Live cameras in San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain

San Lorenzo de El Escorial is a town in the northwest of the Community of Madrid, about 47 kilometers from the capital, on the southern slopes of Mount Abantos in the Sierra de Guadarrama. Most of the town lies above 1,000 meters, which makes it noticeably cooler than Madrid. It has close to 19,000 registered residents, but the population swells on weekends and in summer as Madrid families come up to second homes and visitors arrive by the busload.

The town grew around the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, built for King Philip II between 1563 and 1584. The vast granite complex combines a monastery, basilica, royal palace, library and the pantheon where most Spanish kings are buried, and UNESCO listed it as a World Heritage Site in 1984. A walk up to the rock seat known as the Silla de Felipe II gives the classic view of the whole building against the plain.

Roads of the Sierra de Guadarrama

San Lorenzo's views belong to the Dirección General de Tráfico, Spain's traffic directorate, which renews each roadside snapshot every few minutes. They watch the roads of this part of the Sierra, including the regional routes M-600 and M-505 that connect the town with the A-6 and AP-6 motorways toward Madrid and with the mountain passes. In winter, these views help show whether snow or ice has reached the higher roads, and on Sunday evenings they show the return traffic heading down to the city.

Like Madrid, the town keeps Spanish peninsular time, which is UTC plus one in winter and UTC plus two between late March and late October. Summer evenings stay light until nearly ten o'clock, and in December darkness falls before six. Winters can bring snow and frost, while summers are warm but fresher than in Madrid. The patron saint's festival honors Saint Lawrence on August 10, and in September the Romería de la Virgen de Gracia fills the woods of La Herrería with decorated carts and traditional dress.

The older town of El Escorial lies just below on the plain, and the Valle de Cuelgamuros, with its enormous cross, is a few kilometers to the north.

Sources: San Lorenzo de El Escorial - Wikipedia · Royal Seat of San Lorenzo de El Escorial - UNESCO · DGT - Dirección General de Tráfico.