Volcanic viewpoints on the ‘Land of Castles golden trail’ – 9km / 18km tours from Třebenice

The Zlatá stezka Zemí hradů (“land of castles golden trail”) is an 89km long hiking trail which connects many of the most important historic monuments in the České středohoří (‘Bohemian middle-mountains’). It is one of the most scenic long distance trails in the Czech Republic, mainly because of the extraordinary landscape of this region. The channels of lava which burst through layers of sandstone rock some 20-30 million years ago created a volcanic landscape of conical mountains that is unique in Central Europe.
The volcanic terrain provided fertile pastures in the valleys, and ideal locations for fortifications on the peaks. At first glance it seems that every second hill top has a crumbling ruin occupying its heights. Most of these ruins are of late medieval castles, but some had their origin in Slavic times and possibly even earlier in prehistory.
The marked Zlatá stezka trail actually passes below most of the peaks, and rarely ventures to the tops, which is a shame as the most remarkable views are only found by scaling the steep sides of these small mountains. The section of the trail which runs from Třebenice to the ruin of Oltářík is one of the best sections, especially if the three main peaks along the way are scaled for their panoramic views.
Třebenice is a small town located just on the edge of the protected landscape area of České středohoří. It is on a regional train line from Lovošice (which has direct trains from Prague) and if driving is quickly reached from the D8 highway. Třebenice has an interesting museum about the volcanic semi-precious stone garnet, which is normally open from April to October.
The suggested walk follows the Zlatá stezka trail climbing firstly towards Košťálov hill, on which a 14th century castle ruin is spectacularly situated. It then descends to the village of Vlastislav in which the unusual ‘dual’ castle of Skalka is located – the well preserved circular medieval tower is adjacent to a Baroque chateau. The castle is normally open for visits at weekends from May to October.
From Vlastislav there is an option to return directly to Třebenice along the quiet public roads, creating a 9km loop, or continue for a further section of the Zlatá stezka, to reach the volcanic hill of Oltářík, on which a Hussite governor erected a fortress in the 15th century. These ruins can also be scaled before returning to Vlastislav and then Třebenice.
On the route between Vlastislav and Oltářík, there is a short diversion onto the peak of Plešivec, which has one of the finest 360 degree panoramas to be found anywhere in the region. The return journey is partly on a quiet public road and passes the pension Klášter (which looks an interesting option for anyone wanting to spend a night in the area).
The paths are generally easy and navigable in most conditions, including winter. However, the top sections of the peaks with castle ruins are quite steep, and if these paths are icy they can be dangerous. In these conditions the final slopes are best not tackled, unless equipped with light hiking crampons.
The total length of the route, if climbing each of the three peaks, is 17.4km, assuming the shortest route back to Třebenice is taken. A total of 540m height is gained/lost, if all three peaks are ascended.
There are no refreshment options on the route itself (except at the start/finish in Třebenice) so take enough liquids for the trip.

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 at Třebenice město train station. This is on a regional railway line, with regular trains from Lovošice, which has direct trains from Prague. If driving to Třebenice, there are a few parking places on the road leading up to the train station and at the square at the beginning of this road
Join the RED trail and walk under the main road, turning right after the tunnel. After a 400m section beside the main road the RED trail heads gently uphill for 1.4km to reach the Košťálov hiking path sign
At the signpost, take the diversion path to the left to get to the Košťálov hrad ruins. These are reached after 400m of climbing – note in winter conditions this path can be icy and a challenge. There are superb views from the top.
Return back to the Košťálov trail signpost and turn left back on the main RED trail towards Nad Sutomí
Continue on the RED trail for 2.5km to reach the castle of Skalka – the medieval round tower is visible from quite a distance
From Skalka, continue through the village of Vlastislav. At the the road junction (250m from Skalka castle) there is the option – for those wanting the 9km walk version – to head directly back to Třebenice initially along the public road. Jump to the * directions bullet for instructions from this point
For those continuing – and the extension at least to the viewpoint on Plešivec is very highly recommended – continue on the RED trail, which gradually climbs towards the Plešivec peak
The diversion path to Plešivec is reached 1.9km from the Vlastislav junction. There is a ladder style and a signpost, with green-white striped diversion marking to the summit, with its 360 degree panoramic view. The summit is 260m from the style
Return back to the main trail after visiting Plešivec summit. From there if continuing to the final peak and ruin of Oltářík, turn right onto the RED trail and continue for 1.3km through the village of Děkovka to reach the hiking signpost, where the BLUE trail is met
Turn left onto the BLUE trail, in the direction of the Hrádek . After 300m, at the tourist shelter, turn left continuing on the BLUE trail as it winds up to the summit (Note – the trail is easily graded until it reaches the tourist shelter just below the castle walls. From here the trail steepens and can be very challenging if conditions are icy)
From the castle ruins return back along the BLUE trail on the outbound route, rejoining the RED trail and continue back through the village of Děkovka, past Plešivec mountain and back to the village of Vlastislav
*At the road junction in Vlastislav, turn right onto the road signposted to Třebenice
Continue on this quiet public road for 1.4km through the village of Teplá, passing the pension Klášter. Just at the end of the village, before the last house on the left, there is a branch off the main road, which crosses the stream via a small bridge. Take this turn to the left
After 100m on this farm road, turn right onto a footpath which becomes a wider farm track that leads through the fields, directly back to Třebenice město train station, which is reached after 1.5km