*A surprisingly varied walk in the hills of the Berounka nature park near Radnice – 19 km*

A surprisingly varied walk in the hills of the Berounka nature park near Radnice – 19 km

The Berounka river has many scenic sections which are accessible for hikers. Many of those sections lie in the Protected Landscape Areas of Křivoklátsko and Český kras and are popular walking routes. However, just outside the Křivoklátsko area is the quieter and less well known Berounka nature park, which reaches as far as the outskirts of Plzeň. The nature park has its own attractions for walkers, including some surprises, such as the stone circle and connected menhirs, erected in 2021 on a hill above the village of Břasy by modern day ‘druids’.
This is an atmospheric and ancient landscape, occupied for many thousands of years. The new megaliths therefore do not seem out of place. The Bronze and Iron Age burial mounds beside the paths leading down to the river from the hills testify to several prehistoric settlements, the most visible being the Radná Iron Age hillfort of Radná, strategically situated on a promontory above the Berounka opposite the village of Planá.
The suggested walk starts in the village of Stupno, which has train and bus connections with Plzeň and Radnice, as well as some parking options near the station. The route initially follows part of the educational trail near Břasy which explores the 19th century industrial history of the area and passes the intriguing and recently reconstructed chateau of Hochperk, which was built for a 19th century industrial baron.
From Hochperk, the route climbs into the hills where the new megaliths have been constructed, before traversing the prehistoric burial grounds in the attractive mixed forests of the nature park (some of which are now occupied by marked mountain biking trails). The path then descends to the Berounka river for a lovely section of path directly beside the river (note: this could potentially be flooded when the river is high after a period of rain).
The final section back to to Stupno follows a scenic path along the valley created by the Korečnický stream. Altogether the route is 19.1 km long with 420m of height to ascend/descend. None of the paths are particularly steep, but they can be wet and muddy (note – avoid the route when the Berounka river is high or liable to flooding). There are few refreshment options on the route – so take sufficient supplies for the journey. The routes does pass the golf resort of Darovanský dvůr, which has a historic restaurant which may be available for travelers on this walk.

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

Starting at the Stupno train station follow the BLUE hiking trail in the direction of Radnice
After 700m the trail joins with the nature trail ´Po stopách důlní činnosti na Břasku’. Continue on the BLUE trail
Pass the reconstructed chateau of Hochperk, turning right staying on the BLUE trail until reaching the Kateřina trail junction (300m after the chateau). Here, turn left leaving the BLUE trail but staying on the nature trail (green/white diagonal markings)
The nature trail rejoins the BLUE hiking trail after 1.1 km at the Terezka junction
From the Terezka junction climb the hill on the BLUE trail to reach the new stone circle in 300m
From there continue on the BLUE trail for 700m to reach the Na Drážkách. There, turn left onto the YELLOW trail in the direction of Velká Radná
Follow the YELLOW trail for 3km , on the forest track, passing the Radná hillfort just before descending to the Berounka river
At the riverbank (Velká Radná junction) turn left onto the RED trail and continue beside the river for 2.3 km to reach the Darová – přívoz (river crossing point)
Continue on the RED trail which passes through the golf resort area and then ascends into the hills once more before descending back to the river to reach the Korečnický mlýn junction after 5 km
At the Korečnický mlýn junction turn left onto the GREEN trail and continue for 4.4 km to return back to Stupno train station