In the early hours of the morning, my friend Jarda picks me up and we leave for Prague to the airport. The journey by car and by plane went without complications and I was at the airport in Barcelona around 2 p.m. I assemble my bike and I start to pedal around 4 p.m. What was not planned well enough from the beginning was the departure from the airport. I was planning to leave from another terminal. After about an hour I get to my route and set off. Originally, I had planned to end the first day in Barcelona and not leave until the second day. Unfortunately, even though I had booked accommodation through Booking.com since March, 3 days before departure I received an email that my accommodation was canceled (note for fictitious reasons). So at the last minute I decided to continue along the route and book accommodation in the town of Aiguafreda, which is about 80 km from the airport.

The worst hours of the expedition will not be long in coming. The path is not as easy as it seemed on the map. Sometimes I have to improvise and take it over the red hiking trails. Unfortunately for me, the Spanish red trails are more like a via ferrata than a hiking trail, it’s dark and it’s raining. Some sections were already on the edge. However, after imagining and accepting various scenarios, among which was the option that my bike would fall off a rock (still a better bike than me), I would go pick it up the next morning and figure out a way back home, everything was much better. Simply, if you mentally prepare yourself for a worse scenario, you can handle a lot. In addition to the psyche, I also struggle with the muscles on my body. I get severe leg cramps that run all the way down my calf and thigh. The body resigns itself to the current situation and it’s hard. Sometime around 11.30 p.m I get to Aiguafreda and after a bit of haggling the guesthouse owner finally opens the door and gives me the keys to my room. Phew, that was the start.

I like Spain. At every corner there are houses made of stones, which at first glance look as if they have stood here for hundreds of years. Tourism is at zero at this time. The locals look at me in surprise, as if they think I must be lost somewhere. Nobody speaks English, but I must add that everyone is very nice and polite. I really like this. I arrive at the Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park, where there are already quite decent mountains – I was moving at an altitude of around 2,000 m. This park is really tough on loaded gravel bike. In the best case, the cycle path leads on gravel roads, in the worst, it leads through places where there may have been a path in the past. But now there is no trace of it. Add to that quite changeable weather, it’s just challenging. Anyway, when I start to doubt my quest, I say something along the lines of, “You wanted it? You’re supposed to have it. Go for it.” And in the end, no hill seems that big.

If there was anything I missed in Spain, it was open pubs and cafes. Just in the parts I rode through felt like abandoned. But in Andorra, that’s different. It lives here. Promenades with people and open businesses at every turn. I booked hotel accommodation for the first night. I get to the room and suddenly it hits me. I’m confused, my head is spinning. I go to the pharmacy for a thermometer, which shows 39°C. I wouldn’t have believed it before, but it turns out that when you’re in the worst of trouble, the body holds you. But as soon as you arrive in a place where it is warm, dry and freshly bedded, the last few days will start to take their toll. The hotel is nice, so I tell myself that if the situation will not get better in the morning, I’ll stay.

The next morning I feel good and the breakfast buffet makes my mood even better. The temperature is gone, so I pack up quickly and set off to conquer the Port d’Envalira mountain pass with the highest point at 2,408 m.a.s.l.. This is done in the early afternoon. I’m happy. At that moment, of course, I don’t know it yet, but it is the 5th day of the expedition and after various mishaps, I am experiencing the most emotional moments of the entire expedition.

From Andorra to the French Riviera it’s pretty whizzing along, and I managed to plan a beautiful route on top of that. The outside temperatures were below 10° and there was enough rain so I am looking forward to warming up by the sea in France. Unfortunately, something similar to when I was pedaling around the Czech Republic along the border and looking forward to Moravia is happening again.

It’s hot by the sea, the road on the plains doesn’t run at all, and I’m starting to get bored. I can manage one day on the Riviera and then start to change the route quite fundamentally. Instead of going through Monaco, I will take it through Digne-es-Bains and then straight to Cuneo, Italy. Of course, I have no comparison, but the route through Digne-es-Bains was superb. This hastily made change worked.

France pleasantly surprised me. Beautiful mountains. Excellent gastro. There was no problem with English. France was great.

I go to Italy often in summer and winter, it is one of my favorite countries. Beautiful mountains, great cuisine, nice people and it’s relatively close from the south of Bohemia. However, for the first time, I am in the regions where tourists rarely go, and to my surprise, I encounter the biggest language barrier of the expedition. What amazes me the most is that even if you say you don’t speak Italian, an ordinary Italian will still try to explain the matter to you in Italian sentences. Arranging accommodation, for example, is therefore very exhausting, but in the end we always come to an agreement. Next time it would be good to learn at least some basics of Italian.

From Chiavenna, Italy, I leave in the direction of Saint Moritz. It’s gloomy, it’s raining lightly, I’m pedaling a road where there are a lot of cars and I’m climbing a difficult climb. That in itself wouldn’t be all that unexpected, but it turns out to be a strong test of my resolve. Every half hour a bus with the sign “St. Moritz – Bahnhof” passes me. Such a cherry is the fact that there are bike holders on the back of the bus. The temptation is there, of course, but I feel good, I’m going according to plan, and if I were to get on that bus right now, it’s clear to me that I would blame myself. So I continue on my way and reach Maloja, where I end the day at the campsite.

I was really looking forward to ride a bike in the Switzerland. Unfortunately, it just happened to rain a lot. Even so, I cover 115 km and reach Austria.

I am in Austria. When I was planning my route during the winter evenings, I thought that if I reached Austria, it would be considered a success and I could take the train home from Innsbruck. However, I’m on track and making it home seems realistic.

The kilometers go by, the weather is nice and I can slowly but surely see that I am getting home. After 21 days it will come. I arrive at the Nové Údolí border crossing. I stop, take a moment to absorb it. Of course, great joy. I buy a Czech beer at the kiosk and ride to the emergency shelter.

The next morning I just wrap everything up. I fix the puncture (by the way, the only one during the whole expedition) and set off for the last kilometers towards České Budějovice. The first welcome takes place with my parents in Holašovice, where they arrived on bicycles. We have lunch together and then I cover the remaining kilometers. I am home on Saturday, June 10 at approximately 3 p.m.

Overally this expedition was less demanding than embracing the Czech Republic across the border. So whoever goes on my route and manages it within 2 weeks, I dare say that he need not be afraid of the Pyrenees, the Alps or other big mountains. As a test set for both equipment and physics, the Republic is perfect.

Turns out riding a carbon gravel bike wasn’t the best idea. When washing the bike, I notice that my carbon frame has cracked. So I can’t recommend the Canyon Grizl CF for a similar trip. Likewise, Canyon was disappointed when they rejected my claim.

Despite the damaged frame, I rate this year’s expedition positively. What I liked most about it was the variety. One day in Andorra where it’s snowing and two days on the beach in a swimsuit in France, that’s just great. The trip went well and it was fun. France surprised me in all aspects, I was a little disappointed with Italy. Andorra has become a matter of the heart, where I would like to visit again sometime. Of course, it was also interesting in Spain, Switzerland, Austria and Germany.

I had my Gopro, drone and of course my phone with me. I shot every day and when I got home I had XX hours of footage. In the end I managed to cut it down to 12 minutes. I believe it is worth watching. Subtitles are available in Czech with automatic translation to English.

My most popular route is Over 3 Thousand Peaks, 2 Viewpoints and 1 Castle. Even though this circuit is “only” around 50 km, don’t be fooled. They will thoroughly check your physical and technical preparation, especially if you ride in the wet.

It’s Saturday morning, I load my bike on the car in Budějice and head towards Javorník. I’m there in an hour, I prepare my bike, change my clothes, turn on the GPS and start the route.

It’s like a roller coaster, up, down, comfortable for a while and then it’s hard again, but that’s exactly how I like it. In Kašperské Hory I stop at the local brewery for lunch and continue along the route. The environment is constantly changing, rock-root sections, single trails, forest paths, this is how I imagine a natural MTB circuit.

Considerably exhausted, but satisfied, I arrive at the car in the early evening. Again, it was worth it and it confirmed to me that this type of route suits me like shit. All the nooks and crannies, unexpected turns, diverse environments, breathtaking views (even hills :-)), only a local enthusiastic cycling native can plan this :-). Thanks a lot!

We set the departure date for one Friday in July, and in addition to the verified lineup, a new member of the expedition, Karel, is joining us. In Prague, the guys load the bikes into the car, pick me up in Budějovice, and then we’re already on our way to Ljubljana. The funny thing is that Řízek, Matouš and I bought new bikes this year and we all went for the Canyon Grizl CF bike in gray. Even though we each have slightly different equipment (CF 6, CF 7, CF 8), at first glance the bikes look the same. We take the bikes off the carrier, fasten the bags and start to cut the first kilometers.

The Triglav National Park welcomes us with a hike to Vršič (1,737 m.a.s.l.), here it is checked who has stepped on their feet this year and who is so-called sweating blood :-). However, we all meet at the top and then we just enjoy the view of the surroundings. It is gratifying to find out that only negative altitude meters await us in Bovce, where we plan to spend the night. It whizzes along decently, we pass a few cars, a bus and end the day at the Trenta campsite.

The next day we drive towards Kobarid, choose the high-altitude premium and climb Stol. From Stol we will go down to Kobarid, settle in a camp on the banks of the Soča River, where we will stay the following day. We rest, adjust the bikes and gather energy for the next days.

Although one would expect to be full of energy after a rest day, it wasn’t quite like that in my case. The previous evening at the pub had dragged on unexpectedly, and its consequences are felt with every step. From Kobarid (235 m.a.s.l.) we climb to Trinški vrh / Monte Piatto cima (1,138 m.a.s.l.) and continue along the ridge towards Nova Gorica. The valley cannot be seen from the ridge because it is covered with smoke. We learn that there is a large fire near Gorica and that we have to adjust the route. So we change the route and end the day in the village of Kanal.

From Kanal, we continue to Ajdovščina, where we set up tents and spend the night. The next day we reach the village of Jezero, where we spend the night on a grassy beach by the lake. The journey of these two days was nice, but rather boring compared to Triglav.

On the last day, in the morning, we arrive at a cafe in Ljubljana, have breakfast, drive around the city, and then just add wheels to the car and drive home.

I like to ride my bike alone, but it’s just better with friends, and the trip to Slovenia turned out great. Sure, there were some complications, heat, endless hills, a fire near Nová Gorica, but it was worth it. I know Slovenia well both from the ground (tourism) and from the air (paragliding), but on a bike it has another dimension. I consider the Triglav National Park to be the highlight of the trip, which takes your breath away, and not just when you’re pedaling up the hills :-).

As I always take a little risk when planning the route to avoid the main roads, it didn’t go too well in the first 30 kilometers. Holes, stones, roots, gravel… But I drive slowly and the tires hold. I’ll somehow get over this section and continue on to Jindřichův Hradec, where it’s already quite a breeze.

I continue through Telč to Nová Říš, where I have lunch and then head to Moravské Budějovice, which was the destination of the trip. Half, therefore, would be driven away. Now it’s time to get home :-).

My return journey is mainly through Austrian territory. From Drosendorf basically all the way to Litschau one has a great time. Quality asphalt and almost zero traffic. Here the kilometers jump almost by themselves :-). In Chlum u Třeboň, I stop for a drink and snack, turn on the lights (for which I had to return) and in the dark I drive to České Budějovice. Total mileage approx. 295. Oh no. I take a night tour around ČB and stretch it to the target of 300 kilometers.

I made it! But if you ask me if I want to ride it again, I don’t want to :-D. It’s feasible, but in my case it was over 14 hours of active riding, which is a massacre. For this year, there were a lot of PRs. I’m curious how I’ll see it next year :-).

I know the road to Nová Pec well, and since I don’t like driving where I’ve already been, plus there’s a slight westerly wind blowing against me, the kilometers go by slowly.

After passing through Nova Peca, Šumava finally breathes on me and the ride starts to be what I imagined :-). My plan is to sleep where I reach, but since I am in the first zone of the national park and the Bučina Emergency Shelter can be seen on the map, the goal of the first day is clear. (Note: if I had known that Bučina was the former highest settlement in Bohemia, I would have probably reconsidered my decision.) The altitude meters covered are increasing and after 20 hours I am there.

I think it’s cold, I look at my phone and see 5°C, the forecast for the morning says temperatures around zero. This surprises me a bit, I don’t have long pants, warm socks or a hat with me. I put on what I have, eat something and go to sleep.

I wake up to the next day decently frozen. I have breakfast, pack up and leave for Kvilda. Next is Modrava, where the temperature is still around 4°C and it starts to rain. I stop under the shelter in front of the tourist information center and after a while I start talking to cyclists who are finishing their vacation in Modrava and are going home by car. Let’s chat. We drink it down with their excellent homemade plum and it’s time to move on.

The path around Roklanské brook is beautiful all year round. I mostly go here in the winter on cross-country skis, but it’s also great on a bike. I take a photo and continue towards Prášila. Even if the planned route leads outside the semi-trailer, it won’t let me and I’ll make the journey a bit longer. And I’m doing well. There is a cafe connected to a small market in the village and they are also open on Sundays (which is today). I buy water and fruit at the market and next door at the cafe I charge my mobile phone and power bank and have desserts and coffee.

My journey continues through Špičák on Železná ruda, where I am surprised by the snow on one side of the hill. From Špičák, it whizzes by all the way to Nýrsko, where I stop for food. As the wind is picking up outside, I check the radar and see a decent thunderstorm moving in. I don’t wait for anything and drive on towards Všeruby.

If you sleep near the forest in the spring months and you hear barking from several sides at night, it is probably not a night hunt, but fox barking, which foxes use to reserve their territory. So, unlike me, you don’t have to worry about being accidentally shot by a local hunter at night :-).

On the morning of the third day, the journey to the Čerchov lookout awaits me. The road is unpaved, the elevation profile is unrelenting and the first crisis hits me.

It’s a tough day, but determination keeps me going. A bright moment is a stop in Rozvadov at the restaurant Myslivna. Pleasant service, excellent food with homemade pastries and, at the end, great coffee. If you’re passing by, be sure to stop here. If I take the whole trip around the republic, this was the most pleasant culinary surprise.

My journey continues to the former Pavlův Studenec and I reach a beautiful landscape full of extensive meadows. Maybe it’s exhaustion, but emotionally I perceive it as one of the most beautiful kilometers in the bicycle saddle. Suddenly I have energy and I am following my daily schedule. However, the body starts to resist and I feel an unpleasant pressure in my left knee.

On the morning of the fourth day, I hope the knee will be fine. Unfortunately. It’s such a weird pain in the front. When I don’t move, everything is fine, but as soon as I bend my knee, I feel this uncomfortable pressure. I google what can cause a similar problem and find that it is probably the pedaling method. It is necessary to annoy it with power, lower gears, increase the cadence. I’m going out and trying to see how it goes.

It works. The pain is not getting worse. I continue through Cheb to Aš. The road to Aš is surprisingly nice. The diversion is a meeting with a viper, which is calm, we both look out for our own. Aš didn’t inspire me twice, I stop at Šimon’s Minimarket with an attendant of Asian origin, buy water and a few small things. I don’t linger any longer and drive on through Germany in the direction of Plesná. Behind Plesná I will look out for a shelter with a mineral spring of Plesenská kyselka and spend the night.

It’s the fifth day and the crisis is at its peak. After a night spent in the meadow due to allergies, I can barely open my glued eyes in the morning. The pain in the knee is worse. The body is generally giving up and it is clear to me that it cannot continue like this. I cough up the daily plan and look at the map to see if there is a campsite nearby.

My goal is camping place “Kemp na Tajchu” in the village of Šindelová. And immediately upon arrival it is clear to me that it will be great. No tarmac car park where you have a strip of grass for your tent, this is a natural campsite right next to a pond with clear water, meadow and forest. I don’t know if I’ve ever been to a nicer campsite. He probably wasn’t. I settle in and go to the snack bar run by Mr. Milan, who has traveled. He is a nice person in every inch, who will prepare you steak, tortilla, sausage, pizza… just about anything :-). I will taste almost everything on his menu and wash it down with beer. The mood is starting to improve, but I doubt that I will leave the whole republic.

In retrospect, I evaluate it so that this rest day was necessary. Coincidentally, it turned out to be an exceptional place that gave me an incredible amount of energy. You just don’t plan this :-).

Rested from the previous day, I wake up to a new morning. The height profile on Klínovec is scary, but the path leads through Boží Dar, where I really like it.

The weather is good and I reach Horní Blatná and head towards Boží Dar. The vast light green spring meadows give me energy and the journey goes by nicely. I give coffee in Boží Dar, replenish supplies and head to Klínovec. Klínovec is conquered without much difficulty, I take a photo and continue on towards Vejprty.

From Vejprt I will eventually reach the Flaje water reservoir. The road is varied with minimal traffic. I complete the daily portion of kilometers and altitude meters and go to prepare for the night satisfied.

I had a fair amount of mileage planned for today, but the motivation would be there. As thunderstorms are reported for the night and the following morning, I booked a hotel with breakfast in Varnsdorf :-).

Meadows around Moldava, that’s something for me. Cycling there is great. To Hřensk, I choose the route via Schöna and the ferry. The transition from the Czech Republic to Germany is almost unmarked and follows a tourist route, so it became inevitable, I crossed it and I have the first major detour. I’m still trying to figure it out somehow, but after wandering for a while I’m coming back. It just so happened that my cell phone’s battery is dead and I’m without a map. I use my sense of direction, it was not without occasional hesitation, but eventually I reach Schöna in Germany and take the ferry to Hřensk. It’s 5 p.m., check-in at the hotel in Varnsdorf closes at 8 p.m., which is still a long way to go, but I still stop at the U Forta snack bar, where I put food and charge my phone so that I have a map available.

Český Švývarsko is very nice to ride on a bike. High-quality asphalt cycle paths right next to the sandstone formations. Every cyclist just has to like this. There is no time to waste, I stop for one photo and then I just enjoy myself from the saddle.

8:00 p.m. is approaching, to be sure, I call the hotel reception so they can count on me. The receptionist is very nice and tells me that she has no problem waiting a few minutes. I’m going as fast as I can and I’ll arrive at the hotel at 20:01.

I take the keys, go to the room and it’s time to do the laundry. I wash the clothes in the sink, hang them all over the bathroom and go drink it.

It’s not raining in the morning, but it’s wet, cold and I don’t want to leave the hotel at all. I don’t leave until after 10am, which is not good.

Via Hrádek nad Nisou and Chrastava, I reach Mníšek and begin to climb the Jizera Mountains. It’s a decent hill, but I’ve already cycled here and I know that the Bedřichov water reservoir awaits me as a reward after the climb – another beautiful place.

The Jizera Mountains pleasantly surprised me. They are just big hills, you go up for a while, then down again. The environment changes nicely. My destination was Vysoké nad Jizerou with a view of the Krkonoše Kotel. I arrive at the place around 10 p.m..

Waking up to the ninth day is one of the nicest. The sky is cloudless and as soon as I get out of the tent, I look at the Krkonoše Mountains. With this extraordinary view, I have breakfast, exchange a few nice words with a local citizen and drive towards Jelemnice and Vrchlabí.

There are decent hills waiting for me in the Krkonoše Mountains, and when I drive past the third observation tower, I think that it could be breaking already :-). I will cross the Krkonoše Mountains to Žacléra and continue towards Lubawka (PL). From Lubawka past Adršpach to Police nad Metují.

What throws a pitchfork into my plan is the fact that in the first half of June, most of the campsites in the Czech Republic are closed. I’m still trying a hotel in Polica nad Metují, but you really don’t want a 2* hotel in the north of Bohemia. So I’m quite glad they don’t have time off and I’m spending the night not far from Police.

In the morning, I quickly pack up, because it’s raining, and head back to the square in Polici. Interestingly, right next to the 2* hotel, which still gives me chills, there is a cozy bakery with seating.

I’m there for about two hours, I drink two coffees and fill my stomach with salty and sweet. I remember that place fondly. It’s still raining when I leave, but my good mood doesn’t leave me. In a while I’m in Poland and I’m driving through the Table Mountain National Park.

The road continues along the Polish side around Orlické mountains and I end my journey in Králíky. In the off-season, it is a dead town, where the local pub cooks until 3 p.m. I arrive at the square, where there is a bar with a garden, and I order Rázná 10° from Radegast. I chat with the locals, order a pizza (they don’t have anything else) and have another beer. It’s a nice stop, but time flies like crazy, so I pay and go to the lookout shelter.

Hanušovice awaits me in the morning – this is not how I imagined the Jeseníky Mountains, I don’t linger and continue towards Jeseník. According to the radar, I’m waiting for a storm and it’s coming. In the rain, I will drive through Jeseník and continue to Zlaté Hory, where I have booked a guesthouse.

The Jeseníky – Zlaté Hory route – finally the Jeseníky I was expecting. I especially like it in Misty Swamps where it’s really foggy. Although I’m soaked, as if I had just jumped into a pond, but since I’m waiting for a boarding house, it somehow doesn’t bother me and a good mood prevails.

Upon arrival at the boarding house, the usual laundry procedure is followed in the sink. Since not only I got wet, but also part of the equipment, I take everything to the room and unpack it there :-).

Since there were no big hills on the route on the 12th day, I thought that if I wanted to finish the Republic in 16 days, I had to do it. So the plan is to drive from Zlaty Hory to Jablunkov with a stop in Bohumín, where I will meet my friend Honza.

The drive from Krnov to Opava is really nice. I’m in Bohumín at around 4 pm and I’m giving a boost to Pilsen with Honza. I continue via Karvina to Český Těšín, where I buy supplies and drive towards Jablunkov.

It doesn’t look good on the radar, it’s shaping up to be quite a storm. I enter Třinec, on the right I see the industrial complex of Třinecké železáren and immediately behind them the black Beskydy mountains. Real black. I have 20 km to the planned overnight stay. I’ll do another 10 km and then the storm will catch up with me. He’s as skinny as a cow. I’m waiting until 10 p.m. to see if it gets better. Nothing much. I get on my bike and give myself the worst 10 km ride.

Finally, I arrive soaking wet at the planned shelter and wonder what I’m doing here.

The conclusion of the previous day was a bit on the edge, but it turned out that I can drive 180 km in one day. After 10 days, I’m slowly starting to believe again that embracing the republic on time is realistic.

I’m cycling in the Beskydy for the first time, after the disappointment of the Jeseníky, I don’t have high expectations. How pleasantly surprised I am! Maybe it was the previous flat day, maybe it added a little spark of hope that the embrace of the republic will succeed, but the Beskydy are beautiful mountains with unique nature and a minimum of tourists. These mountains grabbed my heart.

Thunderstorms and a flood warning are again reported for the afternoon. I Google the guesthouse and end the day in the village of Karolinka near Velké Karlovice.

On the way out of Karolinka, it is still drizzling a little. I have planned the start of the route through the tourist blue, but the storms of the previous days have taken their toll. It’s hard to drive on gravel with bagels. Still, if I had to choose between this and the first class, I’d prefer this broken blue.

I make a morning stop in Valašské Klobouky and continue in the direction of Bojkovice, Strání, Velká nad Veličkou.

Den zakončuji v kempu u koupaliště Lučina ve Tvarožné Lhotě.

When I was freezing in Šumava at the beginning of the expedition, I was really looking forward to this day. I thought that there would be a heat, straights and the end of the expedition in sight.

Well, in the end it turned out to be the most boring day of all. Mountain lakes and ponds have been replaced by green periwinkles, people on the cycle paths as in Wenceslas Square and heat. This is really not for me. I understand that cycling from cellar to cellar in Moravia can be fun. But going to Moravia primarily for cycling is seriously not a good idea.

The bright side of the day was a stop and a swim in the Mašovice Quarry.

The weather is fine and it looks like the last day of the trip.

In the morning, I will take a bath in the quarry, finish my work and drive home via Vranov nad Dyjí, Waldkirchen an der Thaya, Chlum u Třeboň and Třeboň.

The journey is pleasant, my head is racing where I have been, what I have experienced and with a smile on my face I am approaching České Budějovice.

I have a confession to make. I became a country fan on this bike trip :-). Already on the second day of the expedition, I was looking forward to rounding the thousandth mile and playing the next song. Somewhere in Austria it is becoming a reality. I slow down, put the speakers on full blast and pedal through the countryside with a warm feeling inside.

I already know the road well from Třeboň. I’ll take a photo on the Budejovice square, have a beer and tartare at a local restaurant, wrap up the trip internally, and then there’s only a few hundred meters to go home.

In my opinion, this is the best route to get around the republic across the border in two weeks. In total, I drove 1,746 kilometers, climbed 25,236 meters and it took me 16 days and 15 nights. I spent 10 nights in the wild, 3 times in a guesthouse and 2 times in a campsite.

The more I travel and the more I see, the more I like it here at home. Šumava, Ore Mountains, Jizerské Mountains, Beskydy are really beautiful places of our country and thanks to this expedition we had the opportunity to explore them up close. It is true that there was no space for any detailed tourism, but as a basic overview this expedition served more than well. I already have in my head which places I will return to and explore them more thoroughly.

The idea, which arose among other things as one of the reasons for advocating the purchase of another bike :-), managed to be brought to a successful conclusion. Predictably, there were bad times and good times. Since the height profile of the planned route did not even remotely correspond to reality, it was strongly underestimated, the worse moments were much worse than I expected them to be. But thanks to them, the better moments were all the stronger. I have to say that overall this trip was pretty intense and it got indelibly etched on my skin. It didn’t leave any physical consequences on me, and I don’t think it did psychologically either. But if this trip gave me anything in terms of self-development, it will be the following: “Every hill can be climbed. Every problem has a solution. You can give up tomorrow.”

I chose the route České Budějovice – Velešín – Světlík – Černá v Pošumaví – Horní Planá – Boletice Military District – Netolice – Vodňany – Týn nad Vltavou – Hluboká nad Vltavou – České Budějovice. It should be noted that some sections were more gravel, however the Schwalbe One tires with tubeless sealant lasted and I didn’t have to deal with a puncture.

I was riding fine, the environment was interesting. Of course, I couldn’t miss lunch in Horní Planá, where I stop every time I ride by. The crisis came before Bavorov. I stopped at a well-known snack bar, where I gained strength and set off in the direction of Týn nad Vltavou. You can really tell on the psyche when you start getting closer to home. So the journey from Týn to Hluboká was good. However, when I looked at the distance traveled in Hluboká, it was clear that if I follow the path around the river to ČB, I will not get over 250 km.

So I took the final part of the journey through Břehov and Žabovřesky.

When you have gravel and 2 sets of wheels to go with it, it’s like having 2 separate bicycles. What can be done on road wheels would be very difficult on gravel wheels. This day really went well, when I was commuting home, I was happy about it. However, one thing is certain, this will be hard to beat :-).

Po vyjetí si zvykám na přidanou hmotnost. Do kopců řadím nižší převody a zvyšuji kadenci. Přeci jen je to jiný styl jízdy než když člověk jede nalehko.

Za chvíli jsem v Třeboni na náměstí a první posilňující zastávka musí být :-). V místní kavárně si dávám zmrzlinu a kafe a po chvíli jedu dál. Co se mi během mých cest osvědčilo, pokud narazíte na pěkné místo, zastavte a dejte si něco dobrého. Čekat na první zastávku do poloviny denní trasy není ta nejlepší strategie :-).

Pokračuji dál přes Chlum u Třeboně, České Velenice, Nové Hrady, v Dobré Vodě naberu vodu z pramene a pokračuji směrem přes Pohorskou Ves až do Dolního Dvořiště. Za vesnicí kouknu na hodinky a vidím vzdálenost přes 130km a začnu hledat vhodné místo na přenocování.

The journey through Horní Dvořiště to Přední Výtoň – probably the most demanding section of the expedition. Hill after hill plus worse surface. I arrived in Výtoň well prepared.

A stop was inevitable. I give a raspberry. I refill my water and head towards Horní Planá, where my favorite pub is. The road around Lipno is nice except for one big black viper, which I almost ran over near the Schwarzenberg canal in front of Nová Pec. This will scare me for a long time :-D. I finally arrive from Horní Planá and have a delicious lunch finished with great coffee.

I travel to Křemž through Boletice and Kleť. I buy a convenience store in the square and wonder if I’ll make it home or sleep in the neighborhood. Since I had 3 days reserved for it and I only tried things for sleeping once, I choose the second option and spent the night in the vicinity of Křemže.

On the last day, I only have to get home. In addition to the route, which I know by heart, I ride the new cycle path from Boršov to Planá. Then just a few last km and I’m home.

It was a challenging 3 days, but I have to say that all the equipment worked well. I put a lot of work into the selection, read various reviews, tips, returned goods that did not meet my needs and generally spent a lot of time on the chosen equipment, but it paid off. The only weak spot was my physique. The republic will want to do something more.