Gratzen Mountains

Gratzen Mountains
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Highest point
Peak
Elevation	1,112 m (3,648 ft)
Geography
State	Czech Republic, Upper Austria and Lower Austria
Range coordinates	48°33′37″N 14°37′24″E / 48.56028°N 14.62333°E / 48.56028; 14.62333Coordinates: 48°33′37″N 14°37′24″E / 48.56028°N 14.62333°E / 48.56028; 14.62333

The Gratzen Mountains on the Czech side of the border

The Gratzen Mountains (German: Gratzener Bergland or, more rarely, Gratzener Gebirge; Czech: Novohradské hory) are part of the Bohemian Massif and run along either side of the border between the Czech Republic and the Austrian states of Upper and Lower Austria.

Geography[]

The low mountain range covers an area of about 20 x 30 km and lies roughly within the triangle formed by the towns of České Budějovice, Freistadt and Gmünd.

• The Bohemian part of the range, known locally as the Novohradské hory, runs from Nové Hrady (German: Gratzen) – via Benešov nad Černou (German: Beneschau) to Horní Dvořiště (Oberhaid) on the Upper Austrian border.
• The Austrian part, the Freiwald, runs from Unterhaid/Leopoldschlag eastwards and crosses near Sandl – south of the tripoints – the border between Mühlviertel and Waldviertel districts. There, the branches off, while the main chain swings north to the Tischstein and . In all the summit region approximates the shape of an ellipse and forms the northern boundary of the Granite and Gneiss Highland.

Its highest mountain is the near Sandl which reaches 1,112 metres, but another 16 mountains exceed 1,000 metres in height. Of these, 13 lie on Austrian soil and 3 in Bohemia.

The area of the mountains on the Czech side of the border is 162 km². Their highest point is the (Steinberg, 1,072 m n.m.) in the Pohorská foothills and in the municipality of Pohorská Ves.

The Freiwald is a major part of the natural region of the .

The Lower Austrian part of the Freiwald is defined as a rural subregion (Teilraum) according to the conservation concept of the state.^[1]

After die Wende, a nature park was established called the Novohradské hory with many natural attractions like the , (Sophien-Urwald) and (Heilbrunn). The region has remained largely unspoilt. As a result of its location on the Iron Curtain, the German Bohemians were forced out of the area after the Second World War and it remained inaccessible to tourists. After the border re-opened the trails were waymarked again and tourist infrastructure built.

About three quarters of the region is covered in coniferous and deciduous forest. An almost unabating wind builds up in the autumn often into strong gales.

In the Gratzen Mountains rise the Lainsitz, Malše, , and rivers.

Mountains over 1,000 m[]

• , 1,112 m
• (Steinberg), 1,072 m
• , 1,071 m
• , 1,063 m
• Taufelberg, c. 1042 m
• Myslivna (Farrenberg), 1,040 m
• Haubenberg, 1,036 m
• Vysoká (Hochwald), 1,034 m
• Hundsberg, 1,030 m
• Ahornstein, 1,019 m
• , 1,017 m
• Gattringerberg, 1,016 m
• Vorderer Schanzer Berg, c. 1,013 m
• Hinterer Schanzer Berg, 1,010 m
• , 1,004 m
• Bärenstein, 1,003 m
• Höllberg, 1,000 m

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gratzen Mountains.

• www.novohradky.info