Hunting for hillforts in the forests of Džbán – a 14 km to 21 km tour

• The forested ridges and hills of central Bohemia are the secret home to countless prehistoric settlements, ritual sites and hillforts. Most sites have yet to be fully investigated and many more undoubtedly lie waiting to be discovered. The prehistoric residents of Bohemia took the hills at the very end of the Stone Age, some six thousand years ago. It is unclear whether this was for defensive purposes or as part of a new belief system connected with hills and mountains (or a combination of both).
• The protected park area of Džbán is a rugged landscape of forests, hills and valleys, situated some 50 km northwest of Prague. It has more than its fair share of prehistoric sites hidden in its forests. There is an extensive network of marked trails through the forests, but the area gets relatively few tourists, so these trails are perfect for long tranquil walks, particularly for anyone interested in trying to discover a little of Bohemia’s prehistoric past.
• The route shown on the map visits three prehistoric sites on different hills and ridges, starting in the village of Hřivice, which is on the regional train line between Louny and Rakovník. Hřivice itself has quite some history as well as a considerable number of local legends, as the (nicely done) municipal web site outlines.
• The first site – Hradiště Okrouhlík – is on the long ridge above the village. The site, which has very prominent ramparts and moat, is not yet fully investigated. It was originally thought to have been only fortified in the Slavic period (8th-9th century) but in 2012 a metal detectorist discovered a horde of Bronze Age weapons and valuable items weighing 17kg, buried near the fortress wall. The finds, dating to between 1000 and 1600 BC, are now in Prague’s National Museum. Below the hill is an undated rock relief, resembling a wild boar.
• Four kilometers to the west of Hřivice, on the opposite side of the valley from Okrouhlík fort, is the large plateau area of Markvarecká rovina. In the eastern corner of the plateau, facing Okrouhlík, are traces of a fortification – which are not easy to find for the casual hiker. The site is yet to be dated, despite fragments of prehistoric pottery having been unearthed in the 1990’s.
• Finally, 4 km to the west of Markvarecká rovina is the plateau hill of Výrov, at 509m altitude. Shaped like a trapezoid, with steep slopes on all four sides, this site has clearly been occupied in all prehistoric periods since the Stone Age. It was likely fortified in the Iron Age, and then Slavic settlers re-used and developed the fortifications in the early Middle Ages. The perimeter rampart wall of this significant 6ha site has been preserved for over 1.7 km.
• The return route to Hřivice follows a quiet country lane and offers excellent views towards the České středohoří volcanic hills. The total route, if all mentioned sites are visited, is 21km, with 500m of ascent-descent. If the final site – Výrov – is skipped then the total route is around 14km, with 360m of ascent. There are a couple of steeper sections of path up to the fortress sites, but the paths are good and the terrain is not particularly challenging. There are no refreshment option on the route (apart from a small potraviny in Konětopy, reached after 6 km) so take sufficient liquids and supplies for the full journey.

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 in the village of Hřivice (buses and trains from Louny). If driving, there is a car park just off the central roundabout
• Take the GREEN trail from the center of the village in the direction of Okrouhlík
• After 1km of climbing, reach a cross roads (at this point if wanting to see the wild board rock relief, divert 300m to the right. The rock is on the left, directly by the forest road. Then return back to the crossroads)
• Continue on the GREEN trail for a further 400m to reach the hillfort site (ramparts, ditch) of Okrouhlík
• Contiunue on the GREEN trail along the ridge for 1.5 km to reach the trail junction of Na Boru. Here, turn right onto the BLUE trail in the direction of Konětopy
• The path descends through attractive woodland to reach the village of Konětopy after 2.2 km
• Continue 200m through the village on the BLUE trail to the train station. Here, turn onto the RED trail and continue for 2.2 km to reach the junction of U Petra a Pavla
• At the junction, stay on the RED trail and climb steeply up to reach the viewpoints (and site of the hillfort) in 800m
• If preferring to skip the final hillfort, keeping the walk to 14km , take the unmarked track across the plateau to the north for 1 km to join the YELLOW trail near the village of Markvarec – join the instructions again at * below
• If continuing with the full walk, descend back down the hill on the RED trail to the U Petra a Pavla junction and turn right onto the YELLOW trail in the direction of Výrov
• Follow the YELLOW trail for 3.4 km to reach the Výrov trail junction. Here, turn onto the RED trail whch leads up to the plateau and hillfort site in 600m
• Return back to the Výrov junction and turn onto the YELLOW trail in the direction of Markvarec
• After 3.8 km reach the village of Markvarec and continue on the public road downhill towards Hřivice, which is reached in 3km