Alone in Tubos de Cabezas de Hierro

Introduction

15 April 2008. I drove from Madrid to the barrier (1840 m) near Refugio del Pingarrón and Puerto de Cotos, Sierra de Guadarrama. Parked my car there and started hiking at 1:10 PM. It was late and I had to be back in Las Rozas at 8:00 PM. I traversed the first meadows, went into the pinewood and reached Arroyo de las Guarramillas. The creek was full of water, the Spring had begun. I crossed the wooden bridge and started ascending in El Pinar. Left the trail (PR-M 27) that I'd followed to the right and descended steeply to Arroyo de las Cerradillas (1755 m - 2:00 PM), crossed the bridge and took a path to the left heading to Arroyo de las Cerradillas E branch. Started the long ascent along the creek and went out of the pinewood. I reached Navas de Cabezas de Hierro and continued ascending, this time on the other shore (right).

At 3:15 PM I stopped below Cabeza de Hierro Mayor N face icefalls for having lunch. It took me 25 minutes and then I started the ascent of Tubo Derecho de Cabeza de Hierro Mayor. The snow was hard so I had to put my crampons on during the stop. That Tubo (gully) is approximately 200 m high before disappearing in the vast and snowed rocky N face. I reached the summit of Cabeza de Hierro Mayor (2381 m) at 4:50 PM, rested, drank and ate something and started the descent on the same route at 5:00 PM. It was so quick on the NW face first and then on the left shore of Arroyo de las Guarramillas, wich I crossed at approximately 1935 m at 5:45 PM. Descended along it and into the pinewood, crossed Arroyo de las Cerradillas (6:15 PM). Ascended and descended in El Pinar, crossed Arroyo de las Guarramillas and reached my car at 7:00 PM.

It had been a fast and very beautiful ascent in an excellent day, sunny and not cold. I could enjoy the loneliness in a lovely scenery full of spring waters, snow, pinewoods and meadows in the low lands, and the first blooming flowers of the season.

External Links

Tubos de Cabeza de Hierro Mayor (2.381 m.)

All the next sites describe the ascent in the stream bed to the east of Tubos de Cabezas de Hierro:

Invernal a Cabezas de Hierro.

Ascensión a el Cabezas de Hierro por casiano.

Puerto de Cotos - Cabeza de Hierro Mayor - Cerradillas - Puerto de Cotos.

PR-M 27.

Images

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