Doupě: Roštejn Castle, beech forests and a gravel route

The valley and the landscape of the Jihlavské vrchy

The valley of the Třešťský potok is the specific landscape feature associated with the village. A large part of its cadastral area lies in the northeastern part of the Řásenská vrchovina in the Jihlavské vrchy. This brings two spatial scales together: Doupě’s valley setting and the broader landscape context of its cadastral area. This distinction helps separate the village itself from its wider landscape setting. If you are interested in the region’s location, you can situate Doupě in terms of both the valley and the Řásenská vrchovina.

Roštejn Castle: a hunting castle with a seven-sided tower

Roštejn Castle is located in the cadastral area of Doupě, on a rocky hill at an elevation of 677 metres. It is a Gothic-Renaissance hunting castle dating from the 14th century; its unusual seven-sided tower defines its distinctive appearance. Roštejn was built continuously by the Lords of Hradec during the 14th and 15th centuries. The dates complement each other: the castle dates from the 14th century, while its continuous construction history extends into the 15th century. For travellers interested in cultural history, this combines a distinctive architectural form and a prominent setting with a building history spanning several centuries.

Forest conservation and distinctive habitats

The Roštejn Game Preserve places particular emphasis on protecting different types of forest. These include old, primeval-like acidophilous beech forests, flower-rich beech forests and scree forests. The descriptions identify distinct habitats and make forest conservation more tangible than a general landscape backdrop. The preserve also protects populations of the hermit beetle (Osmoderma barnabita) and the barbastelle bat (Barbastella barbastellus). The nature theme thus ranges from forest communities to populations of two named species. Visitors who want to focus on nature and conservation will find a different perspective here than in the castle’s architectural history.

A geological feature in the Roštejn Game Preserve

West of Roštejn Castle, a distinctive frost-weathering landform developed at the end of a small valley in the Roštejn Game Preserve: a so-called nivation niche, or nivation hollow. This landform adds a geological perspective to the forest habitats. The preserve therefore brings together different aspects of nature: protected forest types, protected populations and a feature formed by frost weathering. For travellers who want to look at the landscape not only in terms of its general character but also through individual natural features, this is a striking point of interest.

A gravel route through Doupě

The 70-kilometre gravel route runs from Telč via Doupě to Roštejn and through the picturesque region below Javořice. It offers a different perspective from the castle and forest conservation: the focus here is on a route through the landscape. When planning your trip, you can therefore choose between different interests—building history, protected habitats or cycling along a longer route. Doupě is one section of the gravel route, while Roštejn Castle and the conservation features of the Roštejn Game Preserve appeal to different interests of their own.

Choose accommodation based on your travel interests

When looking for accommodation, you can first decide what brings you to the area: are you most interested in the castle and its history, forest conservation or cycling the gravel route? You can then choose accommodation whose location suits your own travel plans.

Discover more destinations: Zbinohy, Hubenov, Jihlávka, Panenska Rozsicka, Velký Beranov, Zdeňkov, Sedlatice, Hodice.

For the broader travel overview: Jihlava District.