Sixty kilometres west of Prague lies a beautiful area of rolling hills. Ancient woodlands surge across the hillsides on colourful carpets of bright flowers. These quiet, wild places intrigue you with their deep green mosses and suspicious looking mushrooms, but perhaps most importantly, these woodlands astound you with their endless perfect granite boulders.

Welcome to Petrohrad

There are thousands of problems in this area with a huge potential for more development. The rock is exceptional quality grey granite with high friction and a huge variety of climbing styles. The grades vary from the very easy to the near impossible. Adam Ondra climbs here often and there are many high standard boulder problems up to Font 8B, many of them opened by Ondra himself. For those of us with more moderate taste, there are classic lines at every grade and angle.

The walk-ins are very short and the boulders are mainly free standing blocks, much like Fontainebleau, but sometimes there are slightly higher craglets, not unlike the smaller rambling gritstone edges found in Yorkshire, and on these are found some high ball problems and occasional short routes.

The bouldering is spread over a few named areas, all very close to the village of Petrohrad. The village lies centrally within the triangle of the larger towns of Plzen, Karlovy Vary and the capital city of Prague.

The local people are very friendly and good natured and enjoy chatting with visiting climbers. Local pubs and restaurants offer excellent food and beer at very low prices. The superb campsite in the nearby village of Jesenice is large, green and very cheap.

A visit to Petrohad won't leave you disappointed.

Photo Gallery - Petrohrad Bouldering

Classic Hard Problems

Picking a list of classics at Petrohrad is not an easy thing to do as there are hundreds of beautiful lines and problems but the following short list contains a few of the most classic hard problems:

• Karma 7C
• Kometa 7C
• Vašek 7C
• Amulet 8A
• Kanagon 8A

Read more about Petrohrad and browse topos of the boulders here: Czechclimbing.com

Logistics

When to Go

The weather in Petrohrad is in general quite good. In winter there is some snow, but it is often very climbable still. Many locals send their hardest problems in the winter months due to the good friction.

Perhaps the best seasons for visiting climbers are spring and autumn, as the weather will usually be good, the boulders dry and the temperature will be pleasant without being too hot. Climbing is still popular in the summer and due to the tree cover it is usually possible to find shady problems. Don't expect your skin to last too long on the rough granite if the weather is hot!

How to Get There

Many of the usual suspects fly to Prague. Getting to Petrohrad from Prague isn't too difficult, just head west on the E48.

For those of you driving to Petrohrad from the UK - get a map! But basically you'll probably head through Southern Germany, passing Nuremburg towards Prague, then when you get to the town of Plzen in the Czech Republic head north for around an hour to reach Petrohrad. Remember that to drive in the Czech Republic you'll need a window sticker that you purchase at the border that will cost you around 15 Euros.

The nearest camping is just a few kilometres away in the slightly larger village of Jesenice. The campsite is called Autocamping Jesenice and has hot showers, toilets, a washing up room and some wooden chalet accommodation for those who don't want to camp.

Additional Dangers

Ticks are very common in Petrohrad and they can carry Lyme disease. Check this UKC Article for more info on Ticks.

Gear and Supplies

The best place to buy food is the small supermarket in the village of Jesenice. There's a little pub right in the middle of the village of Petrohrad itself and a good pizza place on the crossroads of the Karlovy Vary - Prague route.

Gear

The nearest climbing gear shops are an hour away in Plzen. You can buy cheap climbing gear and bouldering mats there.

Rest day recommendations include cycling around the local villages and a visit to the Karlovy Vary spa which is very famous throughout the Czech Republic.

Guidebook

The Petrohrad Bouldering Guidebook.

Jack Geldard is the editor of UKClimbing.com and has visited Petrohrad only once, but intends to return when his skin has grown back!

Photo Gallery

View all photos Upload your photos