11. Nové Hrady – Nová Bystřice
Lenght: 52 km
Border checkpoints:
Nové Hrady – Pyhrabruck(A,T)
České Velenice - Gmünd-Böhmzeil (A,T)
Halámky - Gmünd-Nagelberg (A,T)
Rapšach/Spáleniště – Brand (T)
Chlum u Třeboně – Schlag (T)
Smrčná – Haugschlag (T)
Nová Bystřice – Grametten (A,T)
Other sights:
Nové Hrady – castle, Cuknštejn stronghold, smithy České Velenice Nová Ves na Lužnicí – classical mill (now water power plant), south from the village begins natural preserve Horní Lužnice CHKO Třeboňsko – protected scenic reserve with many ponds Chlum u Třeboně – Staňkovský rybník – built between 1560 – 1570, 240 hectares Nová Bystřice – castle from 13th century, jewish cemetery
Description:
From the border crossing Nové Hrady the service road leads to the east and close to the state border. The road has asphalt surface, but is in poor condition. After two kilometres the road enters a wood and continues towards České Velenice. There is an educative trail Paměti Vitorazska. After some kilometres we reach the village Vyšná. The service road goes right behind the last farm of the village. It surface is covered with concrete panels there.
Circa one and half kilometre east of Vyšná there used to be Fischerovy Chalupy (Fischbachhäuser). There was barracks of the Border Guard. From the turn of 1970s and 1980s there were the "wires” and followed the road up to České Velenice. At that time there was also forbidden access to the other direct part of road 156 to České Velenice and the guard sent cars in a detour via Žofina Huť (probably so nobody could see the wired up border).
From there the service road continues to the border crossing České Velenice/ Gmünd. From there it is quite difficult to get to the service road. One has to go through a petrol station and go to the north-west around the new assembly halls at the rim of České Velenice. A short way further the road connects again to the educative trail Paměti Vitorazska and continues to the once settlement Rybné (Fishbachhäser). It was a group of several houses, which were almost on the border on Austria, near the Lužnice river. Nearby there is the Austrian village Breitensee. Rybné was destroyed, when the border zone was set up after World War II. Now there is wood and we can still see the line of wire barrier.
Behind Rybná the service road continued across a bridge over the Lužnice river. The bridge is not there any more and the section must be bypassed via the village Krabonoš (Zuggers). The settlement is first mentioned in the 12th century. Many inhabitants lived on production of wicker baskets. Before World War II there lived 450 people – out of that 284 Germans and 91 Czechs. The church of St. John the Baptist has survived as well as the deserted barracks of the Border Guard. Behind the village the road connects to the former service road again and leads to the border crossing Halámky - Gmünd-Nagelberg. From the border crossing the road leads to the extinct village Kunšach (until 1920 Gunschachen). The village was founded in the 19th century. In 1921 there lived 254 people, out of that 213 Czechs and 29 Germans. Until 1920 the village was a part of Austria (district Waidhofen an der Thaya). The people lived mostly on wood work and making of wicker baskets. Several outer house walls and wells have survived only.
From Kunšach the service road leads to the north and after several kilometres it gets to the natural reserve Dračice situated around the eponymous river. The natural reserve was set up in 1998 on 8.12 ha to protect the upper stream of the river with beautiful stony corridor in a narrow canyon between the state border on Austria and village Klikov. Upstream there are ruins of iron works, wharves, water-gangs and bridges in the woods. In the valley of Dračice there used to be the largest iron works in Bohemia (Františkovská iron work founded in 1794). Water powered bellows blowed air into the blast furnaces, mills for grinding of iron ore and iron-mills in the smitheries. In late 19th century the iron ore depleted and a flood made a final stop to the iron production. Now there are only ruins of the foundations and a half-covered water-gang.
From there the service road leads to the north and goes past another extinct village Nová Ves (Kösslerdorf). It was founded in 1791 by the administrator of the Chlum manor (Chlum u Třeboně). The inhabitants excavated peat for the nearby glassworks. The service road leads then to Nová Huť and from there to Přední Maršovina, where is a former Border Guard troop house, now a boarding house. From there it goes to the north and after circa two kilometres it turns to the east towards the natural reserve Rašeliniště Pele. We should point out, that here the service road did not follow the signal wall. It led to the north to the Staňkovský pond and after almost a kilometre it crosses the road leading to the border crossing Chlum u Třeboně – Schlag. In the section from the border crossing to the Staňkovský pond there is no service road, there is only a stripe of clearing in the wood. North of Staňkovský pond there is a deer-park (250 m of the road is from panels). On the north side of the deer-park (above the Vlčice chalet marked in the map) there has survived the original gate in ŽTZ and the fencing is fixed with the original impregnated stakes of the once signal wall.
There is a peat bog north of the Staňkovský pond. ŽTZ did not follow the paved road, which is now used to go across the peat bog, but it led south of it. After several dozens of metres, behind the peat bog, it got close to the road again. From the peat bog to the south there are sections, where is no road visible as it is grown with low trees. It is probably because the state border could be easily watched from the Staňkovský pond, so it was not necessary to have a road to get to a signal in the signal wall fast. The asphalt service road joins the signal wall again several dozens of metres south-east of the Forest Association memorial behind the troop house at Mirochov. There was another Border Guard troop house and a military shooting range. Nearby there is a memorial of the major Sklenář from the Border Guard. The service road leads to the north to the peat bog above Staňkov. Nearby here is a metal bridge over the brook on the border path. The service road led to the north-east to Peršlák. Here the service road again did not follow the signal wall (there is only a paved wood path). We can see well visible stripes of clearing grown with young trees. The building of the present hotel Peršlák used to be the troop house of Border Guard. Nearby there was Nový mlýn (Neumühle). The mill stood under the Novomlýnský pond on the Koštěnický brook (earlier called Hostice brook) near the border on Austria. It ceased to exist due to establishment of the border one in early 1950s. It is the northernmost point of Austria.
From there the service road leads to the east to the Blanko pond. There the service road crossed the road leading from Smrčná to Haugschlag, where a tourist border crossing was established in 2006. There is also the former Border Guard troop house, now used by the Border Police. The service road led to the east and after two kilometres reached another Border Guard troop house. Now there is a golf course nearby. The service road led to the east to the Bystřický pond then, followed its wharf and continued to the border crossing Nová Bystřice – Grametten. South of Nová Bystřice there used to be the village Mnich (Münichschlag).