*Longer walks in the volcanic hills to the north of Litoměřice: 18 km to 26 km*

• The attractive historic town of Litoměřice should be considered one of the gateways to the beautiful and unique České středohoří region. Located on the banks of the river Labe (Elbe) some 70 km northwest of Prague, it is relatively quickly accessed along the D8 highway. It is a good base for exploring the remarkable volcanic terrain of the region.
• A number of good walks start in the villages to the north of Litoměřice (eg Kamýk and Hlinná), it is possible to begin a hike into the volcanic landscape directly from the town center. A good short walk heads to the nearby peak of Radobýl to the west of the town. For a longer trip, consider the route shown on this page, which starts in the center of town and heads northwards into the higher hills.
• The route first passes over Mostka hill (279 m) topped with a viewing tower (usually open at least from Easter to end of September) and then passing below the basalt rock outcrop called Kočka (271m), which be climbed with a small diversion.
• In the pastures around Kočka are some interesting rock mounds (see the header photo), that are reminiscent of disassembled prehistoric barrows. These are not indicated as such on the map. It is worth remembering that the fertile and warm Labe valley was one of the first areas in Bohemia to be permanently settled in prehistoric times. Many of the prehistoric remains have sadly been destroyed by modern agriculture.
• From Kočka, the route passes through the village of Žitenice, which has an unrestored Baroque chateau and the fine Church of Saints Peter and Paul, which dates from the end of the 13th century. It has an early Gothic tower but was rebuilt in a Baroque style in the 17th century.
• After Žitenice, the route climbs into the higher hills to reach Křížová hora (590 m). Just below the peak, the fine viewpoint Laffitova vyhlídka is worth the small diversion. From Křížová hora the trail follows the ridge line to reach the trail junctions below Dlouhý vrch. Here, there is an option to extend the route further by heading towards Lbín and Hlinná villages (see the Hlinná walk for details of the route).
• If not extending the walk, the return trail passes through the village of Skalice before following the Pokratický stream back into Litoměřice. On the left side of the stream the warm west-facing slopes of the Bílé stráně hill are a protected nature area with rare plants. There are a number of side footpaths in this area that are worth exploring, especially on a sunny day.
• The route shown in the map below is 22 km long and assumes a start and finish at the bus station in Litoměřice and includes a visit to the historical center of town. This route involves 600m of height to ascend/descend. None of the paths are particularly steep and this would make a good walk also in wintertime. The extension to Lbín and Hlinná adds a further 4 km or so. The overall route can be shortened (by around 4 km) by starting at or near the satellite tra in station Litoměřice horní nádraží, a little to the north of the town center.
• For refreshments, there are a couple of pubs in the villages of Žitenice and Skalice along the way. Back in Litoměřice, there are several good options. Try the stylish Italian café, Leonardo, on the main square. For good ice cream, both Leonardo and the seasonal ice cream stall in the northeast corner of Mírové náměstí outside the PizzaXXL restaurant are worth seeking out.

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

• Litoměřice can be reached on the regional train line between Mělník and Ústí nad Labem. There are several paid parking areas around town, including on the main square. The central bus station (which is shown as the start/finish point in the map) has a large number of regional routes
• From the bus station take the GREEN trail heading towards Litoměřice – hor. nádraží
• After 1 km the GREEN tral joins with the BLUE. At this point, leave the GREEN and join the BLUE trail heading northwards to reach the top of Mostka hill after 800m
• From Mostka, continue on the BLUE trail to Žitenice, passing below the Kočka rocks (optional diversion to the top)
• Continue on the BLUE trail towards Křížová hora. Shortly before the final climb to the summit of the hill (at the trail junction Pod Křížovou horou – odb) there is a diversion to the left to Laffitova vyhlídka (blue triangle markers). This is definitelz worth taking
• After visiting the viewpoint, return back to the Pod Křížovou horou junction and continue on the BLUE trail to reach the top of Křížová hora
• From there, continue on the BLUE trail for 2.4 km to reach the Dlouhý vrch trail junction. Here 9unless continuing on the extended walk to Lbín and Hlinná) turn left onto the YELLOW trail heading towards Nad Skalicí
• After 2.1 km reach the Nad Skalicí junction and here join the RED trail heading back to Litoměřice – hor. nádraží
• The satellite train station (Litoměřice – hor. nádraží) is reached after 4.6 km
• From there, head into the center of town (the most direct route is along Osvobození street) and then to the bus station (there are no marked trails for this city section, so it is best followed using the mapy.cz phone application)