis this giant granitic batholith of 3,200 hectares.
There are several paths that run through it, starting with the Maeso Patha short but hard route of only five kilometers but with a considerable slope that leads us to Yelmo, a huge rock that exceeds 1,700 meters in altitude.
To the Maeso we can add the Path of the Cancho de los Muertosan eight-kilometer circular route that leads to the western area of La Pedriza or the famous Green Pond Trail which you can access from the Canto Cochino parking lot. But remember that bathing in the pond is prohibited, even if you don’t feel like it as much in autumn…
Schmid Road
We are going to the border between Madrid and Segovia to discover this famous mountain trail that is another must autumnal as it takes place between emblems of Guadarrama such as Navacerrada or the Fuenfría Valley.
Formally it is known as the PR-M/SG 5 but it is nicknamed that way by Eduardo Schmid who was the one who marked the route that connects the port of Navacerrada with the Fuenfría Valley hostel back in 1926. It is a linear path of almost 8 kilometers that reaches 1,900 meters high. If you prefer to do it on a downward slope, start at the Navacerrada port car park and finish at the Majavilán car park in Cercedilla.
Boca del Asno (Segovia)
Since we are on the other side of the border with Segovia, we cannot miss visiting another fantastic hiking area that is located a few kilometers to the north next to the Boca del Asno Visitor Center of the Guadarrama National Park, in the heart of the Valsaín Valley.
In addition to other longer and more complex routes, two trails for the general public start from here around the Eresma river. On the one hand, the blue trail lasting just over an hour and, on the other, the red, circular one that crosses the river through several bridges. Additionally you have the family path“in search of the lost seeds.”
Hayedo de la Pedrosa (Segovia)
In the eastern end of Segovia, near the border with Guadalajara, we visited one of those forests that with the arrival of autumn fascinates the hiker due to the incredible palette of colors it gives us.
We are in full Ayllón mountain range where the Pedrosa Beech Forest grows, which extends for just under 90 hectares, being one of the southernmost beech forests in Europe. One of the best routes to enjoy this Segovian treasure is the one that connects with Riofrío de Riaza along 12 kilometers with a difference in altitude of 578 meters.
Blacksmith Forest
We return to the Community of Madrid to visit another place with history next to one of the most important buildings in the history of Spanish architecture. With a total area of almost 500 hectares, this forest was originally the property of Philip II who set up his private hunting reserve here next to his palace and monastery. A good part of it now belongs to National Heritage.
Among the routes that we can do in the Bosque de la Herrería, the one that takes us to the chestnut grove and the famous Chair of Philip IIyou know, that stone throne that the monarch supposedly used to see the progress of the works on his palace. They are just over eight kilometers from one circular route which begins at the Tourist Office of San Lorenzo de El Escorial.
The Cárcavas of Pontón de la Oliva (Guadalajara)
Very close to the town of Patones de Arriba, an emblem of northern Madrid, but already in Guadalajara, be sure to visit the Cárcavas de Pontón de la Oliva, a landscape that may remind you of the famous Marrows.
It is a place that has been shaped for thousands of years by the waters of streams like La Lastra, generating these ditches between mountains of earthy colors sporadically covered with grass. A circular route of 12 kilometers with a gradient of 430 meters is the best way to enjoy this unique landscape.
Montejo Beech Forest
And there is no autumn in Madrid without the Hayedo de Montejo, a forest that we are almost embarrassed to recommend because of the incredible veneration that awakens what a complex entails reservation system to be able to be visited due to high demand.
But the fact is that the 250 hectares of this forest, also belonging to the Sierra de Ayllón, are the best in the region if we talk about autumn postcards. The River Path of 2.4 kilometers is one of the most affordable options to enjoy it, being accessible for wheelchairs or baby strollers on 80% of the route.
