{"id":2825,"date":"2014-11-12T18:40:04","date_gmt":"2014-11-12T18:40:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.spainexchange.com\/?p=2825"},"modified":"2026-10-09T14:16:48","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T14:16:48","slug":"el-rio-manzanares-madrid-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.spainexchange.com\/articles\/el-rio-manzanares-madrid-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"El R\u00edo Manzanares, Madrid, Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Manzanares is the river of Madrid. It is a small river, but it links the mountains north of the city with the long riverside park that now runs through the capital. This post follows the river from its upper valley to the south of the city and gives the practical details for visiting the Madrid R\u00edo park, the historic bridges and the places connected with the painter Goya.<\/p>\n

The upper valley: La Pedriza and Manzanares el Real<\/h2>\n

The river rises in the Sierra de Guadarrama. The Madrid regional law that protects its headwaters describes the upper basin as running from the source, in the area generally known as La Pedriza, to the north wall of the Monte de El Pardo. That law, of January 1985, created the Parque Regional de la Cuenca Alta del Manzanares, the first regional park in Spain. In 1993 UNESCO included it in its world network of biosphere reserves.<\/p>\n

The rock landscape of La Pedriza, above the town of Manzanares el Real<\/a>, is now part of the Parque Nacional de la Sierra de Guadarrama. The park’s La Pedriza visitor centre is about two kilometres from the town, which bus line 724 connects with the Plaza de Castilla interchange in Madrid. Bathing in the Manzanares is not allowed there. Beside the town lies the Santillana reservoir, a pleasant place for a walk. Reservoirs on the Manzanares, the Jarama and the Alberche provide most of the water that the public company Canal de Isabel II supplies to Madrid.<\/p>\n

Further downstream the river crosses the Monte de El Pardo<\/a>, and the flow that reaches the city comes from the El Pardo dam.<\/p>\n

Madrid R\u00edo: the river in the city<\/h2>\n

The M-30 ring road used to run along both banks of the river in the city. Part of the road was moved underground, and the land above it became Madrid R\u00edo<\/a>, a park about 10 kilometres long. The city’s tourist board describes it as a green corridor that connects the Casa de Campo<\/a>, the Campo del Moro gardens, San Isidro park and the Manzanares linear park.<\/p>\n

The river itself has been restored. According to the tourist board, water quality has improved, fish breed in the river again and the vegetation growing in the riverbed gives shelter to birds and amphibians. The river is now a wildlife corridor between the parks in the north-west of the city and those in the south-east.<\/p>\n

The main things to see and do in Madrid R\u00edo are:<\/p>\n