1996. 304 pp, color photos, maps. Guide to walks & scrambles in the Sierras de Gredos and Guadarrama, which rise to 2600m and remain snow-capped for 5 months of the year
The Sierras de Gredos and Guadarrama are the highest part of the long chain of hills and mountains which splits the big central tableland of Spain. Popular from Madrid, they are rarely visited by foreigners except those en route to the coast or the medieval cities which surround the range. The two sierras form an impressive physical barrier, reaching a height of nearly 2600m and being snow-capped for five months of the year, and they have much to offer the walker, scrambler or climber.
The Sierra de Gredos are the highest and most inaccessible mountains in Central Spain with many long approaches up wild valleys or spurs to spectacular corries backed by jagged arêtes. The Sierra de Guadarrama, nearer to Madrid and crossed by several high road passes, offer more intimate walking on a dense network of good footpaths and with a rich variety of scenery from rolling ridges to tightly packed granite towers.
Lower than the better-known Spanish ranges, they offer an enjoyable mixture of open ridge walking and spectacular scrambling in a dry and sunny climate.
Part One - IntroductionTHE CENTRAL MOUNTAINSChapter One - Background Geology and Landforms Climate and Weather Vegetation Wildlife The Human Landscape Mountaineering RockClimbing Skiing Other ActivitiesChapter Two - Practical Information
Part Two - The Sierra de GredosINTRODUCTIONChapter Three - The Sierra de Béjar. Routes 1-4Chapter Four - Western Gredos. Routes 5-8Chapter Five - Central Gredos North Side - Routes 9-21 South Side - Routes 22-33Chapter Six - Eastern Gredos. Routes 34-37
Part Three - The Sierra de GuadarramaINTRODUCTIONChapter Seven - Western Guadarrama. Routes 38-42 Chapter Eight - Central Guadarrama (West). Routes 43-49 Chapter Nine - Central Guadarrama (East). Routes 50-54 Chapter Ten - Upper Manzanares Basin. Routes 55-68 Chapter Eleven - Eastern Guadarrama. Routes 69-71
Part Four - Long Distance RoutesThe GR10 in GuadarramaTraverse of Central and West Gredos
