August 19, 2025
Day 2 - The Elbe River (source to the sea)
Vrchlabi to Hradec Kralove
After a great night's sleep I headed out early to walk around Vrchlabi before we leave on the next leg to Hradec Kralove, around 74 km away.
There weren't too many people out and about this morning - a bit of a chill in the air. The town seems to do well in the ski season ... the town seems neat and tidy - well maintained.
Vrchlabi Castle is the town's centrepiece. A very nice looking place with extensive gardens and parklands.
Time to ride.
We were definitely spoiled on day one. Despite the climb, we had spectacular scenery and fantastic forest trails leading us down the mountain to Vrchlabí. The first half of today was less inspiring from a cycling perspective, although the scenery was still pretty good.
Why less inspiring? It felt like we spent most of the morning on roads. While the drivers were extremely courteous - always giving us a wide berth, sharing roads with cars and trucks just isn’t much fun. Our mood wasn’t helped by the climbs. They weren’t especially steep (though a 6% gradient with 14 kg of panniers, plus another 14 kg of “overweight rider” isn’t ideal!), but the inclines seemed to go on forever. Another concern: Stewart’s bike developed a dent in the rim, throwing it slightly out of balance. That meant slow and steady until we could get it looked at.
We broke up the otherwise monotonous morning with detours into villages. There are a lot of statues depicting the crucifixion of Jesus - almost every town in this region has one, plus many in unexpected places. You can turn a corner in the middle of nowhere and stumble across one.
Our first real stop was Hostinné, where we found a baroque plague column in the square featuring no fewer than seven saints and the Virgin Mary. These plague columns have become a regular feature of our journey so far.
As we circled the square twice due to a navigating issue on my part (not unusual), we noticed a car shadowing us. We were spread across the road but quickly pulled in. The driver revved the engine and sped past dangerously. Idiot! Only then did we realise it was a police car. To be fair, it looked more like a prop from a Police Academy 2 inspired theme park show as the car was a relic from the 1960s at best.
The next stage was perhaps the most challenging of the day: climb after climb until we reached Žireč. We did have short reprieve when we reached the historic Vodní nádrž Les Království - a water reserve built following devastating floods in the late 19th century, its primary role was to control floodwaters along the Elbe's middle course.. Constructed around 1920, it was later designated a national technical monument in 1964 and a cultural monument in 2010. We also stopped for a cold drink at the nearby cafe!
Upon reaching Žireč we made a beeline for the Cyklomuzeum Žireč (the bicycle museum), housed in a historic grain store and spread across three floors. When we arrived, a handwritten sign in Czech informed us: “Out to lunch, back in 30 minutes.” True to our word, we returned - entry was an “exorbitant” A$0.50 each!
As we left the town we noticed that the airport that we'd seen on our left hand side when we arrived was now on our right (?) ... we were heading back the way we'd come from (second navigation issue of the day). We quickly corrected but had added a couple of kilometres to our day!
This was the turning point of the day. From here, the route became mostly flat with well-maintained bike paths. Oh, the joy! Our average speed climbed noticeably, and cycling became fun again.
The fun didn’t last. We stopped for lunch near the town of Kuks. The choice: ride uphill to a café with a 4.3-star Google rating, or eat at the café right in front of us with a 2.4 rating. After climbing all morning, we took the easy option. Big mistake. Even 2.4 stars was generous.
We did pass hectares and hectares of freshly cut hay, all bailed up in round and squares - its been a good season.
After lunch, one last climb took us up to Kuks Hospital. But this is no ordinary hospital - it has a fascinating history: first as a spa, then a veterans’ hospital, and now a heritage museum. It sounded wonderful, but we didn’t linger. We had more pressing issues.
With Stewart’s bike rim in question, we needed a repair shop. We found one in Jaroměř, but it only sold bikes, no repairs. Not helpful. Our next chance was in Hradec Králové, where we were staying the night. Determined to arrive before closing, we took turns leading, picking up speed and creating a draft for each other… sort of. It was unanimous that my leg was heroic. Stewart called it Herculean, but I'm modest so let's stick with heroic.
We managed to push our pannier-laden bikes up to almost 25 km/h and made it in time. Mission accomplished! The bad news: they couldn’t fix it immediately. The good news: they could repair it if Stewart brought the bike back at 8:30 am tomorrow. It means a late start, but at least peace of mind.
Today's ride: 85 km (53 miles)
Total: 116 km (72 miles)
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