LARD HAT
Casa de Campo is Madrid’s most natural park, and it’s basically right in the middle of the city. You can get there on foot (crossing the Manzanares river from Principe Pío), or you can get off the metro in one of the stops on the edge of the park: Lago, Batán or Casa de Campo.
It’s famous among legitimate madrileños (who don’t often leave their neighborhoods and many times know virtually nothing about their own city) as a place where prostitution and other vices run rampant. If you’re looking for that, most of it is on the Principe Pío side. However, the whole of Casa de Campo is 5 times the size of Central Park in New York! It’s 1,723 hectares, whatever that means.
Most of it is an oak forest, and in some parts there are a lot of Stone Pines also. As shown in the above photo, Stone Pines have long trunks with no branches, and large flat crowns, so you can walk between them with no problem.
Historical note: Spain used to be full of trees, but thousands of years of civilization haven’t been kind to our forests—as you can see if you visit anywhere in La Mancha to the south or east of Madrid.
There’s a little creek running along the south side, with a bit of fauna. Here are some turtles, but we also saw squirrels, storks, ducks and geese.
Historically, Casa de Campo was a royal hunting-ground. With the declaration of the Second Republic in 1931, it was turned over to the people of Madrid. Now we have a monarchy over here again (it’s a very very long story…) but the park is still public.
The Parque de Atracciones is close to Metro Batán, the Zoo is close to Metro Casa de Campo, and there’s a pretty nice public swimming pool (open June-September, more or less) at Metro Lago.
The best thing about this time of the year: almond blossoms!
The beautiful Valle de Lozoya is way up in the northern part of the Sierra: the only bad thing I can say about it is that it’s so far from Madrid.
Stepping off the bus in Lozoya is like entering a parallel world, it feels like stepping back in time—it’s lightyears from Puerta del Sol, even though it’s still within the boundaries of the Madrid community.
The town of Lozoya has only 670 permanent inhabitants, with a few more people arriving on weekends to enjoy the small town vibe.
Photo by Lucia Moretti.
In the mornings, people come to set up a market in the Plaza Mayor, selling bread or fish or household goods from folding tables and the backs of trucks. After they leave, the Plaza Mayor is totally empty most of the day.
There are several bars andrestaurants, a couple of supermarkets and a tourist information office but barely anything else in the village.
The reservoir (Embalse de Pinilla) is quite large, and has a system of trails around it. Just cross the highway from the bus stop and you’ll find a map informing you of some of the routes.
There are two excellent routes: one to the east, past the dam and out along the river to Puente del Congosto, where you can relax in the rocky areas near the water; and one to the west, through the villages of Pinilla del Valle, Alameda del Valle, Orteruelo del Valle, and finally on to Rascafría.
In Rascafría there is quite a bit of activity, with many bars and rural tourism. You can check out the natural swimming pools of Las Presillas and Monasterio del Paular, about 4 kilometers south of the village (you can walk on a shady path next to highway M-604.)
Everything is pretty cheap. The area is known as the Sierra Pobre because it doesn’t attract as much tourism as other areas and so there is generally less money going into the villages. But the natural beauty and simplicity more than make up for it.
Once again, the only difficulty is getting there and away using public transport.
How to Arrive: Both Lozoya and Rascafría are accessible by bus. Catch Bus 194 from Plaza Castilla, there are only 3 or 4 buses per day. (More information and schedules are available on the Consorcio de Transportes website. The ticket only costs about 4 euros, but the trip takes over two hours.
Where to Stay: I’ve always stayed in Hospedería La Rosa, just off of Plaza Mayor in Lozoya. It’s part of the restaurant called El Rincón de Paulino. You can rent a whole apartment, with kitchen and bath, for 45 euros a night.
Where to Eat: The typical toast and jam Spanish breakfast in El Rincón de Paulino is great, but that’s all I’ve eaten there. I usually eat in Restaurante Fernando, right next to the bus stop in Lozoya. The hamburgers are good and cheap, and in season the mushrooms (Níscalos and Boletus) collected high up in the mountains are amazing, if expensive.
