1.st Day
How to get there
The popular Strž (Gorge), also known as Čapkárna, lies on the red hiking trail (the Říp-Blaník pilgrimage route) and a cycle trail. The area offers a free e-bike charger and bike stands. If you forget a chain for your bike, you can borrow one with a refundable deposit of 200 CZK.
In the area, a romantic garden surrounded by full-grown trees, you will find a bistro with a takeaway window and outdoor seating, or you can sit in an original pergola built under the supervision of Karel Čapek and according to his design.
What you will find here
When Karel Čapek married actress Olga Scheinpflugová on August 26, 1935, after a fifteen-year relationship, they received an unusual wedding gift from the artist's distant relative Václav Palivec: the lifetime right to use the then-abandoned place known as Strž (Gorge).
It's hard to believe that the romantic Empire-style building surrounded by a garden with centuries-old trees was once a rundown brownfield! Over more than 150 years before Čapek's arrival, various metal processing technologies operated and diversified here: a hammer mill, a sheet metal rolling mill, and finally, a machine factory that burned down at the end of the 19th century.
The peaceful place that Čapek enhanced, which was still waiting for electricity and phone connections, came alive during the last three years of the artist's life with meetings of leading artists and politicians. In the garden, Adina Mandlová or Hugo Haas, for example, were sunbathing and swimming in the pond. Significant works such as "War with the Newts," "The White Plague” and "The Mother" as well as numerous articles were created here.
Čapek himself used to say that whenever he left the countryside to go to his villa in Vinohrady, he remained unfaithful to it in spirit of the charming Strž (Gorge).
The abandoned house, which used to serve as a factory base, was converted by Čapek into a rural summer residence. The dining room on the ground floor could accommodate twenty of his guests, with modestly furnished rooms available for his closest friends.
The original stables for domestic animals were transformed into a pergola where you could sit and contemplate quotes from Čapek's work. Another part became a garage for a Škoda Popular and later the larger Rapid model. Today, you will find an exhibition on the history of local iron and hammer mills there.
A sunny covered veranda with a beautiful garden view was added to the back of the house. Čapek devoted much time and energy to its modifications. The meadow needed dredging, old trees needed felling or treating, and new trees and small shrubs needed planting. Only the construction of a rock landscape met with failure. Amongst the most interesting plants Čapek planted is the five-leafed ivy, which turns beautifully red every autumn.
The stream flowing from the pond was cleaned and its banks reinforced with stacked stones. Despite the destructive floods of 1938 and 1981, not to mention the storm of September 2022, the garden of Čapek's Strž (Gorge) remains a sought-after destination for visitors.
A mobile app with an AI voice imitating Čapek
Come and try the brand new mobile app "In the Footsteps of Karel Čapek!" (Po stopách Karla Čapka!) It is available for free download for iOS and Android, in both Czech and English.
•
In the Footsteps of Karel Čapek iOS app (Po stopách Karla Čapka iOS aplikace)
•
In the Footsteps of Karel Čapek Android app (Po stopách Karla Čapka Android aplikace)
Ten stops on the experiential route for adults will captivate you with a suggestive interweaving of period photos with the present, accompanied by an engaging audio guide commentary. Children can look forward to drawings and entertaining stories from Čapek's fairy tales. You will be amazed by the authentic voice of Karel Čapek, created by artificial intelligence, from less than eight minutes of original recordings!
As a thank you for visiting, adults will take home all the gradually collected historical photographs in the form of a collage, which can also be easily shared with friends as an invitation to Čapek's Strž (Gorge). Children will be rewarded with a similar collage featuring fairy tale motifs.
A rich selection of souvenirs
As a memento of your Čapek-themed trip, we recommend one of the publications, new or second-hand. For example, the book "Čapek's Gorge in Pictures (Čapkova Strž v obrazech)" offers not only readable text, but also many interesting photographs, especially the colorized ones, which make it feel as if you have personally encountered Čapek and his friends. A charming gift is the retro newspapers in the style of the First Republic's "Colorful Week (Pestrý týden)." The wide selection also includes tourist stamps and stickers, affordable postcards, original hand-printed linocut bookmarks, and even a high-quality silver coin commemorating Ferdinand Peroutka's work at the radio station Free Europe (Rádio Svobodná Evropa).
The Karel Čapek Educational Trail
Strengthened by a visit to the Strž (Gorge) bistro, you can also embark on the Karel Čapek Educational Trail – you can choose from 2, 6, or 10-km variants. The first takes you on a small circular route easily manageable with children. It starts at the crossroads called Nad Strží, leads around the The Memorial (Památník) to the former water hammer, and from there to the crossroads called By the Five Lindens (U pěti lip) and back. The second route takes you past more hammer mills to a stone bridge and a pond called Zájezek. And the last is a ten-kilometer route continuing around the meadow called Cvrnka to the crossroads called At Fortelka and Plechhamr (U Fortelky a Plechhamru). There are informational panels about local nature and history along the way, so you will certainly not be bored.
Praha Stará Huť
Train
Easily! From the train, get off at the "Stará Huť" stop. Bus connections offer a choice between the "Stará Huť, Knínská" or "Stará Huť, Karla Čapka" stops.
Praha → Stará Huť, Knínská
Praha → Stará Huť, Karla Čapka
Praha → Stará Huť, Knínská
Praha → Stará Huť, Karla Čapka
Car
By car, you can reach here from Prague or from Příbram via the D4 highway. From Exit 27 "Dobříš," it takes 4 minutes to reach the free parking lot by the pond called Strž (Gorge Pond) – and then it's a 400-meter flat walk on a paved path to the dam and then through a gate into the garden of Čapek's summer residence.
In the area, a romantic garden surrounded by full-grown trees, you will find a bistro with a takeaway window and outdoor seating, or you can sit in an original pergola built under the supervision of Karel Čapek and according to his design.
What you will find here
When Karel Čapek married actress Olga Scheinpflugová on August 26, 1935, after a fifteen-year relationship, they received an unusual wedding gift from the artist's distant relative Václav Palivec: the lifetime right to use the then-abandoned place known as Strž (Gorge).
It's hard to believe that the romantic Empire-style building surrounded by a garden with centuries-old trees was once a rundown brownfield! Over more than 150 years before Čapek's arrival, various metal processing technologies operated and diversified here: a hammer mill, a sheet metal rolling mill, and finally, a machine factory that burned down at the end of the 19th century.
The peaceful place that Čapek enhanced, which was still waiting for electricity and phone connections, came alive during the last three years of the artist's life with meetings of leading artists and politicians. In the garden, Adina Mandlová or Hugo Haas, for example, were sunbathing and swimming in the pond. Significant works such as "War with the Newts," "The White Plague” and "The Mother" as well as numerous articles were created here.
Čapek himself used to say that whenever he left the countryside to go to his villa in Vinohrady, he remained unfaithful to it in spirit of the charming Strž (Gorge).
The abandoned house, which used to serve as a factory base, was converted by Čapek into a rural summer residence. The dining room on the ground floor could accommodate twenty of his guests, with modestly furnished rooms available for his closest friends.
The original stables for domestic animals were transformed into a pergola where you could sit and contemplate quotes from Čapek's work. Another part became a garage for a Škoda Popular and later the larger Rapid model. Today, you will find an exhibition on the history of local iron and hammer mills there.
A sunny covered veranda with a beautiful garden view was added to the back of the house. Čapek devoted much time and energy to its modifications. The meadow needed dredging, old trees needed felling or treating, and new trees and small shrubs needed planting. Only the construction of a rock landscape met with failure. Amongst the most interesting plants Čapek planted is the five-leafed ivy, which turns beautifully red every autumn.
The stream flowing from the pond was cleaned and its banks reinforced with stacked stones. Despite the destructive floods of 1938 and 1981, not to mention the storm of September 2022, the garden of Čapek's Strž (Gorge) remains a sought-after destination for visitors.
A mobile app with an AI voice imitating Čapek
Come and try the brand new mobile app "In the Footsteps of Karel Čapek!" (Po stopách Karla Čapka!) It is available for free download for iOS and Android, in both Czech and English.
•
In the Footsteps of Karel Čapek iOS app (Po stopách Karla Čapka iOS aplikace)
•
In the Footsteps of Karel Čapek Android app (Po stopách Karla Čapka Android aplikace)
Ten stops on the experiential route for adults will captivate you with a suggestive interweaving of period photos with the present, accompanied by an engaging audio guide commentary. Children can look forward to drawings and entertaining stories from Čapek's fairy tales. You will be amazed by the authentic voice of Karel Čapek, created by artificial intelligence, from less than eight minutes of original recordings!
As a thank you for visiting, adults will take home all the gradually collected historical photographs in the form of a collage, which can also be easily shared with friends as an invitation to Čapek's Strž (Gorge). Children will be rewarded with a similar collage featuring fairy tale motifs.
A rich selection of souvenirs
As a memento of your Čapek-themed trip, we recommend one of the publications, new or second-hand. For example, the book "Čapek's Gorge in Pictures (Čapkova Strž v obrazech)" offers not only readable text, but also many interesting photographs, especially the colorized ones, which make it feel as if you have personally encountered Čapek and his friends. A charming gift is the retro newspapers in the style of the First Republic's "Colorful Week (Pestrý týden)." The wide selection also includes tourist stamps and stickers, affordable postcards, original hand-printed linocut bookmarks, and even a high-quality silver coin commemorating Ferdinand Peroutka's work at the radio station Free Europe (Rádio Svobodná Evropa).
The Karel Čapek Educational Trail
Strengthened by a visit to the Strž (Gorge) bistro, you can also embark on the Karel Čapek Educational Trail – you can choose from 2, 6, or 10-km variants. The first takes you on a small circular route easily manageable with children. It starts at the crossroads called Nad Strží, leads around the The Memorial (Památník) to the former water hammer, and from there to the crossroads called By the Five Lindens (U pěti lip) and back. The second route takes you past more hammer mills to a stone bridge and a pond called Zájezek. And the last is a ten-kilometer route continuing around the meadow called Cvrnka to the crossroads called At Fortelka and Plechhamr (U Fortelky a Plechhamru). There are informational panels about local nature and history along the way, so you will certainly not be bored.
Památník Karla Čapka ve Staré Huti u Dobříše, 262 02 Stará Huť 120
www.capek-strz.cz, FB: PamatnikKarlaCapka, IG: pamatnikkarlacapka
