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Prague: A1 time along the Vltava

Posted on 25 April 202229 April 2022 by Rob Ainsley

I had a couple of days spare after finishing the Slovakia End to End, so I went to Prague. I had no plan, but I had a bike, and that’s all you need.

The city is justly feted as one of Europe’s most elegant and visitable, and the cheap but excellent beer is a welcome bonus. But cycling in the historic centre is a challenge thanks to (1) the cobbles and (2) the tourists: it took me twenty minutes to push the bike through the selfie-snapping throngs on Charles Bridge.

Not bad for something cobbled together: Prague’s Old Town

However, up in Letná Park just a hundred metres away – vertically; more pushing, up the steep access paths – things were quieter, and I could enjoy the view down to the river with a stall Pils.

Someone should write an orchestral work about it: The Vltava from Letná Park

The second day it rained all afternoon – a chance to catch up with web-based admin in my hostel – but finally on the third day I got in a cracking little ride. My failsafe in any European city is simply to follow a bike path from the centre: I always have interesting experiences, especially if, as usual, the path takes you through a mix of areas from touristy to workaday local.

Peace and quiet in Letná Park, and not a beer tent in sight. But I can’t see very far of course.

So, I followed the Vltava south for a dozen miles or so, upriver on the east side, and came back down the other, on the west side. This gave me a glimpse of two of Czechia’s long-distance cycle routes: A2, on the east side, and A1, along the west.

Smooth classics: A2 cycle path by the Vltava south out of Prague

I was impressed: the path was segregated, smooth, continuous, pretty consistent, wide, decently-signed, and had a cool little ferry that enabled me to cross over from A2 to A1. It all bodes well for a possible future Czech End to End, to complement the Slovakia traverse I’m coming home from.

Cross here: Across the Vltava south of Prague

Great fun. But it’s time to go home. After three weeks on my folder’s twenty-inch wheels, it’ll be good to get back to a full-size bike.

Navigation no problem: A1 alongside the River Berounka south of Prague
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