*A varied tour of the ponds, ruins and viewpoints west of the Kokořínsko village, Zahrádky: 20 km*

• Zahrádky is a large village on the northern edge of the Kokořínsko protected landscape area, a few kilometers south of Česká Lípa. Keen hikers may know the village as one of the stops on the E10 European long distance footpath, which runs north to south through the middle of Bohemia, or perhaps as the end of the classic Czech walking trail, the 61 km Máchova cesta, a route associated with the 19th century romantic poetic Karel Hynek Mácha.
• However, it is not necessary to be involved in an ultra-long distance walk to enjoy the countryside around Zahrádky. Several shorter walks can be started from here. The easiest follow some of the trails around the village, many of which are lined with beautiful mature tree avenues/alleys.
• However, the walk on this page is a bit longer and explores the intricate fishpond area to the west of Zahrádky, collectively known as the Holanský ponds.The pond system was created between the 15th and 17th centuries and originally comprised 23 ponds and reservoirs, connected by a canal, stream and waterfall system carved into the sandstone rock. Several old stone bridges from this period line the route.
• On one of the bridges, two magical statues have been added recently (see the final picture below). They are characters from the novel Hastrman by Czech author Miloš Urban, which was turned into a film directed by the well-known singer Ondřej Havelka.
• A number of the ponds are used for water sports and are popular swimming spots in summer. The beach at Milčanský rybník (map point 12) is a possible stopping point on either the outbound or inbound journey.
• At the start of walk there is a remarkable linden tree alley apparently planted on the orders of the 17th century Imperial general, Albrecht of Valdštejn. Valdštejn owned the Baroque chateau in Zahrádky for a period. The avenue runs for nearly 2 km, ending close to an intriguing small ‘rock castle’ or lookout, called Jiljov, which was created out of an independent sandstone block. It was probably a 19th century ‘romantic’ creation, but it is still worth a visit.
• The route shown below is just over 20 km long, with around 180m of height to ascend/descend. The paths are a mix of farm track and asphalt road, none of which are difficult. The moderately exposed climbs up to the viewpoints/lookout at Jiljov and Smrtka rock can skipped if desired. For refreshments, there are three country pubs in Zahrádky, of which the Hostinec u Dlabače (map point 14) has a pleasant outside terrace under a vine.

Note: click ‘Show on Mapy.com’  to go to a full screen version of the route directly on the mapy.com site. This can be used for on line navigation, saved or exported as a GPX file.

Directions

• Zahrádky can be reached by bus from Doksy and Česká Lípa. There is a free parking area just off the main road to the south of the chateau area
• Start the walks at the trail junction in front of the chateau. Take the BLUE trail in the direction of Holany
• After 2.5 km reach the trail junction of Sádky. The rock lookout of Jiljov is 300m to the left along a blue marked diversion trail. Return back to Sádky and continue on the BLUE trail towards Holany
• After 700m reach the village of Holany and there join the RED trail heading in the direction of Stvolínky – kostel
• After 2 km on the left in the forest there are the ruins (basically just a wall) of a late 14th castle called Milčany
• Continue on the RED trail for 1.2 km to reach the Hrázský and then Dolanský ponds, where there are a series of waterfalls and two old stone bridges (the latter topped with the fairytale statues)
• From Dolanský rybník continue 2.3 km to reach Pod Smrtkou junction
• Here, follow the diversion signs (red triangles) to reach Smrtka rock and viewpoint
• Continue past the viewpoint on the unmarked footpath for 200m to return back to the RED trail
• After a further 200m on the RED trail reach the Koňský rybník trail junction. Here, turn right onto the YELLOW trail
• After 1.8 km reach the Nad Kozelskou roklí junction and here turn right onto the GREEN trail heading back towards Holany
• After 4 km reach the edge of the Milčanský pond – a trail runs through the forest to reach the beach area if wanting a swim (map point 12)
• Continue on the GREEN trail to return back to the Holany trail junction
• From Holany return back to Zahrádky along the outbound route following the BLUE trail for 3.8 km