Moravian Karst - caves, abysses, underground rivers of a unique nature reserve. Moravian Kras, Czech Republic Moravian Kras from Prague
Moravian Kras or karst (Moravian kras) is one of the largest karst massifs in Europe and a nature reserve in Moravia (eastern Bohemia). On its territory there are more than a thousand karst caves, five of which are available for visiting: Punkva (Punkevni jeskyne) with the underground river of the same name, Katerzhinskaya cave (Kateřinska jeskyně), cave Balcarka(jeskyně Balcarka), Slopsko-Shoshuvskaya cave (Sloupsko-šošůvské jeskyně) and cave Vypustek(jeskyně Vypustek).
In order to get here, you must first get to the city blansko(Blansko), located just north of Brno.
Near the railway station Blansko(not Blansko mesto!) there is a bus station. From here, take bus number 226 to the final stop Skalni mlyn.
Bus station in Blansko:
Schedule of route 226:
The bus stops next to the central information center, where pensions, restaurants and parking for personal vehicles are also located.
In the information center you can get background information, maps, opening hours of the caves and buy a ticket to the cave Punkva, to which you can walk from here (about one and a half kilometers) or take a ride on a special train (70 crowns one way, or 80 round trip). Katerzhinskaya the cave is even closer, but the rest are far enough away - Balcarka approximately five kilometers Slopsko-Shoshuvskaya at eight.
Given that all the caves are closed until 5 pm (in May-August, the rest of the year even earlier), it will take at least two days and transport (personal or taxi) to visit all five caves. If there is no goal to visit all the caves, then in one incomplete day you can visit the caves Katerzhinskaya and Punkva, rise above the abyss Macocha (Macocha), take a walk along the hiking trails and have a cheap meal in one of the restaurants.
Punkva Cave
The road to the entrance to the cave will take about 20-25 minutes.
On the way to it there is a river Punkva, which originates in the depths of the karst massif. Visitors to the cave are given the opportunity to swim through its underground part.
Entrance to the cave:
The cost of the tour for an adult is 170 kroons, photo and video shooting is 40 kroons. The duration is almost an hour and a half.
The cave is completely ennobled, the paths are equipped with fences, the lighting is very well organized.
The first part of the route along the so-called. "dry" part of the cave:
Front hall:
Mirror Lake:
Reichenbach Hall:
"Angel wings":
From here, an artificial tunnel leads to the bottom of the Macocha abyss:
Macocha means stepmother in Czech. According to legend, a careless stepmother tried to push her stepson here, but instead fell into it herself, hence the name.
Descent to the second part of the route, which runs along the underground river:
While moving along the curved corridors, the boats are constantly flashing lights, so photography from the boats is not allowed, so that the light from the flashes does not confuse the boaters.
The boatman is at the same time a guide, and all the way he tells something, unfortunately, only in Czech.
The corridors along which the boats sail are partly of natural origin, partly were broken through on purpose. The depth in the river in some places reaches forty meters.
Toward the end of the journey, the boats make a stop near the Masaryk Hall:
The stalagnat on the right side is called the "pillar of Jan Hus":
After inspecting the Masaryk hall, the group returns to the boats and after a while swims to the entrance to the cave:
After a tour of the cave, it is worth climbing the mountain, here you can relax in one of the cafes and look at the abyss Macocha above. You can go up on foot or on the funicular, which is located next door (70 CZK one way, 90 round trip).
View of the abyss from the upper observation deck:
View from the lower observation deck to the upper one:
And to the abyss:
The entrance to the cave is located a five-minute walk from the central information center. Entrance ticket for adults - 80 kroons, photo and video shooting - 40 kroons. The duration of the tour is about an hour.
The guide speaks in Czech, when buying a ticket, you can ask for an accompanying text in Russian. Like Punkva, Katerzhinskaya Cave is completely ennobled and electrified.
The cave is named after a girl who, according to legend, entered the cave in search of her sheep, but could not get out and died here. So that visitors can feel for themselves what it is like to get lost in a cave, during the tour the guide turns off all the lights for a short time.
After passing through a small corridor you find yourself in the Main Hall:
This is the largest cave hall in Central Europe, in addition, this hall has very good acoustics and therefore concerts are held here from time to time. During the tour, they include an excerpt from Nabucco. In one of the corners you can see the petrified skeletons of cave bears.
The next part of the cave is called Bamboo Forest. Here you can see three types of cave formations at once - stalactites, stalagmites and stalagnates:
With due imagination, here you can see sheep, a couple of owls and a “pheasant hanging by the head”:
In addition to excursions and concerts, “speleotherapy” sessions are also held in the Katerzhinskaya cave - the air here is very favorable for asthmatics.
The last hall is the “chaos hall”. It is named so because of the stones attacking chaotically from the arch of the cave:
"Fairytale" wall:
And the symbol of the Katerzhinskaya cave - "Gingerbread house and witch":
The stick in the hands of the witch is a piece of stalagmite from the "Bamboo Forest", this is the only "refinement", all other parts appeared on their own.
Here the main part of the tour ends and the group returns through the Main Hall to the entrance.
In conclusion, we can add that the Moravian Karst is not only caves and underground rivers, but also a large area for walking and cycling. Several routes have been laid along its territory, differing in length and complexity. All routes are marked with signs, it will be quite difficult to get lost.
Hi all! Today is my first review with a new name (yes, it happens, almost 4 years have passed on the site and I wanted something new). But my passion for independent travel does not change, so I want to tell you about the amazing place that I managed to visit on the last day of this fall.
I travel a lot in the Czech Republic, but it was this place that opened for me this magically beautiful country from the other side. We are used to the fact that the Czech Republic is Prague, castles, etc. In fact, there is a lot of splendor created by nature (well, people know how to maintain this beauty).
Moravian Karst (or, as they say, Moravian Karst).
Over 1100 caves are located throughout the territory, of which only four are open to visitors.
How to get there? If you are by car, then I think you can follow the signs without any problems. There is a large car park in Moravske Kras. But if you are traveling by transport, I can advise the following. The easiest way is to first get to the city of Brno (the second city in the country after Prague, the capital of Moravia). Here, at the main railway station, trains to the town of Blansko run quite often. The drive is not long, about 40 minutes. Or you can go straight from Prague to Blansko, but the road will be very long. In Blansko, next to the railway station, there is a bus station, from where buses run to Skalny Mlyn (where we need to). The ride is another 10 minutes. The fare costs 10 crowns (less than 30 rubles). In the summer season there are a lot of buses. We went on November 30, so there was only one bus there and only one back. I had to adapt to it. By the way, all information on public transport is available on the Internet, everything runs strictly according to the schedule. If you have any questions, write in a personal, I will give useful links on transport in the Czech Republic. You can also write to the Moravian Karst administration, even in Russian, they will answer all your questions and tell you how best to get there in your case. Attention! If you are traveling during the SEASON (April-September), then tickets for excursions must be booked in advance!
What is there to do? So here we are. It is best to go straight to the information center. They speak your language. You will be given a plan of the area, the schedule of the caves. There you can buy tickets for the transport of the Moravian Karst - the train and the funicular. I advise you to take a combo ticket, it's cheaper. Tickets to the caves will also be sold there, although you can buy them on the spot. We bought tickets to Punkwu Cave there, and took the train directly to it.
We were the only tourists. And on the train, they included a recording of an introductory tour in Russian especially for us! The train travels for about 10 minutes through very picturesque places.
Punkva cave. We were already waiting there. We were the only visitors! Just some vips! It was unrealistically cool, because the place itself is very touristy and in the season there is nowhere for an apple to fall, but here everything is just for us! The guide took us to the cave...
We were warned in advance not to touch anything with our hands. It turns out that a stalactite or stalagmite can stop growing forever if you touch it.
In the cave itself, everything is done for tourists. Comfortable paths and stairs, beautiful lighting. The tour is activated by remote control! Yes, yes, the conductor did not speak Russian, and the remote control included the Russian text in the right places.
The first part of the cave is completely pedestrian. I have never been to such places before (adits do not count). Captivating beauty.
But the most beautiful was yet to come! Leaving the first part of the cave, you find yourself at the bottom of the Macocha abyss. And it must be seen!
Macocha abyss with a depth of 138 meters is also the largest abyss of this type in the Czech Republic and Central Europe
Look up...
But ahead of us is the second part of the cave, where we will have to move by boat along the underground river! A boat was waiting for us, driven by a very funny Czech. He asked us what language we speak, we said that in Russian, and a little Czech. Well, that's how we talked. More precisely, we were sitting in a boat, and he told us about the depth of the river at the moment, underground waterfalls and lakes.
In general, it is forbidden to take photos from the boat. But we were allowed! Maybe because they liked us, maybe because there were only two of us.
The only thing is that it’s difficult to take a photo there, especially since you often had to bend over so as not to hit the ceiling of the cave with your head. This route lasts almost half a kilometer.
Alas, the time there flew by very quickly. The hour was like it never happened. On the boat, we swam almost to the place where the train had originally brought us.
Is it cold in the cave? Everything is relative. The fact is that the temperature there is almost constant. About +8. In summer it will seem very cold, you need to take a jacket! But on the last day of autumn, when it is +1 outside, you can warm up in the cave.
Souvenirs from Punkva. near the entrance to the cave there is a souvenir shop. A very cool woman works there, who speaks excellent Russian and has a wonderful sense of humor! We chatted with her for probably 40 minutes. And, of course, bought some souvenirs. The store has everything from literature about Moravian Karst (in Russian too) to rare minerals. Well, and, of course, magnets and decorations.
Funicular to the top of the abyss. You can climb to the top with this transport very conveniently and quickly. From Punkva Cave to it is 5 minutes on foot.
At the top there are hotels and cafes (in the off-season, alas, they do not work) and observation platforms from which you can view the abyss.
From a height, this blue lake seems to be just a puddle. By the way, before this place was very fond of suicides. And there were employees on staff who removed their bodies from the bottom.
From the top you can go down a little lower to the middle platform. Great spot for a selfie, by the way.
From there you can see the very place where we were when we left the first part of the Punkva cave. Everything seems so small.
The length of the upper part of the abyss is 174 meters, the width is 76 meters. Along the edges are two observation bridges. The upper one was built in 1882, it is located at the highest point of Macokha and is called the Upper Bridge. The second was built in 1899, located 92 meters above the bottom of the abyss and the bottom is clearly visible into it.
Having admired, we went on foot (we decided to see the area) to another cave - Katerzhinskaya. The road was difficult.
So if you want to repeat our feat, keep in mind that the shoes must be ready for the rocky serpentine.
We bought tickets to the cave at the ticket office near it. We were booked for a tour at 2:00 pm. It was the last day of this cave operation this year. Needless to say, here we were the only visitors? The conductor spoke good Russian.
The name of the cave comes from the name of a girl who, according to a local sad legend, got lost in a cave and died. But let's not talk about the bad. The cave has excellent acoustics, so concerts are held here in the summer!
The tour in this cave lasted only half an hour.
The museum is very modern, a lot of interesting things, interactive games. Even children will not be bored. There is a cinema.
Museum "House of Nature"
Near the bus stop there is a hotel with a working restaurant. There you can have a good meal or just drink coffee.
About prices. The most expensive ticket to the Punkwu Cave for an adult is 180 crowns (this already includes a boat ride). Other tickets around 100 kroons. There is a system of benefits. In general, the prices are very low.
There is a lot to see in Moraski Kras. I already want to go back there, especially since there are a couple of caves where we never visited!
I recommend a trip to Morasvian Karst. In the off-season, without a crowd of tourists, the impressions were incredible. This is a fabulous place. And I will separately note the wonderful responsive workers and guides.
Thank you for your attention! Dasha was with you, no longer Sowing, but Shadow Crystal
Have a nice trip!
You can find my other travel reviews
History of exploration of the Moravian Karst
The first daredevils descended into the Moravian Karst caves at the beginning of the 17th century, when they explored the spacious halls of Vypustek. The rest of the sections accessible to tourists today were first traversed in a century. Of course, there was no talk of any scientific expeditions yet, but the simplest measurements of the size of the caves were made. Speleologists began systematic work on the study of the Moravian Karst in the 20th century, when the Macocha abyss and the Punkven Caves leading into it were crossed. Since then, research has not stopped, and in 1956 the cave system was declared a state reserve.
Tourist routes
Reserve mapFor tourists who came to the Moravian Karst, excursion routes have been developed along the Punkven caves with the Macocha abyss, the Stolbsko-Shoshuvskaya subsystem, the solitary caves of Katerzynska and Balcarka. In the last decade, the Vypustek Cave, previously given over to the needs of the military, has also become accessible.
Punkve Caves and Macocha Abyss
The system got its name from the Punkva River, which flows along the bottom of the Macocha abyss, the deepest in Central Europe. Its depth is 138 m, and its width is 76 m. You can get into it through the Punkven Caves, located 2 km from Skalisty Mlyn, the main information point of the Moravian Karst. At the entrance, guests are greeted by the Front Hall with the Sentinel's stalactite. After examining the outlandish figures, the guide leads the group through a dry siphon corridor to the Clay Halls and the Middle Cathedral, along the upper vaults of which the impregnable Crystal Corridor passes. After the Posterior Cathedral, the dry part of the route ends, and the Wet Road begins, which is overcome by boat. Guests sail through underground lakes to the Fairy Tale Cathedral with picturesque natural sculptures and continue their journey through Punkva.
You can also look into the Macocha abyss on your own, without joining a group. First you need to use the services of the cable car and get to the observation Upper Bridge on a rock near the abyss. The bottom is even better seen from the Lower Bridge from a height of 92 m - from there you can even see the thickets of rare zarzhitsa, blooming from May to July with purple bells. Both bridges were built in the 19th century, when the tourist potential of the Moravian Kras became obvious - the Upper one in 1882, the Lower one in 1899. The river forms two underground lakes, a smaller one, 13 meters deep, can be seen from the bridge, a 30-meter-deep lake is hidden in the traces of the collapse that formed Macocha.
Balcarka cave
In Balcarka, located in the northern part of the Moravian Karst, nature has created the most spectacular stalactites. In addition, many Stone Age artifacts were found here - weapons made of flint and bone, tools created about 15,000 years ago. The entrance to the cave is the Great Portal leading to Wilson's Rotunda. From the Grand Cathedral, guests rise to the Gallery. In the Cathedral of Doom, a stalactite waterfall awaits them. The terrible name is associated with the collapse of the ceiling of the cave, as a result of which the most beautiful figures appeared. In the Research Cathedral, the walls are covered with a milky coating formed by the action of cave microorganisms.
Katerzhinskaya cave
Half a kilometer east of Skalisty Mlyn is the Katerzhinskaya Cave, famous for its stalagmites. Its Main Cathedral, the largest in the Moravian Karst, is so large that music concerts are held there. Then the Bamboo Forest begins - a cluster of large stalagmites. The Katerzhinskaya Cave got its name in memory of a young shepherdess. The girl wandered into the cave in search of a lost sheep, strayed through difficult passages for a long time and died from cold and fatigue. For solo tourists, the entrance to the Katerzhinsky cave is ordered to avoid repeating the terrible fate of the shepherdess, because it is very easy to deviate from the route without an experienced guide.
Stolbsko-Shoshuvsky caves
The complex is located in the south of the village of Sloup, which means “pillar”, which is why in Russian the system is called both Sloupsko-Shoshuvskaya and Stolbsko-Shoshuvskaya. The second part of the name comes from the town of Shoszówka lying to the east of the complex. One of the halls of the system is equipped as a concert hall for chamber music. Among the most spectacular sites are the Elishtina cave and the Nagelova abyss 90 m deep with the Stolbskaya river at the bottom. The total length of the explored part of the caves is about 4 km, 0.9-1.7 km are available to tourists, depending on the chosen route.
Vypustek Cave
The last of the 5 tourist sites of the Moravian Karst opened to the public quite recently, in 2005. Prior to this, Vypustek was a secure military facility. Archaeological excavations show that people lived here 15 thousand years ago. In 1936, the military assessed the security of the cave and organized an armory in it, in 1944 they launched a workshop for the production of aircraft engines for the Germans. In the 60s, the headquarters of the Czechoslovak army settled in Vypustek. This is the most man-made cave in the Moravian Karst: its spacious cathedrals have been turned into a conference hall and well-ventilated bedrooms with a total length of 170 meters.
Information for tourists
Tourists visit Moravian Karst all year round, but the peak of visits is in the summer when all routes are open. At this time, it is recommended to book tickets in advance to guarantee entry. The main information center is located in Blansko, on the Rocky Mill, or Mlyn, restaurants and souvenir shops are open next to it.
You can fully explore the cave system in 2 days. Tourists who arrived without an overnight stay have to limit themselves to 2-3 routes. The territory of the reserve is closed to vehicles, but for tourists there is a cable car and an environmentally friendly train, the cost of a round-trip ticket for which is 80 kroons. It is cold inside the caves, no more than +8 °C, warm clothes and comfortable shoes are required. Moving along the paths of the Moravian Karst does not require special training; visitors in wheelchairs can access the Stolbsko-Soszowskie caves and Vypustek.
Opening hours and cost of the visit
In the low season, from October to March, the Moravian Karst reserve is open from 8 am to 3 pm, in the high season the last group enters the caves at 4:30 pm. Balcarka and Katerzhinskaya Cave are closed for the winter, in the rest the number of excursions is limited to 3 per day. The length of the routes is from 600 to 1700 m, the tour time is from 40 to 180 minutes.
Full tickets to Balcarka and Katarzynska cost 100 CZK, to the Sloupsko-Soszowskie Caves - 110-140 CZK, to Vypustek - 120 CZK, Punkven Caves - 110 CZK on a dry path, 160 CZK - with boating on an underground river. An adventurous route in a group of up to 10 people over 10 years old through the Stolbsko-Shoshuvsky caves will cost 500 kroons per tourist. For standard routes, students and pensioners are provided with a 20-25% discount, children from 6 to 15 years old - 40%.
How to get there
The nearest cities to the Moravian Karst are Brno in the south and Blansko in the north. From Brno to Skalisty Mlyn about 30 km, many tourists get to Blansko directly from Prague in 3.5 hours by train. Buses stop at the point "Rocky Mill". Travelers by car should drive from Prague to Brno along the E65 highway, then along the local road E461, turning onto 379 until the sign for the Rocky Mill, where you can park.
At 5:51 am our train departed from the main railway station in Prague. There were almost no people on the platforms at such an early hour, so we were traveling together in the compartment. We settled comfortably on the soft seats (read: lay down and almost fell asleep), and almost immediately the train started moving. Cozy houses with red roofs, yellow rapeseed fields and green meadows flickered outside the window in the morning mist.
Main station.
Dawn landscapes. 
Many reports from the internet talked about how difficult it is to get to the Moravian Karst on your own. We decided to take a chance.
Moravian Karst is a huge area where karst formation processes were actively going on - limestone rocks were slowly undermined by water. As a result of karst processes, over many millennia, many caves arose on an area 25 kilometers long and wide in different parts from 2 to 6 kilometers, today about 1100 are known! Only 5 are open to the public.
So, how to get to the Moravian Karst:
We departed from the Central Station (Hlavny Nadrazi) by train to Blansco. The beauty of this train is the absence of transfers and connections - at 5:51 we take the train in Prague, at 8:52 we get off at the station in Blansko. The next direct train leaves at 7:51 and arrives at 10:52. We thought it was too late :)
After exiting the railway station, there will be a bus station on the left. 10-15 minutes after the arrival of the train, a bus leaves for Skalni Mlyn - the entrance to the natural park.
Across the road from the station, there is an information board that will help you find your way around.
We left the platform, turned right, walked along the river and came across a bus stop with a cleverly written schedule. Having examined the schedule from all sides, we assumed that either the bus would arrive in 2-3 minutes, or we did not understand anything in the schedule :) The bus did arrive.
On the way to the stop. 
Ten minutes on the road and we are at the Stone Mill. Here we redeemed pre-booked tickets (on the website of the Moravian Karst it says that it is better to book the entrance to the most popular Punkva cave in advance, otherwise you can wait several hours - they are only allowed inside with excursions, and sightseers almost always come in whole buses ...).
Our excursion in Punkva started at 13:00, so we went to the nearby Katerzhinskaya cave.
We bought tickets in a tourist house on the way to the dungeon, waited 10 minutes and went on an excursion. In Czech :) The guide girl gave a printout with a text in Russian, we followed the course of the tour with it.
Entrance to the cave. 
The largest underground grotto in Europe is located in the Katerzhinskaya Cave. Concerts are even held here, an impromptu stage has been built.
By the way, all caves are equipped with concrete paths, handrails, stairs. At the click of the guide, the lights turn on and off.
Everywhere tripods with a variety of measuring instruments. 
In addition to the underground hall, Katerzhinskaya Cave is known for a huge number of finds of bones of fossil bears.
Bear fireplace. Most of the fossil remains have been found here.
And here are the bones. 
And the visiting cards are the so-called "bamboo forest" - stalagmats, spaciously "grown" in a small area of the cave. 
And the "old woman", which was even made a symbol of this cave. The formation is almost entirely natural: the exception is a stalactite wand, which the researchers gave into the hands of a witch who was bending over a gingerbread house. 
Very tall stalagmite. 
"Pagoda". 
After the tour, we went along the path, famously climbing up, to explore the natural park.
Greenery, birds sing. Nice weather. Nice walk :) 
We approached from above the Macocha abyss - the symbol of the Moravian Karst. Once it was a huge underground hall, but many years ago the vault of the grotto collapsed, revealing to the world an abyss 138 meters deep. There are 2 viewing platforms near the abyss. But, in my opinion, the best vantage point is from the bottom of the abyss.
The second observation deck is visible on the left in the frame.
View from the second observation deck
From the Macocha abyss to the Punkva cave, the trail drops a lot and winds between the rocks. By the way, if you started your journey from Punkva, then you can climb the funicular to the abyss, and not stomp uphill. But this is for the lazy and not strong in spirit;) 
There are crowds of people near the Punkva cave, a cafe, ice cream, a souvenir shop. Popular place.
The place where the underground part of the Punkva River comes to the surface.
We were lucky, at 13 o'clock a Russian excursion group was leaving, to which we were attached. Still, listening to excursions in Czech is almost useless :) I was surprised by the form of the excursion - the guide girl turned on an audio recording in Russian - the announcer told everything in detail, the speakers broadcast the speech to the entire underground hall. And the guide only led the group along the route.
Grottoes, narrow corridors, stalactites, an underground lake… the richness of decoration provided a wealth of impressions.
To the right is a concrete walkway for tourists.
Small stalactites, mostly broken off. 
You can imagine the size of the room. 
Such a wide ring at the top of the stalagmite is formed when drops fall from a great height. 
Spill formation "Baldachin". 
"Angel". 
This part of the corridor is already of artificial origin. 
Finally, we reached the observation deck at the bottom of the Macocha abyss. I once read a phrase that "light is best seen from darkness." Standing at the bottom of the abyss, I realized that this is the absolute truth, there were no objections. Sheer walls covered with green moss, a turquoise lake at the bottom, bright green young foliage of trees. All this, flooded with sunlight, after the darkness of the caves, seemed like an emerald firework escaping from the bowels of the earth.
And after the tour continued ... on boats along the underground river. The helmsman steered a rather large boat in a rather narrow space so deftly that I was only amazed. From time to time, the helmsman proclaimed the names of stalactites, the depth under the boat in meters and the words “carefully right / left” - you need to take care of your head, stalactites and stone ledges tightly surround the channel. That is why you can not hold on to the sides of the boat. In some places, in the rocks of the walls, I saw deep scratches pierced by boat sides, fingers would obviously not be good in those places.
Underwater bridge. 
Pay attention to the color of the stalagmite. The blue-green algae cannot live in the dark, but they have covered the surface of the stalagmite, which is illuminated by artificial light. And they live great :) 
After the tour, we went on a hiking trip to Blansko, along unexplored paths and asphalt roads. Beauty surrounded us along the way.
We had lunch in a cafe at the hotel and at seven in the evening went to Prague.
Moravian Karst (Brno, Czech Republic) - exact location, interesting places, inhabitants, routes.
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In the Czech Republic, as you know, there are many beautiful castles, fortresses, cathedrals and cities, in a word, many man-made attractions. However, even the strongest impressions tend to fade, and perceptions become dull. And here the best way is to change impressions, for example, acquaintance with the natural sights of the region. The brightness of impressions is the best way to refresh a walk through the caves, boating on the underground river and the opportunity to admire stalactites, stalagmites and helictites. You will find all this in abundance in the famous caves of Moravian Karst.
Moravian Karst is one of the largest karst cave systems in Europe and a national reserve. It is located in South Moravia, in the vicinity of Brno, not far from the small town of Blansko.
The total length of the massif is about 25 kilometers, and the number of caves exceeds 1000, the total area of the entire territory of the national park is 92 kilometers! The mysterious and typical inhabitants of the dungeons live here - many species of bats and all kinds of invertebrates. It must be said that some of the creatures living here have not been studied in detail so far.
What to watch
Of the 1100 caves of the Moravian Karst, 4 caves are currently available - these are Katarzynska, Balcarka, Stolbno-Shoshuvska, and, of course, the most famous and popular - Punkva. Almost all tours start here. Despite the fact that most of the tours are conducted in Czech, at the box office you will be given an audio guide and a booklet in Russian. During the tour, you will be able to see a lot of stalactites, stalagmites of bizarre shapes, as well as helictites - formations growing parallel to the ground.
One of the main attractions is the Macokha abyss (in Russian, Stepmother), its depth is 138 meters, and a piece of the sky is visible from behind the ceiling that once collapsed. A walk along the underground river Punkva, which flows into the lake, is very popular with tourists. Here, associations with the Lake City from Tolkien's "The Hobbit" involuntarily come to mind. Other caves are also worth visiting.
In Katarzynsko you can see vertical stalagmites, in Stolbno-Shoszowska you can wander along the corridors and abysses created by nature, and admire the stalactites in the Balcarka cave. The main thing - do not be afraid of bats!
Fans of beautiful panoramas should take the cable car to the top of the Macocha abyss.
The Moravian Kras has taken care of those who love walking on the surface of the earth, both for pedestrians and for cyclists. There are many routes of varying difficulty and length. All trails are marked, so it is impossible to get lost. And it’s worth taking a walk here, because in addition to the caves in the Mora Kras, there are many clean lakes, streams and forests.
Hotels and restaurants
In Skalny Mlyn, in addition to parking, there are restaurants where you can relax and warm up after a walk through the cool caves. For those who want to stay in this beautiful place longer, it will not be a problem to find a guesthouse here.
How to get there
There is a direct train from Prague to Blansko, the journey will take about 3.5 hours (distance about 250 kilometers), from Blansko by bus to the Skalny Mlyn stop, or by taxi, it’s not far, about 10 minutes. You can take a bus from Prague to Brno (from the Florenc bus station), and in Brno take a train to Blansko, the travel time to Blansko from Brno is no more than 30 minutes.
The most convenient way to get there by car is from Prague along the E65 highway to Brno, then the exit onto the E461 road, then the exit to the small road number 379, then follow the signs to Skalny Mlyn, there is a parking lot in Skalny Mlyn.
