At Kutná Hora we turned south and rode through Cáslav and Golcuv Jenikov. Although the roads are not as much fun as those to the north of Prague, it was good to be in the countryside on probably the best day of the summer so far. We were enjoying ourselves!
At lunch time we pulled off at Havlíckuv Brod where we found ourselves in pristine town square. It is beautifully maintained, with tastefully restored buildings dating back to the 1700's. The weather was superb, so we decided to sit outside at the local "hospoda" where we enjoyed local delicacies - I had fried cheese with chips, Debs had a vienna schnitzel with boiled potatos, and we washed the lot down with Rebel beer from the brewery just up the road.
From Havlíckuv Brod we turned west and to the castle of Lipnice nad Sazavou. This is a picturesque Gothic castle with the characteristic outline of castle architecture from the beginning of the 14th century. It is now run down, but magnificent nonetheless. In the interior is a collection of Gothic tiles, and a small team of archaeologists was at work on an excavation in the courtyard. We were lucky to arrive just in time to catch the display of medieval swordsmanship and combat.
Sticking to the secondary roads we rode through the town of Humpolec (pronounced "Hoomp-oh-lets"!) where we stopped for a refreshment break. From there we made our way to the Benedictine monestery at Zeliv (founded in 1132). It was restored after a fire in 1720, and after another fire at the beginning of the 20th Century, it was reconstructed in a Neo-Baroque style. Very pleasant.
It was now almost 16h00 and we decided to head back towards Prague. Riding north-west on road 112 we reached the town of Vlasim, and took a look at the local chateau through the imposing gate. As we were leaving Vlasim (around the back of the chateau) we spotted a magnificent but derelict gate house...the kind of place we would just love to buy and restore. Dream on Pautz - dream on!
Next stop was the flying club at Benesov, overlooking the superb castle of Konopiste. We had been to the castle on numerous occasions, so decided not to go back on this ride. Instead we hung out among the gliders and power ships on Benesov air field.
We took the back-road back to Prague via Lake Slapy (actually the dammed Vltava/Moldau River). Debs and I have ridden through the hills and valleys here on numerous occasions but with the outstanding weather, today was extra special. At one vantage point we got a perfect view of lake in the valley below...just a pity we were looking straight into the sun. back down in the valley we rode along the river on the road to Prague. Some poor sucker on a Harley t-boned a car a few kilometres ahead of us, destroying the bike and a lot of himself in the process. Moral of the story - DON'T wear pisspot helmets (and buy a bike that can turn)!
The cruise back to Holesovice took us right through the heart of the old town, and I pulled over to shoot a sunset shot at the Charles Bridge, looking up to the Prague castle. I took one final picture of Debs waiting with the bike before we wound our way through the cobble streets back home.
325 kilometres. A brace of castles. A relaxing day.
MARK