Český ráj

About 90 kilometers north-east of Prague is a place which the Czechs call Paradise, or Český ráj. It's a place where people go to hike, ride the bikes and just generally be "in the nature", as the Czechs would say.
Jon and I took the train there, winding our way through the picturesque Czech countryside past villages, towns, castles and fields of magnificent yellow flowers.
The weather was perfect, 23 degrees and not a cloud in the sky. We transferred trains at Turnov, from the  main train system to a small, local train. Only 12 minutes down the road we hopped off and faced a forest of dark conifers dotted with luminescent green, the new leaves of the season. We followed one of the marked trails through the forest and it was like nothing we have experienced before. The forest is so alive, birds, insects and trees work together to form a song where every instrument plays an irrevocably important part, you can't pick all the parts in the song, but you know without one of them the song wouldn't be the same. 
What's so special about Český ráj are the massive natural sandstone pillars that inhabit the forest. They have been shaped by the elements over the centuries into such interesting structures that the whole area is now UNESCO World Heritage listed because of them. You can climb them if you're brave enough, the sandstone is very soft, but we preferred to admire them from other vantage points. The pillars create such a contrast to the soft colours and movements of the forest but they only add to the beauty and magic of the place. 
As we walked through the forest we both noted how nice it was not to be constantly on the look our for poisonous snakes, spiders, scorpions and plants! Even so, we still miss the Australian Bush.
We stopped for a bite to eat at one of the most amazing view points on our hike. It was like having the whole world to ourselves, sitting on the edge of the rock, looking out over the rolling hills of the Czech Republic with the forest waving to us below. 

The view

We also visited Valdštejn Castle along the way which is situated on a cliff face tucked into the forest. Unlike other castles we have visited, once you paid the entrance fee, you could explore at your leisure. We had a look through the living rooms, the church, dungeons, billiards room, the 'romantic walk' and the look out. It is a beautiful early gothic castle which you enter via a bridge lined with baroque statues, an interesting mix. Just as a bit of info, the castle was built in the second half of the 13th century by the Waldstein family. After 1420 the castle was occupied by the Hussites, then later by the Robber Barons. In 1621 the abandoned castle was bought back by the Waldsteins. During the peak of the Baroque period, they built a pilgrimage church of John of Nepomuk. This Church actually collapsed during its consecration ceremony killing a handful of people including one of the high noble women of the time. Not a good start. 

Baroque style bridge to Valdstejn Castle

We ended up getting a little lost on our hiking adventure when we took the wrong route! So, after much deliberation (aka arguing) we retraced our steps and took the same route back again. This was a little disappointing as it meant we only got to see half of the trail, but the forest is so beautiful, cool and calm that it didn't matter in the end. It was actually interesting to see the same route from a different angle, it was almost like we hadn't been there at all before! We loved it so much there that we are think of going back before the leave Prague - who can resist another trip to Paradise?

One of the walkways

Sandstone pillars visible through the trees

The 'Stairs'