Mumlava Falls

Below Harrachov the Mumlava river drops off a wide granite step, roughly eight metres high and much broader than it is tall, so instead of a single jet you get a sheet of water spread across the whole face of the rock. Below the fall the current has drilled deep round potholes into the granite, ground out over centuries by stones spinning in eddies, and they are easy to see when the water is low. The walk in from Harrachov follows a forest road along the river and is flat enough for a pram. In summer people swim in the pools and sit on the warm slabs, though the water comes straight off the mountains and stays cold.

What you actually see

• The main fall - the broad granite ledge with the river spread across it rather than funnelled into one chute.
• The potholes - deep round hollows ground into the rock below the fall, exposed when the river is low.
• The river walk - the level forest road along the Mumlava from Harrachov, usable by bike or pram.
• The pools - flat granite slabs and cold shallow basins where people swim in high summer.

When to go

Late spring carries the most water, after snowmelt on the ridges above. High summer means low flow but warm rock and swimmable pools. Autumn adds colour to the beech and spruce along the walk. In winter the fall partly freezes and the forest road can be icy. Mornings are quieter than afternoons in July and August.

Honest expectations

It is a modest fall by any international measure, and after a dry spell the flow can be thin. The site is popular and close to a ski resort, so the pools and rocks fill with families on hot weekends. The granite is slippery where it is wet, and people do get hurt scrambling for photographs. Parking in Harrachov is charged.

Nearby

Harrachov sits at the western end of the Krkonose, with the ski jumps and glassworks in town.