Day two of our Bohemian Switzerland adventure included more incredible sights, and for the first one we had to venture into Germany. Our first stop was the Bastei Bridge, which is actually in “Saxon Switzerland National Park”. Bastei Bridge has been a tourist attraction for over 200 years, as it affords excellent views of the Elbe River and the surrounding area for miles and miles. First were some shots from a viewpoint above the bridge.
The views make you really feel like you are on top of the world!
The term “Bastei” refers to the inclusion of steep rocks to make a defensive ring around the old castle. Bastei in English is “bastion”. The stone bridge spans some sandstone rocks where “Neurathen Castle” once stood hundreds of years ago. The sight of this bridge, which today leads to nowhere, is quite stunning!
Which means it’s selfie time!
This tablet on the bridge commemorates the first mention of Bastei Bridge in travel literature, way back in 1797.
We were here on a Sunday, so it was pretty damn crowded. I’d suggest visiting during the week if you can. If you look closely at the below photo you will see a viewpoint in the upper middle, which is where I took the first two photos.
There are excellent views around the bridge. You can even visit the castle remains in the summertime, but I can’t imagine how crowded it would be then!
This is the view looking up the Elbe River (the opposite direction from the first photo in the post). This is such a gorgeous spot!
I saw this figure on a nearby rock and wondered what it could be.? It turns out this is a popular climbing spot called Monch (Monk) Rock, and the figure is a tin weather vane made to look like a monk. Strange, but it looks like the monk is sleep walking to me.
On our way back up the steps we saw this gap in the rocks, which made for a cool photo! Fortunately it had a secure railing to keep the little kids from falling down the cliff.
We headed back towards the Czech Republic and decided to stop at a spot we saw earlier in the little town of Bad Schandau, Germany, simply called “Historic Elevator”.
The elevator to the viewing platform has been here since 1904. We love the Art Nouveau style!
The viewing platform provides excellent views along the Elbe River, both to the east…
…and to the west!
After the elevator we briefly stopped back in Bohemian Switzerland National Park to see “Belvedere Viewpoint”, but based on other viewpoints we’ve seen, the hassle to get there wasn’t really worth it. It did provide a nice view of this small community along the Elbe.
Our last stop was one of our best. Our car did it’s best “Christine” impersonation by using the GPS to try to kill us, but my phone showed us the correct way, and after a very narrow roadway we appeared at Decinsky Sneznik (say that 3 times fast) Lookout Tower.
This tower dates back to 1864, and is one of the oldest in the Czech Republic. To get access you have to pay your fee (plus deposit) to a lady with zero English skills, and she hands you a key. You have to unlock the tower and then lock it behind you to keep others out. You then return the key after exiting/locking the door to get your deposit back. The tower is gorgeous!
You have an incredible 360 degree view from the top! The city of Decin is off in the distance in the below photo.
While to the west you could see this storm on the horizon. This was a favorite spot of the day, and we had the tower to ourselves!
Selfie time!
That storm never made it to Decin that night, but the sunset with the buildings out of our hotel window at least gave us a little show.
Up next, we head back to Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic, where we made a brief visit with Casey and Terri about 8 days ago. I’ve already posted about that visit, but there were some new things we saw that deserve another post!