Cycling Trip 2 - To the Star of Vysočina

For all of those who want to visit the UCI MOUNTAIN BIKE World Cup in Nové Město na Moravě, but apart from cheering to pros also want to ride their bikes and get to know the surroundings of the famous Vysočina Arena, we asked the local tourism office Koruna Vysočiny and they prepared a series of 3 nice MTB trips around the region.

Route GPX: https://mapy.cz/s/barubunava

Suitable for: gravel bikes, MTB

Length: 56 km

Elevation gain: 811 m

Route: Vysočina Arena, NMNM town center, Petrovice, Vejdoch, Jámy, Vatín, Nové Veselí, Veselský pond, Matějov, Rosička, Šlakhamr, Peperek, Vápenice, Žďár Castle, Zelená hora, Vysoké, Lhotka, Vysočina Arena

Enjoying a pleasant day in the saddle while discovering beautiful nature and interesting places? In the Crown of Vysočina (Koruna Vysočiny), this is no problem. Set out on a fifty-six-kilometer route with an elevation gain of 811 meters that will guide you through the most interesting places in the Žďár region. Allow plenty of time for the trip, ideally a full day, because you'll find an abundance of points of interest, natural, historical, and technical monuments, as well as places to refresh yourself along the way.

From the Vysočina Arena in Nové Město na Moravě, known as a venue for the Mountain Bike World Series event, first head along cycle route No. 103 to the center of Nové Město na Moravě. After exploring the historic center, which is also an urban heritage zone, continue through the settlement of Petrovice toward the village of Jámy, above which rises the hill Vejdoch. The treeless summit offers a unique panoramic view of the surroundings—from here you can identify two Vysočina towns and twenty villages, and with binoculars, even forty-two. Vejdoch was, after all, interesting for the military during the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 due to its strategic position, when it served as a military observation post. Today, besides two linden trees, there stands a sandstone Tree of Life on its summit, which is reached by the Path of Life with ten stations from the foot of the hill.

Once you've enjoyed the view sufficiently, continue along field paths through Vatín to the Vetelské ponds system, another piece of preserved nature. The picturesque small ponds are included in the NATURA 2000 network due to the presence of protected amphibian species. The next stop is Nové Veselí, dominated by the Baroque church of St. Václav. The small town lies next to the extensive Veselský pond, whose shore is lined with a nature trail focused on flora, fauna, and natural and historical attractions. A large number of birds live in its vicinity, and on the opposite shore, there is a freely accessible covered observation point.

Around the somewhat smaller Matějovský pond and through the village of Matějov, the route heads toward the village of Rosička. Above it, for more than twenty years, stands a telecommunications tower modified as the Rosička lookout tower. After climbing 140 spiral stairs to the viewing platform, you'll be rewarded with a view of a considerable part of Vysočina. From Rosička, continue through Česká Mez to the historic Šlakhamr in Hamry nad Sázavou. This technical monument, now under the care of the Technical Museum in Brno, was once a hammer mill, a facility for processing iron ore, with traditional hammer milling maintained in the area until the 17th century. A grain mill was later established on the water channel of the former hammer mill, which continued grinding until World War II. Today, there is a museum exhibition featuring a water wheel-powered hammer with its accessories. Several times a year, public events are held at Šlakhamr, where blacksmiths always demonstrate their craft to visitors.

Near Šlakhamr above the Sázava River, check out the unique rock formation called the Split Rock, where the tourist trail leads directly through a narrow rock crevice, and on the meadow on the opposite river bank, you'll see a monumental mammoth head — another of the giant concrete sculptures by Žďár artist Michal Olšiak. As you continue, after passing through the settlement of Šlakhamry, you'll reach "The End of the World." This is what locals call the historical border between Bohemia and Moravia, which has been guarded by a border guard in a watch booth for four decades. From the "customs officer," you face an ascent to Peperek, a hill with rocky outcrops where silver mines were located in the Middle Ages and which is associated with many legends.

The route then continues to the picturesque forest lake Vápenice surrounded by trees. According to the most famous legend, it was formed from the tears of a girl who could not marry her beloved, and eventually both lovers found death in it. The reality is less prosaic, as it is a flooded limestone quarry where extraction ended more than a century ago. According to divers' surveys, the lake is thirteen meters deep and its bottom is covered with a thick layer of mud. In the 1930s, with considerable contribution from the press, legends began to spread about giant fish of monstrous shapes living in the waters of Vápenice, temporarily making the place a domestic counterpart to Scotland's Loch Ness. But Vápenice never yielded any monster.

The highlight of the cycling trip is a visit to the castle complex in Žďár nad Sázavou, which was built on the site of a former Cistercian monastery. Take a look at the basilica minor of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and St. Nicholas, whose core was once a conventual church, medieval fish ponds, or the interactive Museum of the New Generation presenting the Cistercian legacy. The greatest architectural gem of the area is the pilgrimage church of St. John of Nepomuk on Zelená hora above the castle — the masterpiece of architect Jan Blažej Santini Aichl in the Baroque Gothic style.

The final part of the route will then take you through Vysoké and Lhotka back to the Vysočina Arena.

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