Beach Time in Madrid

One of the best beach experiences in Madrid, is the kayaking day trip to the Pantano de San Juan, a beautiful water and nature landscape that is well worth discovering. Albeit Madrid has lots of outdoor swimming pools, going to a beach in the summer is also a local tradition. Located on the outskirts of the capital, the Pantano de San Juan is a nature park with pine and holm oak forests that reaches to the water lake and beach complex. In addition to swimming, kayaking, some hiking and a picnic lunch, we learn a lot about the impact of climate change, water engineering and the Spanish politics.

The beaches are situated near a dam and the large reservoir lake that were built during the Franco dictatorship in 1955 and its aim was to supply water and electricity to Madrid. Today this cool, beach- like reservoir has become a favorite place for locals of Madrid during the summer. In addition, there are two important historical structures: These are the medieval bridge, with eight archways that joined the two banks of the river, and the church ruins of the original hermitage of the Virgen de la Nueva.

Due to climate change, there has been a shortage of rain in Madrid in the past couple of years, and this you can see with the low levels of water in the reservoir. This requires the Spanish government to take additional measures to keep water supplies going in Spain's capital. Fortunately, we can still enjoy a nice day on the sun, cool off from the summer temperatures and develop more friendships in the student group.