Saturday, November 8, 2008

A Day at the Karlštejn Castle Area 8/11/08 Day 114


Day 114 (video) (slide show)

Today when I was preparing to go on a day hike with some friends I grabbed my poncho just as I was walking out the door. I didn’t think it would be a rainy day but just in case. It was about 6am and I wasn’t thinking to well but I made a good choice on this one. It rained most of the day. I’ve gone half way around the world and forgotten it several times but on this day it was a beautiful thing. Other then the rain which was light to a mist it was a nice day.

There was going to be nine of us going but two faded and so at 8:30 we boarded the train for a short 50 min ride to this small tourist village named Mořina. At least that is the name of the area now. This is a popular area because the Karlštějn Castle is here and its easy access to the Prague area. We are not going for the castle though we are heading for the Lime Pits known as Big America, Little America, Mexico and Canada. Now you might ask why they are named this. Well I don’t have a clue. For some reason these folks way back decided to name the four pits after the countries in the North America. Strange I know but whatever.

The trail was quite muddy slippery but we a good time anyway. I enjoyed the distraction from thinking about my bikes. This Limestone Quarry complex is connected by tunnels that run all over under the area. Rumor has it that these were started long ago but the information here says early 1900’s. During the late 40’s to the early 60’s the Communist’s were sending political prisoners here to work the mines. There isn’t much to see as far as evidence of this except a small monument to the people who died.

I found a nice horse ranch that looked fun with lots of riding area. It would be nice to have a horse out there. We enjoyed the day with a little wine and snacks as the rain slowed in the afternoon. After getting back to my place I cleaned up then went into the city to have dinner with everyone. It turned out to be a good day with some good friends.

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