A 12 km circular walk to the summit of Milešovka – the highest peak in České středohoří

The České středohoří landscape is filled with remnants of Bohemia’s violent volcanic past. Some 20 to 30 million years ago, as a consequence of the dramatic tectonic movements that led to the formation of the alps, hot magma burst through faults and cracks in the chalk and sandstone bedrock across areas of Northern Bohemia . Subsequent erosion of the softer surrounding rock left exposed the hardened magma in countless dome-like hills and small mountains.
The tallest and visibly dominant peak in this remarkable area is Milešovka (837m). This is an iconic mountain, perhaps best known today for the weather reports from the meteorological station on its very windy summit. The summit has been visited since at least since the Neolithic period. Pottery shards from all prehistoric periods point towards Milešovka being a ritual site for many cultures. The summit was never fortified, but the Celts may have used it as a lookout station as well as a cult location.
There are three approach routes to the summit, from the north, from the south (from the village of Milešov) and from the east (from Velemín village). The closest parking is in Milešov and it is a 2.5 km hike to the summit from there with 450m of height to ascend. Instead of the short ‘there and back’ route, consider the more varied circular approach starting and finishing in Velemín, approaching from the south and descending on the eastern path.
This route – shown in the map – provides some excellent views on the approach to Milešovka, passes below the impressive Renaissance chateau in Milešov ( originally a medieval fortress and now a retirement home) and returns to Velemín on a country lane through attractive farmland. The mountain itself is mostly covered with lime, beech, and oak forest with only a small open viewpoint area at the very top.
Velemín has a (free) parking area next to the Motorest restaurant on the main road or is a short bus ride from Lovosice, which has a main line train station. The route to/from the bottom of the mountain is on good tracks (with a short section before Milešov on the public road). The paths near the summit are relatively steep and the top can be very windy so come appropriately equipped with warm clothes! The proposed route is 11.6 km long with 520m of height to climb-descend. For refreshment, there is a pub (open most weekends and weekdays during the summer) at the summit with panoramic windows, and also various options back at Velemín.

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

From Velemín take the GREEN hiking trail in the direction of Milešov village, which is reached after 3.8 km
In Milešov, turn right onto the RED trail in the direction of Milešovka
After 2.8 km the RED trail joins with the BLUE trail at the Milešovka junction, just below the summit. Turn sharp right onto the BLUE trail to reach the summit in 500m
From the summit, stay on the BLUE trail and traverse the summit area descending on the opposite flank. The trail descends quite steeply and then flattens out. The return journey to Velemín on the BLUE trail is 4.9km long.