Along the Ohře river: from Žatec to Stekník through the historic hop fields – 10 km to 19 km

The town of Žatec, situated on the Ohře river in northwest Bohemia, is possible best known for its brewing history. Some of the country’s best hops have been grown in the Žatec region since at least the 11th century. Today, the re-established Žatec brewery (which is open for tours) occupies the former castle at one end of the walled town.
The medieval town was constructed on a raised plateau that was likely first fortified in the Iron Age by Celtic settlers Žatec grew into one of the most important towns in Bohemia and played an important role in the Hussite period and the Thirty Years War. The town has retained much of the architectural character from these periods and is worth a visit.
Supplement a stroll around the very attractive old town (which is not large) with a pleasant easy walk following a section of the Ohře river either up or down stream from Žatec. Upstream (heading northwest), the trail along the river follows a mostly asphalt cycle track in the direction of Kadaň. Downstream, the trail follows farm tracks through the forests and hop fields towards Louny. This second (more rural) option is described below.
A good target destination for a downstream walk is the village of Stekník, in the center of the hop growing area. Stetník is dominated by its grand 18th century chateau, constructed in a Rococo style, which while still somewhat faded, is gradually undergoing renovation under State ownership. The chateau is normally open for visits from April to October. Note the marked hiking path towards Stetník follows the public roads for 4 km, but a more attractive route is actually to follow the unmarked tracks beside the river. This is the route shown in the map.
There are no obvious circular routes available so either catch the bus back from Stetník (which is a little under 9 km from Žatec) or walk back the same route. Apart from the short descent to the river from Žatec town center, the route is almost completely flat. Most of the paths are farm tracks, so just about navigable with an off road buggy if conditions are dry. For refreshments, Žatec has several excellent cafés, including the elegant Ramon Café (map point 2) of Mlsná koza (map point 3) , both of which which serve very good coffee and cakes.

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 the center of Žatec old town. Žatec can be reached by regular bus from Prague (the bus station is 200m from the main square, which also has parking areas)
Take a walk around the old town – which is primarily walking the length of the main square and along the perimeter wall, exiting and re-entering the square through the old gates
After exploring the town center, follow the YELLOW hiking trail towards the river, initiallz down a series of steps, to reach the road bridge over the Ohře in 700m
Immediately before reaching the road bridge take the last road to the right and follow a track to the riverbank and turn right (away from the bridge)
The riverside footpath is unmarked but follows directly beside the river for 2.1 km and then turns away from the river for a section (1.6 km) before rejoining the marked YELLOW trail at the river again outside the village of Bezděkov
Continue on the YELLOW trail initially beside the river and then through the hop fields to reach the village of Stekník in 4 km
Return back the same route of catch the bus from the center of the village (note this goes infrequently so check the timings before setting off)