*Radyně, Starý Plzenec and Kozel – a grand tour in a unique historical landscape: 20 km*

• The settlement at Starý Plzenec (located 6 km southeast of Plzeň) was at one time the most important site in Western Bohemia. For several centuries the fortress controlled the important medieval trade route between Bavaria and the developing Bohemian kingdom under the Přemyslid rulers. It was at Starý Plzenec that the Přemyslid Prince Bolesław II defeated the army of the German king Otto II in 976.
• The three hills surrounding the modern day village of Starý Plzenec were fortified at various times in the prehistoric and historic times, probably starting with the eastern hill, Sedlecká skála, which has Bronze Age and Iron Age age settlement areas. In the Slavic period, the northern hill of Hůrka was fortified and became the pre-eminent fortress in western Bohemia for the Přemyslids. The 10th century rotunda of St Peter & Paul (the oldest surviving church in western Bohemia) still stands proudly on the side of the hill.
• Finally, in the 14th century, on the summit of the highest hill, Radyně (567m), Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia, Charles IV built a formidable castle to protect the trade route. The fortress then passed through the hands of several noble families in the subsequent centuries but has survived in its high medieval architectural form. Its silhouette is a classic western Bohemian image and is visible from afar. The castle has a small museum and is normally open from April to October (only weekends apart from June -August).
• Walks of different lengths can be constructed, starting in Starý Plzenec to visit the three hills, separately or in combination. There is a standalone 4 km walk around the early medieval sites on Hůrka and a separate 7 km walk just around Radyně hill.
• However, the circular walk described on this page tours all three fortified hills and also visits the remarkable late 18th century hunting chateau of Kozel, one of the best examples of pure classicist architecture in the country. The estate park is beautifully maintained and is worth exploring either on this extended trip or on a separate visit. The 4 km walk in Kozel park is described on a separate page.
• The extended walk can be started at any point in the circle,but a convenient spot is the main parking area below Kozel chateau, which also has bus connections with Plzeň. Starting at this point and completing the walk in a clockwise direction tackles the biggest climb on the walk at the beginning and finishes in the tranquil Kozel park area. The total route is approximately 20 km long with around 500m of height to ascend/descend. There are no particularly steep sections, but it is quite a strenuous walk, mostly on good forest paths.
• One attraction of the walk is the variety of refreshment spots that can be found on the route. At the summit of Radyně hill there is the fine restaurant Pod Radyní with its unique interior. In Starý Plzenec there is the popular restaurant Český Dvůr and at Kosel, there is the Chateau café and directly by the parking area a nice nice café/bistro – Bezejmenná čajovna.

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 car park below Kozel chateau, take the BLUE hiking trail in the direction away from the chateau along the attractive oak tree lined road
• The trail passes through the village of Šťáhlavy to meet with the RED hiking trail after 2.4 km at the edge of the village. Here, leave the BLUE trail, turning left onto the RED trail
• Continue for 3.6 km on the RED trail to reach the summit of Radyně hill after 3.6 km
• From the castle, take the YELLOW trail for 400m to reach the junction of Pod Radyní. Here, turn onto the marked nature trail (green-white diagonal stripes) in the direction of Starý Plzenec
• The nature trail descends the hill passing the impressive Andrejšky rock ridge before reaching the outskirts of Starý Plzenec village
• At the edge of the forest area, the trail reaches the Štěnovická street. Here, it is possible to take a short cut along the street to the right, avoiding a longer, less interesting section of the nature trail
• Follow Štěnovická street for 1.1 km into the village center. There, pick up the YELLOW hiking trail and head north out of the village, crossing the Úslava river using the road bridge
• After crossing the bridge, turn right following the YELLOW trail for a further 200m to reach the junction of Malá Strana. Here, turn off the YELLOW trail and head directly up the hill following the nature trail markers
• The trail passes the rotunda of St Peter & Paul and traverses the length of the Hůrka hillfort
• Take the right hand branch of the nature trail to descend eventually back to the Úslava river
• Follow the nature trail into the village of Sedlec, where the trail joins with the GREEN hiking path
• From Sedlec, stay on the GREEN hiking trail to reach the Pod Sedleckou skálou junction after 1.2 km
• At the junction there is an option to take the unmarked path to the right, which leads to the summit of Sedlecká skála after 400m (there is a viewpoint at the far edge of the summit)
• Return back to the Pod Sedleckou skálou junction and continue on the GREEN trail for 2 km to reach the Svidná trail junction. Here, turn right onto the RED trail, which leads after 1.7 km to Kozel chateau
• Walk through the grounds of the chateau, descending to the pond below the chateau. Cross the footbridge over the river to return back to the car park