Radhost and Pustevny

Radhost, 1,129 metres, is the eastern end of a ridge in the Beskids and one of the busiest walks in Moravia, largely because you can start at Pustevny and reach the summit along an easy crest path in about an hour. Pustevny itself is a cluster of timber buildings in an ornate folk style, designed at the end of the nineteenth century by the architect Dusan Jurkovic, all carved gables and painted detail; one of them burned down and was rebuilt from surviving records. On the way along the ridge stands a heavy statue of the pagan god Radegast, and on the summit a stone chapel dedicated to Cyril and Methodius, with the Beskid ridges rolling away toward Lysa hora.

The landscape

• The Jurkovic huts - carved and painted timber buildings at Pustevny in a deliberately folk idiom.
• The Radegast statue - the blocky stone figure of the pagan god standing beside the ridge path.
• The summit chapel - the round stone chapel on Radhost, with a statue group of Cyril and Methodius outside.
• The ridge view - the Beskid ranges to the east and south, with Lysa hora the highest of them.

When to go

May to October for the ridge, with autumn giving the clearest air and the best colour in the beech below. Winter is popular for snowshoeing and skiing, and the chairlift runs in season. Weekday mornings are far quieter than weekends, when the crest path becomes a slow procession of families and the car parks fill early.

What to expect

This is a promenade rather than a mountain walk, wide and often paved, with food stalls at both ends and crowds in between. Pustevny has been commercialised heavily and looks it. Parking is charged and remote from the huts, and the chairlift queues on fine weekends. The summit chapel is often locked, and the views are pleasant rather than remarkable.

Nearby

Roznov pod Radhostem with its open-air museum lies below to the south, and Lysa hora rises to the east.