Hiking up to Ermita de Santa Llúcia

Can you spot the ermita up at the top? 

We've visited the Ermita de Santa Llúcia on numerous occasions but we have never walked up the steep southern route. It's only about a 1.7km hike but it is nearly continuously up hill and it has some steep sections towards the end. The views are breathtaking and worth the hike, we were lucky to have an overcast day that provided some shade on our way up. 

A view midway looking south

 

Miraflores de la Sierra: Paseo de las fuentes

A sample of the fountains

Miraflores de la Sierra has a fun little paseo called the paseo de las fuentes. It claims to be a 5km circular trail but it is a little awkward in the layout, which resulted in us missing a few of the fountains. The route starts from the center of the town at the main fountain, with a map indicating the next stop. Each stop is like this, with some of the fountains functioning while others have fun dry. There is not a comprehensive map rather each fountain provides the steps to the subsequent fountain. We certainly improvised along the way cutting through some old farmland but overall it was a really enjoyable walk. 

I think they could give this route an update, it's quite fun to have so many fountains, each with a little story attached and it gives one an excuse to roam the town a bit.  

Área Recreativa Fuente Del Cura - Miraflores de la Sierra: Trip II

 

Trips up to this area are frequent due to having some friends living in Miraflores. It's a great area because there are accessible walks from the village itself as well as a network of longer trails for all types of hikers. We were even surprised to see some cyclists with non electric bikes that were powering up the relatively steep climbs. 

We took a popular trail up through a forested area that eventually led to an open plain. We crossed over the plain to drink from the Fuente de la Parada del Reye before going back to town. 

Fuente de la Parada del Rey