A short exploration of the Český les landscape near the Baroque chateau of Diana – 7km

• Český les (the ‘Bohemian forest’) is a large protected nature area in western Bohemia, occupying part of the border zone with Germany. For some, the image of Český les is of a dark, gloomy and impenetrable forest. Forbidding forests, perhaps not dissimilar to those in which three Roman legions infamously led by Varus in 6AD were totally obliterated by the Germanic tribes.
• However, the reality is somewhat different. The forests are certainly there, a mix of old beech and newer spruce plantations, interspersed with meadows, often full of wild flowers and grazing cattle. It could almost be a picture from the foothills of the Alps.
• Unlike in Varus’ day, the forest tracks are wide, open and straight – partly a legacy of the network created during the communist era to protect the border zone. The forests are almost unnaturally quiet. Few hikers seem to venture into the woods, and only slightly more cyclists. So, for those who enjoy tranquil forest walks, with surprisingly good views, Český les should be high on the ‘to visit’ list.
• There are several organized nature trails in the protected area to explore. One of the longer trails is Kolowrat Nature trail which starts in the border town of Rozvadov. The trail is named after the aristocratic Bohemian family which was restituted various property in the late 20th century, including the former hunting chateau of Diana. The whole trail is 17km long, but there are short cuts available, and the most interesting section is in the heart of the Kolowrat forest area, near the old chateau.
• By starting in the small parking area near the Diana chateau, it is possible to make a circle through the old village – which has some fine folk architecture including a picturesque wooden chapel in the English park surrounding the chateau – and a section of of forested area. These are good forest tracks and so the 7 km circuit (which is basically flat) can be done with a stroller. There are no refreshment spots o this route.

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

• Start at the grassy parking area on the road which leads Diana chateau
• Continue up the road for 500m to reach the chateau, chapel and village of Diana
• From the chapel, continue on the YELLOW trail for 1.9 km to reach the Rybničná trail junction. Here, take the RED trail in the direction of Smrčina
• After 1.7 km on the RED trail, reach a crossroads in the forest. Here, take the track to the right, which runs nearly straight for 2.7 km to reach the public road leading to Diana
• Turn right on the road and reach the parking area in 300m