*Walks to the remarkable Dlouhé Stráně reservoir from Kouty nad Desnou: 9 km to 23 km*

• The Dlouhé stráně reservoir is probably the country´s most famous technological landmark. In 2005, the reservoir was actually voted top in the ´7 Wonders of the Czech Republic´ public poll run by the idnes.cz news outlet (ahead of the likes of Karlštejn, Český Krumlov and Prague Castle…). The reservoir powers the country’s most powerful hydroelectric generator, but its fame presumably derives from the fact that to create system, essentially the top of a Jeseníky mountain had to be sliced off (a bit like a soft boiled egg!). The resulting panorama is indeed remarkable.
• Construction of the power system (which effectively operates like a giant energy storage battery, balancing peak and off-peak electricity loads) began in 1978, but was only completed in 1996. It seems unlikely that such a project would pass environmental laws and regulations today, but this does not stop thousands of tourists visiting the site annually. Tours of the system van be arranged through the operator, ČEZ.
• There are several ways to reach the reservoir, including by bus from the Kouty nad Desnou ski resort in the valley below. For the full experience, walkers start from Kouty nad Desnou, hike up the RED trail for 8 km (with 800m of ascent) to the reservoir and then walk down the mountain road, for an epic 23 km round trip. However, if the chairlift is in operation, then a nice variant is to take the lift up (saving 500m of ascent and 3 km of hiking in the process). The views from the lift are actually better than from the footpath!
• From the top of the chairlift there are also a number of route options to reach the reservoir. The less direct route shown in the map below is the nicest as it offers a gentler ascent as well as different viewpoints along the way.
• For the descent, there are again various options. The least strenuous is to take the bus, or rent an (unpowered) scooter from the stall next to the snack bar below the reservoir. The walk back down the mountain road all the way to Kouty nad Desnou is actually quite enjoyable (if long), offering different views of the mountain scenery and the lower reservoir (note that the road is asphalt and not well shaded in its upper sections).
• Many visitors will, however, probably choose the circular route to and from chairlift top station, using the cycle path for descent, resulting in a fine 9 km round trip (with 300m of ascent/descent, none of which is difficult). For refreshments, there are snack bars at the chair lift top station, below the reservoir and back is Kouty nad desnou. These are marked on the map below (points 2, 6 and 10).

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

• From Kouty nad Desnou, if taking the full route, join the RED trail heading towards Medvědí hora – lanovka, reached after 3 km of climbing. Those taking the chairlift reach the same point, somewhat more comfortably!
• From the Medvědí hora – lanovka junction, join the the GREEN trail heading towards Vyhlídka Rysí skála, reached after 900m
• Continue on the GREEN trail for 500m to reach the Tetřeví chata junction, and there join the RED trail heading towards Dlouhé stráně – vyhl, reached after 2.2 km
• Walk around the reservoir, using either of the west or east paths and climb down the steps at the far end, to reach the snack bar
• From the snack bar, walk down the road to join the cycle path at Horní nádrž PVE DS – závora
• Stay on the cycle path in the direction of the valley until reaching the Pod horní nádrží PVE cycle path junction. There, if returning to the chairlift, continue straight on to return to the lift top station after 2.2 km
• If continuing on the full valley walk, turn right heading towards Kouty
• Remain on the cycle path all the way to to the lower reservoir, joining the BLUE hiking trail shortlzy before reaching the reservoir
• From the lower reservoir, stay on the BLUE trail all the way back to Kouty, reached after 6.3 km