La Pedriza, Senda Maeso, El Yelmo and Manzanares el Real

Today marks a great leap forward in my career as a goat photographer. Attentive Chorizophiles will surely have noticed that sheep, goats and cows are a recurring theme around here. Why, you might ask? Well, because the mountains in Madrid (and everywhere else in Spain) are crawling with them.

Today’s route took in parts of Senda Maeso, El Yelmo and La Pedriza. Starting and ending in Manzanares el Real, which is only about 50 minutes by bus from the new Chorizo Chronicles world headquarters.

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Strangely enough, I got lost and almost died on this same mountain many years ago. I was young, stupid, and under the impression that there was a bus stop every 100 meters all across Europe. Well, I was wrong. Very wrong

I ended up walking about 40 kilometers (I would estimate), and around midnight I arrived in Miraflores de la Sierra with no choice but to sleep in the park and get up for the bus at 5:30 AM. It sucked.

The lesson? Respect the mountain.

The universe doesn’t give a shit how young and optimistic you are… If you do something stupid like going out without a map or water or any idea of what you’re doing, you can die. And it will be entirely your fault. And the world will go on in much the same way as it always has, without you.

It was quite a revelation. Oh well. Anyway, enjoy the goats. Those are Spanish Ibex, in case you’re keeping track.