Trail Network of Guadarrama Mountains
R.14: From Alpedrete to Collado Mediano among old quarries
The route begins in the Plaza de la Villa de Alpedrete where you can admire the Church of the Assumption of Our Lady. It is a fortress church made of stone. Its front façade and tower were built between the end of the 12th century and the beginning of the 13th century. Its nave dates from the 15th century and the transept from 1956. Inside, the baptismal font and the Mudejar coffered ceiling, from the 16th century, and the spiral staircase leading to the choir stand out. We leave the Plaza de la Villa and take Calle Real, which we do not leave until the third street on our right, Calle del Collado Mediano. We continue along Collado Mediano street, through some urbanisations of single-family houses. After approximately 600 metres, we will reach the end of the street and where the asphalt and buildings end. At this point, take a dirt track on the right. The path is not to be missed as it climbs slightly and is flanked by farms with their stone fences. It is a very gentle climb through holm oaks, oaks and junipers. During the walk we pass several abandoned granite quarries that are now home to many amphibians. This route also offers splendid views to our right over the Cerro del Telégrafo (Telegraph Hill) and its Telegraph Tower, which belongs to the municipality of Collado Mediano. In front of us rises the Cerro del Castillo, and a little further back the majestic summit of La Maliciosa with its 2,227 metres. In a short time some houses of the Collado Mediano municipality will appear before our eyes, we continue along the more than obvious path that begins to descend slightly and that through a curve to the right will take us to cross the railway track through the overpass that we will find on our left. Once on the other side of the track, descend a few metres to take the path on the right and then take the path on the left at the fork we come to. Along this path we will approach Collado Mediano between stone fences and the occasional ash tree. Once we reach the railway track again, we walk parallel to it, leaving it on our right, and after a few metres we will find the overpass that we will have to cross. We are now in Collado Mediano. We only have to continue along the same street (Calle de la Vega) until we reach Calle de la Ermita, which we take to the left and which in just 100 metres will take us to the Plaza Mayor of Collado Mediano.