No Excuses

The pedestrian suspension bridge linking Císařský Ostrov to the east side of the Vltava, where the Troja Chateau and Prague Zoo are located.

If you're reading this, and you haven't taken this bike ride, what are you waiting for?

It's not hard, it's not long, but it's fun, it's flat, and it's fantastic.

Grab your bike or rent a bike and head to Stromovka Park. Ride around the park for a bit. It's lovely. There are people walking and dogs running and kids playing, and every once in a while a train will whoosh past on the tracks that bisect the park.

From Stromovka, head towards the Vltava River, first crossing a side canal over a regular car bridge to Císařský Ostrov and then across a cool pedestrian suspension bridge that leads over the Prague Zoo. You're supposed to walk your bike across, but not everyone follows that rule, and I'll sometimes ride if there aren't too many people.

Now you're at the Troja chateau, with the Prague Zoo a few hundred meters to the north.

From here, you can either head north along the river bike path, past the zoo, and just keep going for many, many wonderful kilometers, all the way to Klecany and beyond. No cars. Just pure cycling pleasure, with quite a few little pubs along the way to stop for a cold one of whatever it is you're drinking.

Or you can do what I and Emma did a few weeks ago (and which I did on my own a few days before that). That is, head upriver, toward Prague 8 and Libeň. It's also a bike path, and it passes lots of cool sites: a whitewater kayaking course, a giant Trojan horse that's now a funky pub and music venue, a stunning new bridge that's set to open in a couple of months, boats and barges, and if you're adventurous, an abandoned sculpture park.

The Trojan Horse pub and gallery also hosts intimate concerts along the river.

At the end of the bike path is a run-down looking pub that Emma and I discovered actually sells a pretty darn good (and pretty darn huge and pretty darn cheap) burger.

You can turn around and head back, as we did, or continue on, along a bike path that runs toward Karlin or, again, if you're feeling adventurous, you can connect to Europe's Most Expensive Cycling Path.

There are no hills, no cars. No excuses, really. Ride.

RIDE STATS
Length of ride: 36 kilometers (all state combine two rides)
Average speed: 14.7 kph
Maximum speed: 31.1 kph
Time on the bike: 2 hours, 24 minutes
Pivo Index: 2

The kayak and whitewater rafting course along the Vltava. As far as I can tell, groups can book rides here.

The new Troja bridge across the Vltava, which is supposed to open to the public in October 2014, as far I can tell.

An old boat moored along the Vltava, near Liben.

One of the sports-related pieces still standing in the abandoned sculpture park, which I previously wrote about here and here.

A cold beer and a malinovka at Hospůdka U Žabáka in Libeň.

It's not gourmet, and it was pretty sloppy, but it was huge and tasty and cost 98 CZK ($4.65), as I remember.