Děčín stands where the Elbe leaves the Czech Republic, and the river here is dramatic. The town sits in a gorge in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains, with steep cliffs of pale rock rising straight from the water, topped with trees. The castle on the rock above the old town has stood guard on this spot for a thousand years, and from its terraces you look down onto the roofs, the river and the bridge. It is one of the more theatrical settings in Bohemia.
The photograph here is the cliffs themselves. A viewpoint called the Shepherd's Wall, on the left bank of the river, looks across the river toward the castle and the town, and it is a favourite for sunrise and sunset, when the stone glows. A path leads up through the forest, and the view over the loops of the river and the stacked ridges beyond is memorable. Another viewpoint, on the high rock called Sněžník, lies not far away, with a lookout tower from which the sandstone landscape stretches out in all directions.
The sandstone is the heart of the area. These rocks were laid down as sand in a Cretaceous sea, and erosion has carved them into pillars, gorges and rock towers, a landscape that has drawn painters since the nineteenth century. Downriver, the Elbe crosses into Germany and runs to Dresden, through the Saxon part of the same formation. The river was once the main trade route for coal, timber and grain, and old boat sheds and harbours speak of the days of steamers.
Děčín is a town of more than fifty thousand, with fuel stations, supermarkets and plenty of cafes, so supplies are never an issue. The riding around it is varied: the road along the river is flat and fast, while the roads up into the hills are narrow and twisty, with steep sections and sometimes rough pavement. Summer weekends are busy with tourists heading for the national park, so an early start helps. In autumn, mist rises from the river and the woods turn gold, and the town takes on a moody beauty.