Nordwaldkammweg II Tour 8 Nove hrady - Zofin

After the overnight stay in Nove hrady, the starting point of the path is near the Hotel May at N48°47.419', E14°46.888', which leads us on the red marking to the main square (here you can quickly take a look at the baroque pharmacy from the 17th century on the way to the church, visit the tourist information in the town hall or the gothic castle) before the path descends steeply south of the castle on the red marking to Udoli (orientation point N48° 47.235', E14° 46.314').

Now we experience a particularly beautiful section of the NWKW II, namely the crossing of the natural monument Tercino udoli / Theresiental, a spacious park area. At the privately owned Cuknstejn Castle (orientation point at N48° 46.467'. E 14° 45.091') we leave the nature park at the other end. A beautiful avenue lies ahead on the path, which we immediately leave at the beginning on a red-marked meadow path towards Horni Stropnice. In Horni Stropnice, we encounter the museum Sypka Stropnice at the town entrance before reaching the church square (orientation point N48° 45.694', E14°44.189') and then continue hiking southeast staying on the red marking. On nice days, the new outdoor pool at the edge of town offers free cooling and refreshment (N48° 45.459, E14° 44.285'), before it goes uphill on a meadow path.

The Nordwaldkammweg II reaches the Gratzener Bergland / Novohradske hory at the much-visited pilgrimage site Dobra voda (N 48° 44.447', E 14° 43.404', 9.2 km from Nove hrady, 695 m). The two fountains in front of the church are always occupied by visitors who fill and take away the healing water in bottles. In 2015, the gothic pilgrimage church Maria Trost in Brunnl / Dobra voda turned 300 years old. From Dobra voda, it would be possible via the connecting path V15 through Sejby / Scheiben on paved roads to return to Moorbad Harbach.

We switch to the green marking uphill to Kravi hora. The view from the lookout at Kravi hora (953 m, N 48° 43.893', E 14° 43.119') is excellent; it extends among other places to the unfortunate Temelin nuclear power plant near Budweis. On the now red-marked path going downhill, we reach the saddle Pod kravi horou (orientation point N48° 43.659, E14° 42.651), where a detour on the green marking to Hojna voda with a visit to the new peace bell and stop at one of the two inns could be interesting. Returning, it is now necessary to cross the Kuni hora (925 m, Celtic sacrificial bowl) marked in red to the orientation point Pod kuni horou (N48° 43.317, E14° 41.994). From there, we change direction east and follow the red-marked forest road until it crosses the next forest road. This forest road is now our path for 1.9 km towards the south. After about 100m, the red marking leaves 'our' forest road to the west at N48° 43.261, E14° 41.515 to the orientation point Nad Liscim Dolem (N48° 43.367, E14° 41.281). Now comes a section without markings – incidentally the only one on the entire Nordwaldkammweg II. One can also more easily follow the asphalt road from the orientation point Nad Liscim Dolem southwards to Cerne Udoli, losing some altitude. The next point is a parking lot with rest facilities at the road connection Dobra voda – Cerne Udoli called Stary Holand (N48° 42.505', E14° 41.883'). Between lies 'our' forest path after 600m at GPS position N48° 43.005', E14° 41.794'. Please use the map or GPS device/smartphone to find the forest roads, or choose the small detour on the road, which is marked green after a good kilometer, via Cerne Udoli (accommodation possibility). From the Stary Holand rest area, an asphalted forest road leads 1.4 km uphill to the south to the junction at N48° 41.897', E14° 41.814'. There it turns west, and on the gravel forest road after 1 ½ km the green marking coming up from Cerne Udoli is reached (N48° 41.676, E14° 40.717). This green marking leads level to the orientation point Na Zofinske silnici, from where it follows the paved road.

Day's goal is the locality Zofin / Sofienschloss, where there is not only accommodation but also, before reaching Zofin, the unmarked excursion possibility to the reservoir Zlata Ktis. From Zofin, the ancient forest Zofin / Zofinsky prales can also be reached in a short time. The accommodation Penzion Lesovna is well developed, also open in winter, and is a popular meeting point for many mountain bikers in the area. The evening mood with a view of the meadows in front of the hotel reminds us that we are hiking in the Green Belt of Europe. The connecting path V14 leads from here over Zofinsky prales and Schwarzau to the Nebelstein (7.9 km).