Říp, the Lone Hill

The gentlest Říp that still counts as a hike. 12.2 km from Roudnice up the red waymark to the rotunda and down to the Vražkov train.

There is a train station at each end, Roudnice at the start and the little Vražkov halt at the end, so transport is simple. The climb fits into a summer morning. This is the right version of Říp for a first visit, or for taking someone up the hill for their first time.

From Roudnice the red waymark leads south out of town through the fields, with the dome of Říp ahead the whole way and a couple of village churches on the way, above all the big evangelical one in Krabčice. The climb itself is short and shaded. At the top you find the Romanesque rotunda of St George, the summit pub with beer and basic food, and the ring path with views over the plain. This is the plain Praotec Čech surveyed, if you believe the legend.

For the return you have three options. You can go back down the red to Roudnice, or take the blue waymark towards Roudnice with a stop at the Štípárna pub in Vesce. We walked the third one, the yellow waymark south to Vražkov and a train one stop back. All three fit easily into an afternoon.