Stage 2 route summary

At 410 km (at least), stage 2 is one of the longest of the entire trip. It is also possibly the most diverse, featuring overnight stops in three different countries as well as five national parks, two mountain ranges and three “hooks”. At either end are several areas of weird and wonderful rock formations – the Polish Table Mountains, the Broumov Walls and the Adršpach-Teplice Rocks to the east, and Saxon Switzerland and Bohemian Switzerland to the west. The central section is dominated by the Krkonoše and Jizera mountains, which I will be traversing mostly on the Polish side of the border. Highlights along the way include the highest mountain in the Czech Republic (Sněžka), the most northerly point of the entire journey, the northernmost town (Šluknov) and railway line in the Czech Republic, the point where the Czech Republic, Poland and Germany all meet, and the first German town on my route (Zittau). It’s going to be a long weekend in more ways than one.

Cycling on the shoulders of the Giants

I’ve been scratching my head for some time now about how to traverse the Giant Mountains (Krkonoše in Czech, Karkonosze in Polish) during stage 2 of my trip around the perimeter of the Czech Republic. Now I think I’ve found the answer.

First ride of 2010

I went out on my bike for the first time this year today. Yet I so nearly wimped out of it.

In my last blog entry I pledged to go riding this weekend whatever the weather. At that time, though, my enthusiasm was based - if I must be honest - on a forecast promising sunshine and temperatures above zero.

Spinning out the winter

I’m suffering from withdrawal symptoms. Cycling withdrawal symptoms.

I haven’t been out on the bike since mid-December, mainly because of the heavy snowfall we’ve had in Prague recently. Before anyone calls me a wuss, I should like to point out that I am, in fact, quite a hardy soul and normally ride pretty regularly throughout the winter. But the last couple of months have been just too cold and slippery to tempt me out.

So, as in previous years, I’ve been doing a bit of spinning at the gym to try to keep in condition until the weather relents.

The Man Who Cycled the World, by Mark Beaumont

(reviewed by the bloke who intends to cycle the Czech Republic)

On Sunday 5 August 2007, Mark Beaumont, a Scotsman, set out from Paris to circumnavigate the globe by bicycle in a world record time. I've just finished reading his account of the journey, which my parents kindly gave me for Christmas. I read it partly in the hope of picking up some tips for my travels.

Stage 1 route summary

I'm ready at last to unveil stage 1 of my route around the Czech Republic, which starts in the northern Moravian town of Bohumín. The first section is fairly flat and gentle, passing through Opava and around the Osoblaha salient. It then goes around the back of the Jeseníky Mountains and ramps up steeply through the Rychlebské (Golden) Mountains into Poland. Once back on the Czech side of the border, I'll turn north into the Orlické (Eagle) Mountains before dropping into the finish town of Náchod. World War II is a recurring feature of this stage. The eastern section takes in a number of towns that were badly damaged during the German retreat in 1945, and the western part features a series of border defences that failed to stop Germany invading Czechoslovakia in 1939.

On the hooks

Recently I wrote about the history of the Czech border region. Now it's time for a geography lesson. Specifically, I want to draw attention to the hook-shaped areas of land that thrust out into Poland and Germany along the Czech Republic's northern frontier. They're called výbežky (projections) in Czech, and there are five of them. I find them fascinating.