Třebenice

A little town under Košťálov in the fruit-growing belt of the middle hills, home of the Czech Garnet Museum — with rail access along the range's southern edge.

Třebenice lies in the orchard country under the southern slopes of the middle České středohoří, and its claim to fame is underground: the surrounding fields are the classic mining ground of the Czech garnet, the deep-red pyrope. The Museum of the Czech Garnet, housed in a former Lutheran church on the square, shows the mining, the cutting and a collection of garnet jewellery — including the famous set that belonged to Ulrika von Levetzow, Goethe’s last love from neighbouring Třebívlice — alongside an exhibition of the castles of the range. The town has a railway stop, which makes it a handy base for Košťálov, Oltářík and the bare hills around.