THE HRUBOSKALSKO ROCK TOWN belongs to Český ráj - Golden trail of the Bohemian Paradise
This romantic area is formed by nearly 400 sandstone towers reaching a height of up to 60 metres. The selective weathering of the sandstone gave rise to rock windows, tunnels and mainly rock gates, the most beautiful of which is Bránická Tower (with difficulty VI to VIIc) in Dračí Rocks with its perfectly arched ceiling. The Rock Town was inhabited as early as in 5000 BC and in medieval times several castle fortifications were built (Valdštejn, Hrubá Skála). Today the local rocks are a popular destination for rock climbers. The Golden Route that leads through the Rock Town shows the visitor many interesting sights.
the rock formations are strong and form plateaus at an altitude 380 meters above sea level. The plateau breaks down at the edges and creates a typical rock town. Dozens of the rock towers are more then 90 meters high. Glens and gulches at the edge of the plateau create romantic nooks.
Due to the numerous sandstone cliffs and columns jutting up out of the ground, this area is popular both with tourists and rock climbers, although many can be scrambled up without technical climbing skills.
For easier orientation Hruboskalsko is separated into to five groups:
1-Predni Skaly (Front Rocks)
2-Skalni Mesto U Kapely (Rock Town By The Band)
3-Zriceniny Hradu Valdstyna (Ruins of Castle Valdstyn)
4-Skaly U Rybniku Vidlak (Rocks by Pond Vidlak)
5-Skaly U Rybniku Vezak (Rocks by Pond Vezak).
Over hundreds of these rock formations can be found here and they have been given a variety of names. In one of them, for example, is a grotto called Adam's Bed, others are Maják (The Light House) Dračí skály (Dragon's Rocks), Zamecka Rokle (Castle Gorge), Kapelnik (Bandmaster), Certova Ruka (Devil's Hand)
Here you can find one of the most unique geological formation in the reserve marked with climbing difficulty grades from III to VIIc.
Getting There
Take road 35 from Jicin towards Turnov. Take an exit to Hruba Skala, Pelesany or Sedmihorky. Parking is at Hruba Skala Castle, Valdstejn Castle or Sedmihorky.
You can also take a bus from either Jicin or Turnov.
Taking a train, stop in Sedmihorky station, turn right across the train tracks and follow the blue sign 3km, then turn northwest on the red trail for 1.5 km.
Red Tape
Hrubá Skála - HRUBOSKALSKO ROCK TOWN belongs to the area of Český ráj - Golden trail of the Bohemian Paradise.
Hiking
A lot of footpaths leads through the rock town, up to 11 km in length. There is an educational path, its length is 7,5 km and it takes about 3-4 hours to complete.
Climbing
It's allowed in this area only when the rock is dry, using soft shoes and equipment not damaging the rocks. Using magnesium is restricted in this area.
Top rope climbing allowed only if the surface of the rock will not get damaged.
When to climb
May to October is the best for finding the surface of the rock dry.
A listing of climbing formations with their difficulty grades can be found here:
Horosvaz.cz
Camping
Camp in Sedmihorky Campground
or
Autocamp Ostrov
camp-ostrov External Links
Hruba Skala
visentin - Feb 10, 2011 10:12 am - Voted 10/10
Well done !Perhaps you could attach it to the Sudetes page of Yatsek ?
ArankaP - Feb 10, 2011 11:22 am - Hasn't voted
Re: Well done !Does this also belongs to Sudetes? It must be close to the boarder?
visentin - Feb 10, 2011 4:16 pm - Voted 10/10
Re: Well done !Czesky Raj is usually seen as the remote and southern hillside of that range. Perhaps in Czech Republic this definition is less common, since the word "Sudety" for a whole range is less common, and people tend to designate smaller entities (Krkonose, Jeseniky, etc). However the end of the Western Sudetes chapter, Yatsek included few fords about the "Czech Paradise", so I think the place for your page is there :) Another place I'm looking forward to visit ! Are there any rock towns in the surrounding ?
ArankaP - Feb 10, 2011 4:46 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Well done !The thing is not whole Czesky Raj belong to Sudetes. I will check with Yatsek. And BTW; There are tons of rock towns, group of 10 to 50 formations all over. I'm planing to add more. Climbing most of any formation is allowed only with membership of ?eského horolezeckého svazu (?HS) or U.I.A.A (Union Internationale des Associations d’Alpinism), though the formation other than national parks as Hruboskalsko or Adrzbach are off road and not too exposed to the public. Some of these are very close by this area on the opposite side of town Turnov. They are called Suche skaly, Betlemske skaly, Klokocske skaly, Frydstejn. Membership is only 400,- Kc per year. Folow this link http://www.horosvaz.cz/res/data/049/005703.pdf for more info on membership.