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EV13 Stage 6 - Znojmo - Retz
Cycling tour Starting from
- Difficulty: Easy
- Distance: 19,75 km
- Duration: 1:15 h
- Ascent: 261 m elevation gain
- Descent: 225 m elevation gain
Start: Znojmo / Finish: Retz
- Difficulty: Easy
- Distance: 19,75 km
- Duration: 1:15 h
- Ascent: 261 m elevation gain
- Descent: 225 m elevation gain
- Fitness level required:2/6
- Overall experience:5/6
- Scenery:5/6
- Lowest point219 m
- Highest point342 m
Description
From the medieval town of Znojmo, you cycle past the first service and information center for cycle tourism in the Czech Republic. Over the Dyje bridge and uphill on a dirt road, you reach Havraníky via Konice. Another stop is Šatov with its beautiful wine cellar lane, painted cellar and a bunker behind the village. In Austria, you should not miss a visit to the wine quarter in Retz.
From the medieval town of Znojmo, which towers over the River Dyje, you can take a bridge and a dirt road via Konice to Havraníky, where you can taste local wines.The Havraníky wine cellar area is located at the lower edge of the village. Another stop is Šatov with its beautiful wine cellar lane, painted cellar and a bunker behind the village. The painted cellar is special because the cellar walls are decorated with colorful reliefs of dwarves, mermaids and other motifs. The infantry bunker MJ-S3 "Zahrada" (Garden) can be seen in its form during the 1980s, including the camouflage coating used on the building during this period. The building is equipped with the original equipment and furnishings used here in the years 1960-1999, including two vz. 44/59 guns. The rest of the route is now all about wine and vineyards. Don't miss the wine quarter in the nearby winegrowing town of Retz. The town became wealthy mainly thanks to the wine trade, as the decorative town houses on the main square and the underground labyrinth with corridors and cellars prove.
- Route description From the bottom of the valley a bridge leads to the other side of the river, where the route begins to ascend to the top of the Kraví Hora (Cow Hill). Here you can again stop for a look and enjoy the panoramic view of the old town of Znojmo. Then the route leads through a landscape with heaths, which continues behind the villages of Konice and Popice. Genuine heathlands (the Havranická, or Fládnitzská Heathlands) start at the chapel behind Popice and lead up to the hill above Havraníky. When visibility is good, you can see the Alps from the chapel on a small hill above Havraníky. The villages of Konice, Popice and Havraníky are surrounded not just by vineyards but also by numerous crosses, shines and chapels. In Šatov, the last stop before the Austrian border, there are three infantry bunkers, a nature trail and remnants of the Iron Curtain consisting of wire fences, a watchtower and concrete barriers. The rest of the journey is entirely about wine and a view of the vineyards will be revealed to you. You will get to know the charming wine-growing villages, such as Mitterretzbach and Oberretzbach, and you have an opportunity to watch winemakers at work. In the Weinviertel wine region, cellar lanes are considered an important cultural and historical element, as they have shaped the Weinviertel and its landscape for many years. The wine cellars in these lanes were used as production and storage facilities in the past. Today, wine is usually pressed at the wineries, but in many places the cellar lanes are preserved and revived on special occasions. From there, the route leads to the sacred Heiligerstein, where the foundations of a medieval church are still preserved. There is a round viewpoint on the hill, from which you can see the lowlands of Moravia and Austria, mainly occupied by vineyards wherever you look. Not far from the belfry, there is a holy stone that is said to convey its magical power to any person who sits atop it. The final destination of the route is Retz, to which the journey leads through picturesque Austrian vineyards. Retz is a small, quiet town with a rich air of history and many tourist attractions. Among many other sights, the historical square with fountains, which are filled with wine during the wine festival, can be mentioned. The Town Hall Tower serves as a vantage point for the surrounding scenery. Another option you have is to visit the town’s underground, a long and complex labyrinth of wine cellars, the largest historical wine cellar in Austria. Above the town, you can climb 500 m up to the romantic Retzer windmill, which is the only functional windmill in Austria.
- Editor’s tip If you are a wine lover, you should not miss the Šobes vineyard located in the Podyjí National Park. It is one of the oldest vineyards in the Czech Republic and it is among the ten best vineyards in Europe. The wine owes its remarkable quality to the specific micro-climate around the Thaya River.