A circuit around the Hradišťský vrch prehistoric site near Konstantinovy Lázně: 6 km (extendable)

• Konstantinovy Lázně is a small but pretty spa, located around 40 km northwest of Plzeň in attractive hilly countryside. The spa took its name from Prince Konstantin Josef of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenberg, who acquired the village in the 19th century. The spa specializes in disorders of the cardiovascular system based on mineral springs containing the highest concentration of carbon dioxide of all the springs in the country.
• There are a number of nice walks in the area if visiting for the day or staying in the spa. The closest (and shortest) good walk is the Hradišťský vrch nature trail which loops around the Hradišťský kopec ‘table mountain’, which was created by a volcanic basalt intrusion and rises more than 100m above the surrounding terrain.
• The whole hilltop was turned into a large (50+ ha) fortified site in the Late Bronze Age. The rampart walls and access gates are clearly visible in places – particularly near the eastern gate. Curiously, there is little evidence of the site being occupied in earlier or later prehistoric periods, despite its obvious defensive merits and the existence of water sources in the interior of the hillfort.
• The nature trail includes information boards describing this important site (in Czech only). On the western edge of the hill is an abandoned quarry, now filled with water. This is a natural swimming area with a small sandy beach – there is an entrance fee for its use.
• The circular route is around 5 km long from the edge of the spa area (6 km if starting at the station) and involves 160m of height to ascend/descend, on forest trails, none of which are particularly steep. There are several good refreshment options in the spa area, particularly in the various spa hotels.
• The Hradišťský vrch walk can easily be coupled with the longer (up to 18 km) Krasíkov/Švamberk walk to create a full day outing.

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 Konstantinovy Lázně train station (which has connections with Plzeň main line train station) join the YELLOW trail heading through the spa park in the direction of Konst. Lázně – u nádrže
• Continue for 1.7 km on the YELLOW trail to reach the U Panenky junction. Here turn onto the GREEN trail heading in the direction of Východní brána
• Stay on the GREEN trail as it loops around the hill and then descends to the quarry/lake to return back to the original starting point after 4.5 km