Why this ride
From Mariánské Lázně it runs 262 km to Mariánské Lázně; allow about 4 h 11 of riding. It goes by way of Františkovy Lázne, Karlovy Vary, The Red Tower of Death and Mědník Hill Mining Landscape. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Mariánské Lázne and Mědník Hill Mining Landscape
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 262 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 11
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Castle Road
Expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast. For about 17 km this is Castle Road, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 17 km
- Named road
- Castle Road
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Mariánské Lázne
Goethe fell in love here when he was already in his seventies. In the summer of 1821 and the years that followed, the poet spent his holidays in Marienbad, the spa town now known as Mariánské Lázně, and fell for Ulrike von Levetzow, a young woman of nineteen; his proposal was declined, and on the journey home he wrote the Marienbad Elegy, one of his most moving poems. The town was then at the height of its fame as one of the great spas of Europe, visited by kings, emperors and artists, from Edward VII of Britain to Chopin and Kafka.
Read the complete Mariánské Lázne write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mariánské Lázne is where the day begins. Next is Františkovy Lázne.
2. Františkovy Lázne
Františkovy Lázně, known in German as Franzensbad, is a small spa town in the far west of the Czech Republic that looks as if it has been painted in a single colour: yellow and white Empire-style buildings, colonnades and pavilions set in spacious parks, all laid out in the early nineteenth century around mineral springs. It was named after Emperor Francis I of Austria, and it became a fashionable resort, especially for women, because its waters and mud baths were believed to help with fertility. The bronze statue of a little boy holding a fish, known as František, is said to bring luck to women who touch it, and you will see that his foot has been polished by countless hands. Since 2021, the town has been part of the Great Spa Towns of Europe World Heritage site, along with its larger neighbours, Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázně.
Read the complete Františkovy Lázne write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Františkovy Lázne comes up about 35 km into the recorded legs. Next is Karlovy Vary.
3. Karlovy Vary
Legend has it that Emperor Charles IV was out hunting in the forests of western Bohemia in the fourteenth century when a stag he was chasing, or in some versions one of his hounds, fell into a pool of scalding water, and that is how the hot springs of Karlovy Vary were found. Whatever the truth, the town that grew up around them bears his name, Karlsbad in German, and by the nineteenth century it had become one of the most fashionable spas in Europe, visited by tsars, composers, poets and the cream of European society. In 2021, it became part of the UNESCO listing of the Great Spa Towns of Europe.
Read the complete Karlovy Vary write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
At least about 86 km into the recorded legs you reach Karlovy Vary. Next is The Red Tower of Death.
4. The Red Tower of Death
The name sounds like a horror film, and the reality was grim enough. In the 1950s, the communist government of Czechoslovakia sent tens of thousands of political prisoners to labour camps in the Jáchymov region to mine uranium for the Soviet nuclear programme. In a red brick building near Ostrov, known as the Red Tower of Death, prisoners crushed and sorted uranium ore by hand, without protection, exposed to dust and radiation. Many died or suffered lasting illness. The building is now a memorial, part of the Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří Mining Region World Heritage listing, and a powerful reminder of the human cost of the Cold War.
Read the complete The Red Tower of Death write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Red Tower of Death, about halfway. Next is Mědník Hill Mining Landscape.
5. Mědník Hill Mining Landscape
Mědník is a small, steep hill on the Czech side of the Ore Mountains, or Krušné hory, the range that forms the border between Bohemia and Saxony. It rises above the village of Měděnec, whose name, like the hill's, comes from the Czech word for copper. For centuries, miners tunnelled into the hill for copper and iron ore, and the hill is now part of the Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří Mining Region, inscribed by UNESCO in 2019 as a cross-border site.
Read the complete Mědník Hill Mining Landscape write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mědník Hill Mining Landscape sits at 133 km, about halfway. Next is back through The Red Tower of Death.
6. back through The Red Tower of Death
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Red Tower of Death write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through The Red Tower of Death comes up about 160 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Karlovy Vary.
7. back through Karlovy Vary
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Karlovy Vary write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 179 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Karlovy Vary. Next is back through Františkovy Lázne.
8. back through Františkovy Lázne
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Františkovy Lázne write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Františkovy Lázne, late in the day. Next is Mariánské Lázne.
9. Mariánské Lázne
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Mariánské Lázne write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 262 km.
Leg by leg
Mariánské Lázne to Františkovy Lázne
Mariánské Lázne → Františkovy Lázne is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Františkovy Lázne to Karlovy Vary
Františkovy Lázne → Karlovy Vary is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Karlovy Vary to The Red Tower of Death
Karlovy Vary → The Red Tower of Death is 17 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The Red Tower of Death to Mědník Hill Mining Landscape
The Red Tower of Death → Mědník Hill Mining Landscape is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Mědník Hill Mining Landscape to back through The Red Tower of Death
Mědník Hill Mining Landscape → back through The Red Tower of Death is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The Red Tower of Death to back through Karlovy Vary
back through The Red Tower of Death → back through Karlovy Vary is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Karlovy Vary to back through Františkovy Lázne
back through Karlovy Vary → back through Františkovy Lázne is 48 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Františkovy Lázne to Mariánské Lázne
back through Františkovy Lázne → Mariánské Lázne is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.