HI All,

I need to pick your brains.

In the UK I used to jump in my car on a Sunday and armed with the AA book of walks for Hampshire or Berkshire and disapear for a day walking in the contryside enjoying the peace and quiet away from the city.

I would like to do this in Madrid and would like to know if there are any good books that any of you can recommend.

The AA books I mentioned listed about fifty walks all graded from 1 to 5 (1 being very easy and 5 being difficult). They gave very good and details descriptions of the routes, along the lines of ... Cross the field diagonally, turn right at the stream and cross the stile .... etc etc.
All the routes were circular so ended where they commenced and usually had a half way point where the writer made a recommendation of a place to stop for lunch (a good pub). The best walks in my opinion were usually graded 4 to 5 and lasted about 5 or 6 hours.

I´d be grateful for any recommendations.

Best regards,

M.

A good place to start would be the bookshop Desnivel in Plaza Matute (off Calle Huertas) They've got books on walking for just about every hill and valley in Spain. They also have a website:

http://www.libreriadesnivel.com/

Also see Bookshop Tierra De Fuego C/ Pez nº 21
They organize one-day walking trips, of varying levels of difficulty, every weekend

Have fun.

I'just found a starting point it has descriptions and maps..

http://desnivel.com/deportes/excursionismo/rutas/guadarrama/