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Winter expedition to the source of the Vltava River in Šumava

Mountain range, region / State

Šumava / Czech Republic

Season

Winter

18. 01. 2025

Difficulty

2 / 5

Elevation

↑ 393 m

↓ 392 m

Length

22.0 km

8 hours

Altitude

max. 1271 m n.m.

min. 982 m n.m.

Tourist map of Sumava

Elevation profile of the route

Meters climbed: 393 m
Dismal metres: 392 m

Useful information

  1. Modrava car park is soon full of cars in the season

Winter trek from Modrava to the source of the Vltava River below Černá Hora

Starting point

Municipality of Modrava. There are public parking lots here, but even so, in good weather they are already completely full during the morning.
 

Description of the hike

Thanks to the accommodation directly on Modrava we didn't have to deal with the parking problem. Modrava is a very popular place for hikers or cross-country skiers, so the local parking lots fill up very soon. We ended up starting the trek quite late, in the late morning, so we knew that darkness would catch us on the way.

From Modrava we set off along the path around the Modrava stream. We reached the Modravský potok crossroads and continued along the red trail. The road was still well maintained and so we had a good climb even up the steeper hill. We practically kept climbing until we reached the crossroads above the bird tank. It wasn't a steep climb, but it was still uphill. Further on, the road bypassed the Black Mountain and we finally had some downhill as well. We bypassed part of the Black Mountain and reached the source of the Vltava River. There were quite a lot of people here, of course mainly cross-country skiers. Eventually, a place under a shelter became available and we had the opportunity to cook soups on the stoves and thus fortify ourselves for the next part of the journey.

Since we didn't want to go back the same way, we continued along the blue trail towards Kvilda. After about three kilometres we left the groomed road and turned onto an unmarked forest path. It was no longer groomed in any way, so we had to walk through the snow. After this path we slowly started to go back. Due to the difficult terrain, this part of the journey took us the longest and cost us the most strength. Moreover, it was already clear to us that we would not return to Modrava in daylight. We continued through the forest, looking for a possible path under the snow. Finally we joined the road leading to Filipova Hut. In some places Roklan was beautifully visible between the trees with the setting sun. We headed towards the signpost Černohorská reservoir. It was already dark by then and so we returned to Modrava by headlamp light, following the red trail that we had taken on this trek in the morning.
 

Difficulty

Due to the winter conditions and the length of the route, it is quite a demanding trek. Most of the time it is on a groomed wide path from the roller. However, part of the trail was off the trail markers and we were wading through deeper snow. We had ideal weather, but in worse conditions the trail would have been even more challenging. However, there are no steep climbs or other complications.
 

Water availability

There were no refreshments on the way, there are only pubs in Modrava. It is necessary to have at least 1.5 liters with you.
 

Sleeping options

We had accommodation directly on Modrava. There are plenty of options in the surrounding villages, such as Filipova Hut' or Kvilda.
 

Mountain peaks

The route does not lead over any peak, but sometimes the highest mountains of Šumava - Roklan and Velký Javor - are visible through the trees.
 

Danger

Technically, the route is very simple. But it is long and in some places the snow was untrodden and so the walking was very difficult. However, we walked most of the way on a snowmobile path, where you have to be careful of cross-country skiers. Especially on the descents.
 

Food

There are no refreshments on the route. We cooked soups in the shelter by the Vltava spring to warm up and give us energy.
 

Attractions

The destination of our trek was the source of our longest river Vltava. It rises below Černá Hora in Šumava at an altitude of 1 172 m above sea level. In reality, there are more springs on the slopes of Černá Hora. In the 1920s, one of the first tourist huts in Sumava was built on this spot. During the Second World War, however, this hut served as a prison camp for Soviet officers. The hut was demolished in 1953 due to the construction of the Iron Curtain. Until 1989, the spring was located in an inaccessible border zone. Nowadays, several hiking trails lead here.
 

Posted by: 25. 01. 2025
Author:
Gejza
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