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Mount Abantos

San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Cuenca del Guadarrama, Madrid

1 Villages · 9 Monuments · 2 Nature · 1 Activities · 1 Curiosities · 1 Historical milestones

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Mount Abantos

Nature · San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Cuenca del Guadarrama, Madrid

The monte Abantos is one of the most important peaks of the sierra de Guadarrama, at an altitude of 1,753 metres; its western slope, mostly covered in pine forest, partly replanted, extends into the province of Ávila. It owes its name to the abanto, or Egyptian vulture, a bird once common there in the time of Philip II. Its southern slope was chosen by Philip II for the building of the Monastery of El Escorial, around which San Lorenzo de El Escorial grew up. On 21 August 1999 a fire burned 450 hectares on its eastern slope; the replanting begun in 2000 has gradually restored the pine forest. The puerto de Malagón, at 1,533 metres, is known for being a tough stage of the Vuelta Ciclista, and serves as a natural viewpoint over the Guadarrama basin and the Madrid plain.

Photo: David Mapletoft (CC BY 2.0)

What to see and do in San Lorenzo de El Escorial