The longest wooden arch bridge in the Czech Republic leads over the Cold Vltava

photo: jihoceskenovinky.cz

Stožec (Prachaticko) - Tourists will be able to cross the Cold Vltava River in Šumava over a new bridge, which is the longest wooden arch bridge in the Czech Republic. It measures 36 meters. It is located near Černý Kříž in Prachaticko at the site where a footbridge once stood. It is intended primarily for hikers and cyclists, said representatives of the Šumava National Park management to reporters today.
The original footbridge was destroyed with the emergence of the so-called Iron Curtain, when the area around Černý Kříž remained in an inaccessible border zone. "Just as we are revitalizing peat bogs and watercourses in nature, planting deciduous trees instead of spruces, we are restoring and caring for useful structures that the totalitarian regime insensitively tried to eliminate - such as the Schwarzenberg Canal or the hunting lodge in Březník,” said park director Jiří Mánek.
People who until now wanted to cross the Cold Vltava at Černý Kříž had to go across a viaduct in close proximity to the railway line. "And this route was consequently quite dangerous," stated NP Šumava spokesman Pavel Pechoušek.
The bridge, which was positioned today by a special crane, was designed by Marek Foglar. He implemented a structurally similar construction last year across the Vydra River near Antýgl in Klatovy. Primarily due to its location in Šumava nature, he chose wood as the material. "It is laminated, glued wood. The arch and tie are connected by steel hangers, and the deck consists of longitudinal wooden beams on which oak planks - the deck - rest," Foglar stated.
The bridge stands near the site where there used to be a factory for the production of tiles. Tourists can use it to reach the sought-after location of Mrtvý luh. The construction costs of the bridge amounted to 4.5 million korunas, of which 90 percent was covered by a grant from the operational program for the environment.