A circular 15 km tour from Liteň to Koda cave, in classic Český kras countryside

The small town of Liteň is situated in the western edge of the Český kras area, in the low hills that border the Berounka river. In the distance, the majestic tower of the much visited Karlštejn castle is visible, but tourists rarely visit Liteň, which makes walks in this area relatively peaceful, even at weekends.
Liteň has an impressive Baroque chateau, now privately owned but used for occasional festivals. Next to the chateau is a small museum dedicated to the actress and opera singer Jarmila Novotná. The chateau has a French style garden which is open to the public and is traversed on one of the town’s four short educational trails.
This 15 km easy tour climbs up into the attractive Český kras limestone hills, which are studded with more than 600 caves. There are wide ranging views across the countryside available at various points on the walk – possibly most atmospheric during winter time (see the pictures below).
The route passes below Bacín hill (499m), the highest point in Český kras. The hill top has been a ritual site for over 10000 years – various human and animal bones, weapons and pottery were found deposited in the limestone fissures near the summit. The hill can be accessed using an unmarked trail from the the village of Vinařice. The trail then passes the (now disused) limestone quarry of Homolák, part of which is filled with water (which, although prohibited, is occasionally swum in).
One of the more famous caves in the area is Koda, which is accessed by a (somewhat steep) short diversion from the main trail. This cave, with its broad dimensions, easy access and small flat area outside the cave entrance, must have presented an ideal shelter for prehistoric man. Substantial findings have been unearthed at the site from the ice-age hunter-gatherer era, as well as later prehistoric cultures (including some intriguing Bronze Age pottery showing linkages with northern Italy). Note: the ‘prehistoric’ wall painting inside the cave is not ancient, but a recent addition.
Koda cave is situated in an important nature reserve of the same name, and the proposed route skirts the edge of this reserve before returning to Liteň, through the picturesque village of Korno (listed as a village conservation zone). On the Střevíc hill to the northeast of Korno, there is an undated prehistoric hill fort, which likely dates from the late Bronze Age or early Iron Age.
The total 15.4 km route is mostly on easy terrain, generally on wide forest tracks with some public road sections. The only steep section is the short diversion down to see Koda cave (which is optional). At total of 300m height is gained/lost on the circular route.
There are no refreshment stops on the walk itself, but refreshments should be available in the restaurant next to the chateau, Ve Stínu Lípy, which also has a small outside seating area.

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 town of Liteň. There is a small parking area next to the chateau, and other spaces around town. Public transport options to Liteň are quite limited, but there is a bus and train service from Zadní Třebaň, which has direct connections to/from Prague
From the chateau , walk along the main street 200m to reach the town square to join the GREEN hiking trail in the direction of Vinařice
The trail climbs steadily out of town to reach the first viewpoint after 900m (view towards Karlštejn) and after a further 250m the viewpoint looking towards the Hřebeny ridge
The (GREEN) trail then continues through woodland and across open fields (with wide ranging views) to reach the village of Vinařice after 3.1km
From Vinařice, the trail heads towards the disused quarry of Homolák which is reached after 1.5km (note just before leaving the residential area of the village there is an unmarked trail to the right, which leads up to Bacín hill, an important archaeological ritual site)
From the quarry the trail coninues in attractive countryside, a short section along the road, and then climbs briefly to reach the Pod Vinnou trail junction after 2.5km
At Pod Vinnou, turn right to start following the YELLOW trail to reach the village of Tobolka after 900m
In Tobolka turn right in the direction of Koda, staying on the YELLOW trail
After a 700m section on the road, the trail turns off to enter the Koda nature reserve, entering the forest and reaching the Koda hiking signpost after 900m
At the signpost, turn right onto the BLUE trail in the direction of Liteň. The trail climbs up into the forest, before reaching the diversion to Koda cave after 500m
The cave is worth viewing, although the 50m climb down is quite steep and can be slippery in winter
From the cave, continue on the BLUE trail to reach the public road. The trail then continues along the road, through the village of Korno, before dropping down towards Liteň, on a short section of the educational trail
The Chateau area in Liteň is reached 2km after leaving Korno