Blogger's Forum - Czech cycling blog

This is a shameless plug for my blog Circuit Rider CZ (http://www.circuitridercz.com/). It describes my self-imposed challenge to cycle around the entire border of the Czech Republic (in instalments, I should add). The posts cover various aspects of cycling in this part of the world, as well as Central European history, geography and culture more generally. Anyone interested in cycle touring in the Czech Republic and neighbouring countries should find plenty of useful information here. There’ll be plenty more to come as my journey progresses over the next couple of years.

Thanks!

Simon

The weather in Prague was so beautiful on Friday that I took the afternoon off work and went for a bike ride. This time I set myself a specific goal - to photograph ten of my favourite panoramas of the city and post them here on the blog (http://www.circuitridercz.com/2010/03/prague-spring-ten-views-from-bike.html).

Prague - always photogenic - surpassed herself in the spring sunshine. Even with my meagre photographic abilities and facilities it wasn’t hard to take some decent shots. And it was a true joy to feel the warm sun on my back for the first time since last autumn.

So here are the results. These are all vistas I see regularly on my weekend spins around the city and they are all visible from or near to marked cycle paths. At the bottom of the post is a map indicating where each shot was taken. If I’ve whetted your appetite, why not take a look at the slideshow in the bottom left-hand corner of the blog?


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1. Žižkov Tower from Parukářka

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2. Žižkov district from Vítkov

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3. City centre from Vítkov

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4. Prague Castle from Svatopluk Čech Bridge

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5. Old Town from Letná

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6. Bridges over the Vltava from Letná

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7. Southern part of Prague from Strahov

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8. Charles Bridge from Most Legií Bridge

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9. Prague skyline from the railway bridge

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10. Vyšehrad from the railway bridge

View Ten views of Prague (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=104100222522000986079.000482c3d6ee5c0e9d6b2&ll=50.080167,14.425564&spn=0.038555,0.075531&t=p&z=13&source=embed) in a larger map

Postscript: Just a couple of hours after I got home a thunderstorm swept in and the heavens opened. That was one well-timed ride.

Beautiful photos.

My (Polish) wife Kasia and I love Prague. On our last visit (2008 ) we took a guided bicycle tour of the city. The traffic (both car and pedestrian) is a little crazy, but it's a beautiful place to ride.

When we visit her parents in Jastrzębie Zdrój we often enjoy biking to Czech Republic (somewhere near Prstná) to stock-up on Kozel beer.
:beer:

Yes, you're right about the traffic. However, if you know where to go, there are plenty of quieter places to ride in and around the city. I'm planning to write a post on some of those soon.

Is Jastrzębie Zdrój worth a visit? I could do a detour there on the final stage of my tour around the Czech border.

Czech beer is hard to beat. I'm planning to visit a few breweries (http://www.circuitridercz.com/2009/12/brewers-loop.html) on my trip.

Thanks for your comment.

Simon

Is Jastrzębie Zdrój worth a visit? I could do a detour there on the final stage of my tour around the Czech border.

Jastrzębie Zdrój is a typical Polish coal mining town (and most of the mines are shutting down), so I don't think it would be worth a detour during your bicycle tour.

Cieszyn, on the other hand, is an adorable little town. It has a great town square and tons of restaurants and shops. It's an ancient town, but when the borders moved after World War II it was split into Cieszyn and Český Těšín. The Czech side is nice, but honestly the Polish side is much nicer.

Enjoy your tour!

That's very useful information - just the sort of thing I'm looking for. I'll definitely cross over into Cieszyn, it sounds great. Thank you very much for the tip.