*A circular route around Říp mountain, starting from Ledčice on the southern side: 18 km*

• Říp (461m) is not just one of several prominent wooded hills, located in the northern part of Central Bohemia, which have a volcanic origin. It is also a national symbol. Legend has it that the forefather of the nation, the Slavic duke Čech, stood on top of the hill, surveyed the landscape and pronounced that this was the promised land for his wandering tribe. The climb to the summit of Říp is a tradition that most Czechs will undertake at least once in their lifetime.
• For many, the ascent of Říp is undertaken by driving to the car park below the hill, taking the main 1.5 km trail to the summit and descending via the same path. This is definite a worthwhile short trip. However, for those wanting a longer walk incorporating a visit to this iconic peak, what are the options? The most challenging option is to go for the long day walk starting from Mělník, traversing Říp summit and finishing in Roudince nad Labem. Both towns have good fast connections with Prague. This, however, is a 30+ km walk and is not a simple afternoon stroll.
• For a medium length walk one option is to start and finish in historic Roudnice on the banks of the River Labe (Elbe). Roudnice has the advantages of fast train connections with Prague, good refreshment options and finally is itself a nice place to explore before or after the visit to Říp. This walk is described here. The disadvantage of the Roudnice walk is that it is difficult to create a scenic circular route in a variety of countryside which offers different perspectives and views of Říp.
• Such a circular walk is best undertaken from the southern side of Říp. One alternative is shown in the map below, starting and finishing in the village of Ledčice. Ledčice has good bus connections with the Prague metro system
• Once at the top, after a relatively steep (but quite short) climb of around 200m, there are several excellent viewpoints over the surrounding Bohemian countryside, but they require a bit of effort to locate. At the summit the frequently photographed Rotunda of sv. Jiři stands proudly. This famous Romanesque chapel originally dates from the 11th century. To recover from the climb, the Chata Říp serves (excellent) refreshments just a few meters from the chapel entrance.
• On the approach to Říp there are a couple of interesting refreshment options, including the historic Jevíněvské winery (map point 7). In the closest village to Říp on the south side, there is a classic pub, Hostinec U Praotce Čecha (map point 8) for some refueling before the summit climb. On Říp summit itself there is a useful chata serving refreshments.
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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