Gibacht - Čerchov-Loipe, DSV-zertifiziert

Classic; the starting point of the Gibacht-Cerchov trail is, as with the Gibacht trails 1, 2 and 3, the starting house at Gibacht, which is located around 350 meters above the Gibacht mountain farm. Gibacht trails 1 and 2 branch off quite soon and so we follow Gibacht trail 3 with the first long descent, at the end of which we then turn right. Now we let the narrow boards run down along the border to the border crossing Brombeerriegel (Pod tremi znaky), where the "Brombeerriegelhütte" is located. This is an old customs administration hut that now serves as a shelter. Immediately after crossing the border, there is an open area on the right-hand side of the trail from where you can see Cerchov. After the border crossing, the trail turns left and then continues quite comfortably for two kilometers until the first ascent, which has to be mastered at the height of the Spruce Rock / Smrci. Once the ascent has been completed, it is only about one kilometer to the Sattelhütte / Na Zlomu with its shelter. There are two information boards in the open space. There is also an anchored board with an indication of the snow depth. Here we turn right and can enjoy a descent of around one and a half kilometers, which also offers a brief view of Cerchov. At the bottom, we have to be careful, as a sharp left-hand bend awaits. On the square there is an information board about the former glassworks along the Kalten Pastritz and in the valley of Bystrice / Fichtenbach. Now follows a longer ascent. Once you have mastered this, you can look forward to several short descents. This is followed by a small ascent until you reach Rajska / Paradise. Here you cross the Hanova Cesta trail, which was built in 1901 and has its starting point at the Bohemian Fountain / Ceska Studanka and leads to Cerchov. This is followed by a long descent, after which the trail continues slightly uphill for around two kilometers until you finally reach a shelter behind which the road from Capartice to Cerchov runs. Once you reach this point, you have mastered a good half of the route. We cross this road and immediately concentrate on a short descent that runs a few meters above the stadium crossroads with the turn-off towards Capartice. The trail turns left here and the route now climbs slightly again. Then, over a small hill, we reach a forest road leading to Malinova Hora / Beerenfels and Cerchov. Cycle along the side of this road and enjoy the view of the former Reichenstein ski resort near Schönsee and the Stary Herstejn / Old Deer Stone before the most difficult part of the route begins, branching off to the left. The ascent is now quite steep. A long stride is essential here until you reach the former barracks site at Malinova Hora. There is now a renovated hut on the site where cross-country skiers can stop for refreshments at weekends. From here, the trail leads uphill for around 400 meters until it turns off to the right. At this point, you could also leave the trail and take the approximately one kilometer long and difficult ascent to Cerchov. We stay on the trail, pass the square at Kamenna Louka / Steinwiese, where we reach the next descent, which leads around 500 meters downhill. A major pitfall awaits at the end, a very sharp left-hand bend. If you manage to negotiate this without damage (many have landed in the deep snow there), you can already see the Lesni chata pod vodarnou / forest hut below the Brunnhäusl, better known as the Benda hut. However, it is no longer open at weekends in winter. Shortly after the Benda hut, the trail branches off to the left. It then climbs for just under a kilometer to the Pavlikova Vyhlidka viewpoint, the Herzogauer Blick. From there it is not far to the Sattelhütte / Na Zlomu and thus to the point where we turned off on the outward journey. From here we return along the trail we came on. On the way back, the descent at Smrci / Fichtenfels requires more stamina. We soon reach the border crossing at Brombeerriegel / Pod tremi znaki. From here, the route leads uphill for just under 400 meters before we have to turn left onto the Gibacht 3 trail, as we are not allowed to go straight ahead and thus back on the trail we came on due to the "one-way street regulation". The Gibacht 3 trail takes us back to the starting point (Text: Karl Reitmeier). Together with the towns of Furth im Wald and Waldmünchen and the Czech region of Domažlicko, the Safety in Skiing Foundation (SIS) and the German Ski Association (DSV) have been working to develop the quality of the cross-country ski trail network in the Upper Bavarian Forest/Bohemian Forest in recent years. The trails have been certified as a cross-border DSV nordic active center according to international criteria, signposted with a uniform system and equipped with information boards