Kokorinsko

Kokorinsko is a landscape of narrow flat-bottomed valleys cut into Cretaceous sandstone, with the valley walls standing in blocks and towers, and the characteristic feature is the weathering: harder iron-rich crusts cap softer rock beneath, so the pillars erode into mushroom shapes with wide heads on narrow stems, called poklicky, lids, locally. The valleys are damp and shaded with peat hollows and a cool microclimate at the bottom, so plants of much higher altitudes grow at two hundred metres. The other thing here is human: the soft rock has been cut into for centuries, and there are cellars, rooms, stables and whole house backs excavated into the cliff faces, along with rock-cut chapels and shelters. Kokorin castle, a Gothic tower and palace on a spur, is the landmark. The area has been protected since 1976 and is much quieter than the sandstone regions further north.

What you actually see

• Mushroom-shaped rocks - hard iron caps on soft stems, called poklicky locally.
• Rock-cut rooms - cellars, stables and house backs excavated into the cliffs.
• Cold valley bottoms - mountain plants growing at two hundred metres.
• Kokorin castle - a Gothic tower and palace on a sandstone spur.

When to go

April to October. Two days.

Honest expectations

Ticks are bad here. Valley paths are muddy and can flood. Public transport into the valleys is poor. Some rock-cut structures are on private land.

Nearby

Melnik and the Elbe confluence are south; Lake Macha is north.