The viewpoint of Vysoký vrch (486m) from Unhošť: an 18 km circular route

• Unhošť is a small town situated 20km to the west of Prague, with regular bus services from the city, and is quickly accessed by car from the D6 highway. It is a useful starting point for walks in the eastern section of the Křivoklátsko nature area.
• The area is well known for its ancient water mills that line the Loděnice (known locally as Kačák) and Černý streams. One popular and attractive (18km one-way) walk follows the gently undulating paths along these streams from Unhošť to the village of Loděnice .
• An alternative circular walk, starting and finishing in Unhošť, which is oulined below leads to the hill top of Vysoký vrch (486m) which has wide ranging views of central Bohemia, especially from the wooden viewing tower. The hilltop has a cairn dedicated to Jan Palach and is also the site of an early Iron age hillfort (which was probably only occupied sporadically). The suggested route also follows sections of the Černý and Loděnice streams, passing several old mills, including Proškův mlýn, which dates back at least to the 15th century.
• The total walk length is 17.7 km with 380m of height gained/lost. The route is mostly on easy forest or meadow footpaths. The section up to the Vysoký vrch peak is on unmarked trails through the forest, but it is a popular route and the footpaths are wide and easily located. This is an excellent route throughout the year – in winter the paths are usually navigable even in snowy conditions, and in early spring the water meadows are full of flowers.
• There are a couple of possible refreshment (lunch) options on the route including the U Kozla restaurant (located approximately halfway) and the historical pub U Netopýra, located in the old settlement of Poteplí, which is a good stopping point after descending from Vysoký vrch.

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 centre of the town of Unhošť, which is quickly reached by car from the D6 highway. There are various (paid) parking spots in town, including on the centrally located Václavské nám. If travelling by bus, there is a regular service from Zličín
• Begin on the BLUE trail, which leads westwards through the town, passing the Bulhar pond
• From the pond the trail follows alongside Černý potok, reaching the Suchý Mlýn trail junction after 2.2 km
• At Suchý Mlýn, continue on the BLUE trail to reach Markův Mlýn after 2.7 km
• At the Markův Mlýn trail signpost, turn onto the RED trail in the direction of the village of Malé Kyšice, which is reached after 2 km (possible refreshment stop at the U Kozla restaurant)
• From the U Kozla restaurant continue for 700m on the RED trail out of the village, descending and crossing the Loděnice stream on a footbridge to reach the Malé Kyšice trail junction (signpost)
• At the trail junction leave the marked trails and head directly up the hill on a broad footpath – this is the main approach path towards the Vysoký vrch hilltop
• After 650m of gentle ascent the path reaches a public road. Cross the road and continue straight on – there are sometimes cars parked at the beginning of this path
• 700m from the road, the main approach path turns to the right and heads towards the hilltop on the south facing slopes (there are some rocky areas that the path traverses)
• After a steeper section through the rock areas the path bends to the left along the summit plateau. Continue on to the wooden viewpoint. The plateau area shows signs of the late Bronze Age/early Iron age fortifications
• From the viewpoint return back along the summit plateau but keep to the left – the descent route follows a path down the northeast flank of the hill
• 500m after leaving the summit area, the path reaches a crossroads. Turn left here and descend to reach the public road after 650m (note: there are various unmarked paths on the hill and it is best to have a map to navigate this section of the route, or preferably the mapt.cz phone app)
• At the public road, turn right and after 30m there is a footpath that descends steeply down the Loděnice stream. Just before reaching the stream, join the RED hiking trail path, and turn left
• After a short section beside the stream, the trail rises to rejoin the public road, which it follows to reach the historic settlement of Poteplí. On the right approaching the village is Proškův mlýn
• Just after passing Proškův mlýn, reach the trail junction in Poteplí, and turn onto the YELLOW trail which follows the road up the hill for 600m (on the right side is the historical pub U Netopýra)
• After the uphill road section the YELLOW trail returns to the forest and continues to the village of Nouzov. Pass through Nouzov, staying on the YELLOW trail descending to reach the Suchý Mlýn trail junction (this was also passed on the outbound route)
• At Suchý Mlýn, continue on the YELLOW trail towards Unhošť, which is reached after 2.8 km