walking to Klet mountain

I was just settling down to do some work this morning, when a friend called, and dragged me out. And was I glad! We went up to the Klet mountain, which is the highest hill overlooking Cesky Krumlov, some 1060m high. The locals all hold it in some reverence, in fact it was already worshiped by the Celts in the past and there are some remnants of their settlements there. Indeed some of the locals who are into pagan stuff go out there walking the ley-lines and talking to menhirs. Nevermind, for me it is a magic mountain too, but it is because I love the sheer beauty of it, and the way it changes with the seasons.

The mountain is part of the Blansky Forest Area of natural beauty, so its forests are still growing the sorts of trees that would have naturally grown there for centuries, especially beaches. They come to their own in the Autumn of course when they positively radiate their golden colours, but even now they are lovely and cathedral-like in their upright majesty.

Not much snow on the ground any more, but the sun was shining and when we got to the top, we had fabulous views which I am so glad to be able to share with you here. Sometimes on days like this, there is a so-called inversion, when it is misty below and bright at higher altitudes, so you see tops of hills sticking through the clouds, but on clear days you can see all the way to the Alps from here. Maybe that's why, already in the early 19th century, a look-out tower was built here, followed a 100 years later by a mountain chalet/restaurant.

But now Klet also hosts a world-class observatory and a rather unfortunate TV/radio tower. Still, the mountain look-out is well beloved by everyone, and those who can't or won't walk up to it can take an ancient chair-lift, so whole families and various groups of oldies will gather here for picnics and a breath of fresh mountain air.

It was a lovely day out, and I just wanted to share it with you.