From Canto Cochino to El Tolmo

The classic route into La Pedriza: from Canto Cochino to El Tolmo along the so-called Autopista de La Pedriza, the massif's main track, from which many other routes branch off. It is 5.8 km there and back and about 2 h 05 for an average walker, according to the National Park's information sheet, which classifies it for advanced hikers. At the end El Tolmo appears, probably the most distinctive and best-known isolated rock in La Pedriza, an enormous granite block that has survived erosion.

The route

From the Canto Cochino car park you go down the tarmac track to the bridge over the River Manzanares. Opposite is the Canto Cochino information point, with a general map of La Pedriza beside the fence. There you take the PR-M 02 path, which follows the Arroyo de la Ventana upstream, keeping it on your right.

The path advances between La Pedriza Anterior and La Pedriza Posterior, through a pine wood replanted in the 1950s where holly, holm oaks, junipers, maples, heather and riverside vegetation along the stream also grow. On the way you see granite forms such as the Aleta de Tiburón (Shark Fin), a slab of rock shaped like a fin with marked lines called nerviaciones. About 2 km from the start, the PR-M 02 continues straight on, but the route crosses to the right over a wooden footbridge over the stream and reaches Prado Peluca, a large meadow at the foot of the Giner de los Ríos refuge.

From the meadow, a narrow path through sticky rockrose climbs about 500 metres towards the Collado de la Dehesilla. As you raise your eyes, El Tolmo appears ahead, to the left of the path, in front of La Pedriza Posterior. You return by the same way.

Route details

• Distance: 5.8 km there and back.
• Time: 2 h 05, without stops.
• Ascent: 292 m up and down, with an average gradient of 10.7%.
• Altitude: from 1,022 to 1,243 m.
• Surface: path, with stretches of rock and large boulders.

When to go and how to get there

It can be done all year. In summer set out first thing, before the heat. Take water and footwear with a sole that grips on granite.

By car you reach the Canto Cochino car park, free but with a quota of 270 vehicles. From October to May, on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays the barrier does not let cars in from 10:30 to 16:00, and the quota usually fills between 8:30 and 9:00. If you arrive late, enter on foot from Manzanares el Real via the Camorza gorge or the Quebrantaherraduras path. By bus, line 724 reaches the village from Plaza de Castilla.

Rules

Dogs must be on a lead and stay on the path, as throughout the National Park. Camping is not allowed, and swimming in the River Manzanares is not permitted. If you are a climber, El Tolmo has routes; check beforehand the rules and temporary climbing closures published by the Park.