We initially thought
that on leaving Prelouc, heading north, we would be on a busy arterial road. It
was shown as a red line on the map. However it turns out this is the colour
used for some cross country trails on Czech maps. As a result we had a nice quiet
walk north out of Prelouc passing over the Labe in the process. We eventually
hit a minor road heading west, which is also cycle route 24. It was pretty
quiet but had long straight stretches. It became very hot and we searched out
all the tree shade we could. The main crops grown in the area seem to be
sunflowers and sweet corn.
We stopped for a
liquid lunch at Kladruby nad Laben, at the only place we had seen open so far.
It turns out this is the location of a massive stud. We had a sneak peek in one
of the stables, full of occupied loose boxes. All the horses were grey. As we walked
on we passed several large fields with about 20 horses in each. Earlier
we saw a large group of mares and their foals being moved to a different
pasture. We walked for about 3 kilometers with the paddocks on either side of
us and came upon another set of stables in which there were a few enormous
black horses. This estate was first established in the 1400's and served as the
royal stables of the Haspburg dynasty. After a few kilometers we turned off on
to a track which went through farmland before joining the banks of the river.
It was very hot! When we reached Tynec nad Labem we had to climb up to the
village first before walking back down again to get to the river.
We found the marina
where we were staying alright, but I think we missed the proper reception
place. The people we chatted to had as much English and German as we have Czech
but we eventually sorted things out using Google Translator and a lot of hand
waving. I don't think we were expected but a few guys rallied around and after
about half an hour we were taken to a mobile home which we had booked for the
night. It had only just been opened up so took quite a while to cool down. It
was very well set up and had room for 4 people. The hot water worked really
well with an on demand gas heater and the shower, which effectively had a
plastic armchair built into it, was great for oldies. The units are set up for self-catering
but we were not, so we ate at the adjacent restaurant where we also got
breakfast. We really had an enjoyable stay there as the people were so
friendly. If you are walking or biking the Labe/Elbe path this is a good place
to stay. Plenty to see with boats being launched etc.
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