I was recently been watching the world alpine ski championship from Cortina, Italy and remind me of my try of skiing while living in my dear Madrid. The closest mountain was Navacerrada, the craddle of Spanish skiing that gave the country its Olympic medal. I like to update this memorable post for you and I. Hope you enjoy it as I do.
Ok another nostalgic moment that was able to see again last summer. Well, this is the beginning of the end ; many years ago circa 1972, I was living in Madrid, and friends convince me to go skiing in the mountains. I am a beach bum boy and always been; so curiosity took me there. It was of course the fabled Navacerrada and I put my skis; well I never had so many summersaults in my life coming down the mountain, lucky was not hurt and therefore, ended my career as a skier….lol! However, the memories still lingered and had gone up just to see an after ski day or just enjoying the natural beauty of the place, and of course driving around those mountain peaks. Navacerrada will always remained close to my heart. My dear late wife Martine took a nostalgic trip with me in 2017 and really enjoyed it.
Navacerrada (the town) is in the Comunidad de Madrid at 1200 meters high on the shoulders of the Sierra de Guadarrama on the Navacerrada dam and the entrance to the Valley of Barranca. The town is located at 52 km from Madrid. Every Sunday there is a market of antiques in the Avenida de Madrid. On the first Sunday of the month there is a expo of old collectible automobiles as well as a medieval market with a very festive ambiance. The peak is higher as you can see in the picture below
You have an excellent time skiing here , the best in Madrid in my opinion. The closest station to Madrid at 1858 meters high. It is well divided in two zones; a high zone with average trails to advance and a lower zone with average trails and beginners. They are well protected along pine trees. The north ladder or ¡Segovian is part of the town of Real Sitio de San Ildefonso , and the south ladder or Madrilene belongs to the town of Cercedilla. . From here you can use as a base to visit La Granja de San Ildefonso (see post) , Segovia (see posts), San Lorenzo de El Escorial (see post), Rascafria , Fuenfria and others.
The project of the port was done in 1778 and opened to the public in 1788 under the reign of king Carlos IV. The port town is crossed by the road M 601 that connects Collado Villalba with Segovia. From the port town there is the road CL 604 that connects with the towns in the Valley of Lozoya passing by the Puerto de Cotos port. The last segment from the south passes at the intersection of roads M 601 and M 607 at 1300 meters altitude and goes up 560 meters at a inclination of 8%.
Some good eating places in Puerto de Navacerrada and the town are Asador Espinosa, restaurante Casa Paco, and La Fonda Real, that I can recommend from the many in the area.
Ways to get to the town from Madrid. You can get on the expressway A6 to Collado Villalba (another nice town) and here take the M-601 direction Segovia until you reach Puerto de Navacerrada. Every day there are buses too from the bus depot at Moncloa in Madrid , take line 691 of Autobuses Larrea. You can ,also,come here from Madrid taking the road M-607 direction Colmenar Viejo follow signs for Puerto de Navacerrada . By train from Chamartin station in Madrid take the Cercanias C 8b to Cercedilla and here change on the C9 cotos train to Puerto de Navacerrada. The Adolfo Suarez Barajas airport is only 80 km. For info I always come here by car.
The town of Navacerrada on tourist info: https://www.aytonavacerrada.org/index.php/turismo-20
The Madrid tourist office on the Puerto de Navacerrada: https://www.esmadrid.com/en/tourist-information/puerto-navacerrada
Weather conditions especially snow by Infonieve in Navacerrada: https://www.infonieve.es/estacion-esqui/puerto-de-navacerrada/webcams/
The Puerto de Navacerrada webpage https://puertonavacerrada.com/en/the-resort/surroundings-and-patrimony/
Lately I read that due to the virus and less frequency two ski lanes will be closed, sadly, the space will be reduce so go as soon as you can before all changes.
Hope you enjoy it as I do; this short introductory post on Navacerrada. A spot of memories in my heart never to be forgotten and looking forward to be back when possible. And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 
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