Around the ancient Hostovice ponds – 3 km to 6 km easy walks
- In prehistoric times the area around today’s town of Hostivice was a wet marshland. Stone Age settlers occupied the higher ground, their settlements protected by swamps. Then in medieval times the marshes were cleared and a series of fish ponds created, fed by the Litovický stream.
- In the 16th century the ponds became an important source of water for the Habsburg emperors resident in Prague castle, 10 km to the east. After the transfer of power to Vienna in the 17th century the ponds lost their importance and fell into disrepair. It was not until the early 20th century that the water needs for the castle area increased and the Hostivice ponds were refurbished.
- Today, the remaining Hostovické rybníky are a protected nature area, home to a number of endangered species of plant and birdlife. The lookout tower on the banks of the Litovický pond is good location for spotting some of the thirty or more protected bird species.
- Why not combine an easy walk around these attractive small lakes with a visit to one of the area’s popular restaurants? In the middle of the ponds area is the restaurant ČeskoSlovensko and just a few hundred meters from the first pond is the Pivovarský dvůr Chýně, specialising in Czech cuisine. Both restaurants are marked on the map, and it should be possible to park at either location, take some refreshments, and then a stroll around the lakes.
- There is an almost completely flat 3km marked nature trail – suitable for strollers – which visits three of the ponds, but does not offer a full circular route. Circling around the ponds requires use of unmarked forest paths that are flat but can be very muddy and wet, so less suitable for strollers.
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
- If starting at the Restaurace ČeskoSlovensko (located next to the Břevský pond) the nature trail starts at the bridge over the stream, 100m from the restaurant. For those travelling by public transport, there is a bus stop by the pond, which has regular buses from Zličín.
- The suggested route is to follow the nature trail anticlockwise (so first visiting the Kalý pond). From the Kalý pond the trail continues to the Litovický pond (where the bird watching lookout is located). The nature trail is marked with green diagonal trail marks – note there are no obvious information boards on this trail, at least at the time last visited – March 2021
- The nature trail finishes at the road on the far side of Litovický pond, but it is possible to complete a circuit of the pond by following the road alongside the northwest corner of the pond and then turning down the side road K Rybníku to rejoin the forest path that runs around the western edge of the pond. This path is generally quite muddy and wet
- Before completing the circuit of the pond take the path across field to enter the village of Břve and complete the nature trail with a circuit of Břevský pond, returning back to Restaurace ČeskoSlovensko. This circuit totals 4. 5km
- If starting at the Pivovarský dvůr in Chýně, then walk along the public road away from the village of Chýně for 200m then take the footpath on the left that runs between two industrial buildings
- After 250m reach the Strahovský pond (there is fish shop by the pond), cross the road and follow the footpath, initially beside the army installation. After 400m this path joins with the nature trail (remember this spot *point 4 on the map* for the return journey. Continue on the nature trail and after 900m reach the Restaurace ČeskoSlovensko
- From the Restaurace ČeskoSlovensko follow the directions as listed above, walking the trail in an anticlockwise direction. When back at the * point 4* take the footpath back to Chýně. The total circuit if starting at Pivovarský dvůr is 6.4 km
