Czech Bohemian Paradise Route from Staré Město

Scenic road chapters

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Prague

   Prague does not need introduction, but it does need a plan if you are leaving it by motorcycle. The city lies on the Vltava river in the heart of Bohemia, with a skyline of spires and towers climbing the hill to the castle, and a medieval centre that survived the twentieth century better than most. The Charles Bridge, begun in 1357 under Emperor Charles IV, is lined with baroque statues and almost always full of people. The Old Town Square has its astronomical clock, dating back to the fifteenth century, and Vyšehrad, the rock above the river, holds an old church and a quiet cemetery where Dvořák and Smetana are buried.

   Read the complete Prague write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Prague is where the day begins. Next is Mnichovo Hradiste.

2. 2. Mnichovo Hradiste

   The Jizera river flows past Mnichovo Hradiště on its way to the Elbe, and the town sits at the western gate of the Bohemian Paradise, the Český ráj, a landscape of sandstone towers, forest and ruined castles that was the first protected landscape area in the former Czechoslovakia. It is a quiet, orderly town of about eight thousand people with a square, a large baroque castle and the unhurried feel of a place that has been burnt, rebuilt and forgotten several times over.

   Read the complete Mnichovo Hradiste write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Mnichovo Hradiste comes up about 74 km into the recorded legs. Next is Hruba Skala.

3. 3. Hrubá Skála

   Hrubá Skála means rough rock, and the name suits the place. The village and its chateau sit on a spur of sandstone above the forest, with towers and cliffs rising around it, at the centre of the Bohemian Paradise. The chateau, perched on the edge of a rock, was built for the Valdštejn family and is now a hotel, with views over a sea of trees broken by pinnacles of pale stone. It looks like something from a children's book, which is not far from the truth, because this whole area is a favourite with Czech families and walkers.

   Read the complete Hruba Skala write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   At least about 100 km into the recorded legs you reach Hruba Skala. Next is Prachov Rocks.

4. 4. Prachov Rocks

   The Prachov Rocks are the most compact and dramatic part of the Bohemian Paradise, a rock city of sandstone towers, ravines and viewpoints packed into a forest a few kilometres from Jičín. Walking paths and stone steps lead between the pinnacles, some of which look like fingers, others like mushrooms, and from the top of the main viewpoint you look out over a sea of spruce and pine with rocks poking through like islands. A small mountain hut near the entrance serves walkers with simple food and drink.

   Read the complete Prachov Rocks write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Prachov Rocks, late in the day. Next is Jicin.

5. 5. Jicin

   Jičín owes its looks to one very ambitious man. Albrecht von Wallenstein, the general who made a fortune in the Thirty Years' War, took over the estate in the 1620s and set out to turn a modest market town into the capital of his own duchy. He built a palace, a church, a grand arcaded square and a gate, and brought in Italian architects to do it, so the centre of Jičín today has an unexpectedly Renaissance and early baroque air for a town in the middle of northern Bohemia. The great square, Valdštejnovo náměstí, is lined with arcades and pastel house fronts, and the Valdice Gate, a tall tower with a narrow arch, still marks the way out toward the north.

   Read the complete Jicin write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Finish at Jicin. That is the ride.