12.Nová Bystřice – Vranov nad Dyjí
Lenght: 55 km
Border checkpoints:
Romava – Reingers (T)
Košťálkov – Kleintaxen (T)
Slavonice – Fratres (A,T)
Hluboká – Schaditz (T)
Vratěnín - Oberthürnau (A,T)
Stálky – Heinrichsreith (T)
Šafov – Langau (T)
Podmyče – Felling (T)
Other sights:
Landštejn castle
Museum of czech fortifications (concrete blockhouses)
Maříž – manufacturing of ceramics
Slavonice – historical part of town (square) is in UNESCO
Česká Kanada (Czech Canada) – region between Nová Bystřice and Slavonie, beautiful nature
Písečné – castle, jewish cemetery
National park Podyjí – valley of river Dyje
Description:
The service road continued from the road to the border crossing Nová – Bystřice/Grametten along the south side of the pond Horní Obora towards the village Artoleč. There was a large village Obora (Thiergarten), which had 21 houses and 94 people in 1921 and before the World War II there were 24 houses and 127 people. It was destroyed in the process of forming of the border zone after 1945. South of Artoleč there is the former troop house and a quality unofficial road to Austria. Nearby there is also a view-tower used also by the Border Guard. The service road turned to the north then and connected to an asphalt road via Mýtinky (originally Pranšláky/Braunschlag)) to Návary. The signal wall led to the south from the road. The iron curtain encircled a small projection with several villages there.
First mentioned in 1381. There was a glass works, a distillery, a gamekeeper’s house, a weaving mill for linen and horsehair. In 1939 there were 40 houses with 153 people. The village and the settlement Hamry (Hammerhäuser), which was its part, ceased to exist, when the border zone was established.
The village was first mentioned in 1375. In 1939 there were 67 houses and 259 people. There was a flax mill, a rope maker and a school. There was a chapel of Holy Cross. The village was burnt by the Hussites in 1420 and in 1645 by the Swedes. In 1953 it ceased to exist due to the border zone. In 1930 it had 264 people, out of that 10 Czechs, 233 Germans, 21 foreigners (originally Austrians) and 67 houses. 261 people were Roman catholic, 3 were without denomination.
The village was first mentioned in 1487. In 1939 there were 49 houses with 241 people. There was a school and a chapel of St. Michael. They processed horsehair there and there was a flax mill. Nearby (in the west) there was the Kačer pond (originally Brandteich), which has 33 ha.
First mentioned in 1579. In 1939 there were 73 houses and 253 people. In the village there was a chapel of St. Angel. Nearby, on the brook Pstruhovec, at the border on Austria, there was a Hanftl´s mill (Hanftlmühle) and north of it the Gabrielka manor (Gabrielenhof).. The village was destroyed in 1953, when the border zone was established.
The village Návary was surrounded with ŽTZ from the south. The remains of the signal wall have been preserved around the whole village, because they are used as fencing for the cattle. No service road is visible there (just like in Veclov). In the west side of Návary there is the original gate, well accessible and visible from the main road. From there the road continues towards Veclov, which it bypassed from the south, where is the former troop house of the Border Guard. It is unclear, where the service road went from the troop house to the place behind the Dobrohoř coop farm. We can estimate, that the service road connected onto the road leading from the border to Staré Město. The service road bypassed Staré Město from the south and connected to the asphalt road from Staré Město to Slavonice at the Kadolecký pond (the steep slope from Staré Město ends there).
The service road followed this road for almost a kilometre. We can clearly see a stripe there, where the signal wall stood. Now it is grown with low trees and bushes. Before the village Kadolec the service road turns off the asphalt road (there are two concrete pyramids), it bypasses Kadolec from the south and continues towards Maříž. Around Kadolec the road is in good condition, towards Maříž it is in bad shape. The service road went north of Maříž, so this village was actually behind the iron curtain – there were barriers in front as well as behind the village and the inland gate was locked on the road, so when someone returned home late at night, the Border Guard had to open the gate for him. After Maříž the service road turned to the south and shortly before the state border it turned to the east towards the former troop house.
From there the service road continued to the north-east across the Slavonický brook and it connected onto the asphalt road shortly after the rising slope from Slavonice. From there the road led up to the village Slavětín, bypassed it from the south and behind Slavětín it connected back to the asphalt road, on which it continued towards Písečná. About 3 km before Písečná, at the fork to Modletice, the service road detached again, bypassed Písečná from the south and continued about one kilometre along the Moravská Dyje river. After crossing the river it connected back to the asphalt road and continued to Rancířov. After 3 km the service road turned to the south, bypassed Rancířov and Hluboká, situated almost at the very border.
From Hluboká it continues to the north-east and after two kilometres it connects back to the asphalt road and follows it towards Vratěnín. Behind Vratěnín the road continues to the south-east along the green KČT path, which it leaves after entering the wood and getting near to the Dyje river. There is a natural reserve Bílý kříž. The service road continued along the Dyje river to the road bridge over Dyje. A short way before the new bridge it crossed the river and continued through the wood to the south-east. After almost two kilometres the road leaves the wood and leads towards Stálky, which it bypasses and connects to the asphalt road to Šafov. There is the tourist border crossing Stálky/Heinrichsreith. The road continues to the east and after three kilometres it meets the wharf of the Celniční pond, which is situated south of Šafov. Behind Šafov the service road returns to the asphalt road and follows it to the village Podmyč.