České Budějovice to Český Krumlov

 Ride day 4: 19.7 miles, 1378’ elevation

Lodging:  Hotel Grand

We rose early and took our time, knowing that today’s ride would be short. We walked to a nearby coffee shop where we had a good breakfast on the edge of Old Town — poached eggs, avocado toast, espresso coffees. Our route out of town followed a bike path along a river where the water was still and reflected the trees and houses. Periodic pathside signs described local history in English and Czech. The morning air was cool, and there were few cars.

Eventually the route veered away from the river, and we climbed to a town with another historic church. After passing through a beautiful forest on a rough gravel track, we found ourselves descending into Cesky Krumlov. From a park we had our first view of the famous castle. We passed under its arches, and rode a cobbled, riverside path across from the historic center that the river curves around. We crossed a bridge and found our hotel right on the main square, the Hotel Grand. It was a bit touristy even though it’s the shoulder season with locals back in school. Our hotel staff opened a storage room where we could safely leave our bikes. It was too early to check in, so we changed clothes and walked around the historic center.

The historic castle was huge. For some reason there was a pen with two bears just outside the entrance with no explanation, just a sign saying not to feed the bears. No castle tours were available on a Monday, so we walked through the courtyards, across the narrow arched buildings we had ridden under earlier, and up around the gardens. Finally we ascended the tower and went thru the tower museum. We then headed down to the riverside where we sat outdoors, watching boaters (mostly kids) and tourists, and had a beer. Cesky Krumlov is the 2nd most visited city in the Czech Republic, and it’s easy to see why.

After checking in to our hotel room, we headed out again, this time walking past the local synagogue and some terraced gardens. We had dinner outdoors as it got late, returning to our hotel before dark.

Our hotel’s building was over 800 years old, (though the chrome and glass furnishings appear more recent). There were thick walls, some low doorways, and arched ceilings — very nice!