Vrchlabí: Where Our Elbe Journey Begins

We safely made it to Vrchlabí yesterday afternoon, and what a cool little town it is!

This post will cover yesterday afternoon through today.

For the geographically curious, here’s where we’re currently at.

Nestled in the mountains of northern Czech Republic, this town has that in-between feel of the shoulder season—summer winding down, locals catching their breath, and everything quietly waiting for the snow to arrive. It’s definitely got that ski town vibe!

After navigating the crowds of Prague for the last few days, this place is a nice break!

We checked into our hotel and, true to form, immediately hit the streets in search of food.

Lunch was a surprise find—beet root tartare and goat cheese with a perfectly cold beer. Sorry, no photos of that… it was devoured in a flash!

Dinner later was heartier, classic Czech cuisine at a lively beer garden. Dessert was a hot blueberry dumpling and I’m so sad we shared one.

We walked off dinner by following the river back to our hotel. The Elbe River, which we’ll be following for the next 20 days or so, flows right through town.

This morning we fueled up at a beautifully planned hotel breakfast bar before hitting the trail.

Day 1 on the Elbe Cycle Route!

Day 1 was no warm-up! Uphill for 10 miles, a chair lift with our bikes, and then more climbing for several miles beyond that.

We definitely felt our lack of training today! Fortunately, this is our most challenging day of the ride, elevation-wise.

At least we had a nice relaxing lift ride to break up the climb!

At the top, we reached the headwaters of the Elbe River—Pramen Labe, the spring that marks the beginning of the river we’ll be following to the North Sea (beyond Hamburg)

Documenting Day 1 at the Elbe Spring - with a surprise cameo from a shirtless dude.

From the spring, it was just a short walk to the Polish border. Since the very Polish Bob Kowalski had never been to Poland, we couldn’t resist crossing over for a quick “first-time” moment.

Nothing says “first time in Poland” like a proper feet photo. Bob was determined to represent.

We hiked back down, hopped on our parked bikes, and then soared down winding mountain roads into Vrchlabí. It was just gorgeous!

Dinner was the perfect ending to the day. We started with kulajda (koo-lie-duh)—a creamy soup with wild mushrooms, potatoes, dill, a poached egg, and bacon cream foam. I will definitely be attempting to recreate this at home! The flavor was delicately sour-sweet, subtle and surprising. For our mains, Bob went for pork loin with roasted root vegetables, and I opted for a fresh, crisp salad. Another great meal!

Tomorrow’s destination: Jaroměř. About 30 miles down the river—not a taxing day, but plenty of sights ahead.

Good Night from Vrchlabì!