Trosky

The symbol of the Český ráj — a ruined 14th-century castle whose two towers, Baba (47 m) and Panna (57 m), crown a pair of basalt volcanic plugs.

Trosky is the unmistakable silhouette of the Český ráj: two towers on two basalt plugs, the necks of a double volcano from five to ten million years ago. Čeněk of Vartemberk founded the castle on them at the end of the 14th century, using the rocks as ready-made fortifications — the wider eastern tower is called Baba, the slender 57-metre western one Panna, after the legend of the two quarrelsome mistresses of the castle. The ruin has been state property since 1925 and is a national cultural monument; the towers’ viewpoints are open to visitors in season.