Třebíč sits on the Jihlava river in the Vysočina highlands, and the basilica of St Procopius sits above the water on the eastern bank, so close to the old town that the rider's biggest problem is finding somewhere to leave the bike. The building began as part of a Benedictine monastery founded at the start of the twelfth century. What you see now is a mix of Romanesque strength, with a very old crypt, and Gothic ambition, with a tall, airy nave that people tend to find more elegant than they expected from the heavy west front. The monastery was later turned into a castle and then into other uses, which is partly why so much has survived in odd corners.
The other half of the reason this place is protected is just downhill. Třebíč has one of the best-preserved Jewish quarters in Central Europe, a tangle of narrow lanes, shared walls and small courtyards that sits between the basilica and the river, plus an old cemetery climbing the slope behind. Basilica and quarter together were inscribed by UNESCO in 2003, and walking from one to the other takes ten minutes and tells a surprisingly full story about how two communities lived side by side for centuries.
For a rider, the Vysočina is quietly rewarding. This is rolling plateau country of ponds, birch woods and long fields, with roads that go up and down without drama and rarely carry much traffic outside the towns. The corners are gentle rather than dramatic, the surface is usually decent but patched, and the villages come every few kilometres, each with a church tower and a pub. Autumn is lovely here, with mist on the Jihlava in the early hours and the plateau turning gold.
Třebíč has everything a rider needs: petrol stations on the edge of town, plenty of cafés around Karlovo náměstí, which is said to be one of the largest squares in the Czech Republic, and a good number of small guesthouses. If you want a quick pause, a coffee and a slice of something sweet in the square will do the job. If you have time, climb the basilica tower for the roofs, the river bends and the ridge of the Moravian horizon, and then continue to Telč or towards Lednice with the sense of having seen a thousand years from one hillside.