*Vltava versus volcano: an 11km trip following the Svatojánské proudy*

• Between the location of today’s towns of Štěchovice and Slapy, the Vltava river carves its way through hardened volcanic rock, creating a dramatic steep-sided gorge and a series of dangerously rocky rapids, called the Svatojánské proudy.
• The rapids are no longer a problem, as the river was dammed in 1943 to form the Štěchovice reservoir. However, the name survives and is given to the extraordinary 8km footpath that follows the length of the reservoir from Štěchovice to the Slapy dam, located below the village of Třebenice.
• There are several options for following the path, the most romantic being to catch the historic steamboat from Štěchovice to Třebenice, and then walk back to Štěchovice along the Svatojánské proudy footpath. For an amazing full day’s trip, it should be possible to catch the early morning boat in Prague all the way to Třebenice, walk the footpath to Štěchovice, and catch the steamer back to Prague from there.
• The problem with using the steamboat is that it generally only runs between May and September at weekends and public holidays. At these times, the footpath can be very busy. It is a very narrow path in places, and overtaking/passing people walking in the opposite direction can be time consuming.
• For a more tranquil experience, try the footpath out of season. In winter, the views can be dramatic, but avoid walking the path when conditions are icy – there are sections that can be very slippery and somewhat exposed. perhps the best season for the walk is autumn, when the colors of the mostly beech forest are magnificent.
• The route described below is the shortest circular variant available (at 10.6 km) and starts from the car park in Třebenice. A similar (but longer – 14 km) circular route is available starting in Štěchovice. If travelling by bus, then it should be possible to catch the bus to Štěchovice and back from Třebenice (or vice versa), reducing the walk to 8km.
• As mentioned above, the path is narrow and slightly exposed in places. At times it is close to the reservoir shore (the brave might be tempted to have a quick swim in the very cool waters). At other times the path rises steeply and descends through rocky sections. It also passes through the historic tramp settlement of Ztracená naděje.
• The first section of the walk follows the road into the hills above Třebenice, and uses a section of the reopened historic marked trail – the first to be created by the Czech Tourist Club in 1889.
• The total height gained/lost on the circular tour from Třebenice is 325m. There are limited refreshment options on the 11 km route / with just an occasionally open pub above the village of Třebenice. If taking the full 14 km circuit there are more refreshment options in Štěchovice. The route can be done in either direction (clockwise or anticlockwise) but the description below takes the clockwise direction.

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 the walk in the village Třebenice, above the Slapy dam. There is a large parking area available
• From the car park, follow the BLUE hiking trail uphill in the direction of Kolna, which is reached after 2.1km
• At the Kolna intersection, turn right onto the reopened historic hiking trail – marked with a broad RED band trail sign. Follow this trail downhill for 1.3km to reach the reservoir shore at Nad přehradou
• Turn right onto the GREEN hiking trail and follow this undulating path back towards Třebenice – this is the main section of the Svatojánské proudy footpath
• After 5 km the path levels out and reaches the ferry stop at Třebenice. From here a series of steps leads back to the car park in 400m