San Juan Lagoon

Laguna de San Juan is a natural wetland in the municipality of Chinchón, in the surroundings of the Tajuña valley, considered by the City Council as the most important and characteristic wetland of the municipality. It has an area of about 40 hectares and is listed as a Wildlife Refuge and Protected Natural Area by Decree 5/1991 of the Community of Madrid, with a special value for the conservation of fauna, flora and landscape. Its origin is natural and its dynamics depends on subway contributions and rainfall; several sources also describe it as a temporary lagoon or very conditioned by clogging and restoration work carried out in the past. The most interesting thing for the visitor is the open view over a sheet of water framed by reeds, rushes, bulrushes and gypsiferous reliefs of the environment, a landscape very different from the nearby agricultural countryside. It is a very popular spot for bird watching, as it concentrates aquatic species and riverside passerines, and has bird observatories and interpretive panels. It also appears in informative and hiking routes along the stretch between Titulcia and Chinchón. Its interest lies in the fact that it summarizes well the recovery of a wetland in Madrid: biodiversity, legal protection and reading of the landscape. The best time to visit it is usually spring and autumn, when the water level and bird activity are usually more favorable for observation, although the temporary nature of the wetland makes its appearance varies considerably depending on the rains.