Stachelberg Artillery Fortress

NOTICE ON LIMITED OPENING HOURS IN 2022

In 2022, the fortress is open only in the period from 2nd of April to 10th of July, due to the complete closure of the Babí - Prkenný Důl road (reconstruction). The outdoor area and the nature trail will remain accessible along normal hiking trails.

The Stachelberg Fortress, built on the mountain of the same name above the village of Babí near Trutnov, was to be after its completion the largest artillery fortress of the Czechoslovak fortress system, built before the Second World War. Its construction began in October 1937, but its full completion was hindered as a result of the Munich Agreement and the demise of Czechoslovakia in 1938.

Fortress

The fortress is accessible to visitors in the infantry bunker T-S 73, the only accessible building of the fortress. The historical exhibition displays rich photographic and engineering documentation, models of fortifications and demonstrations of weaponry are on display. A 3D replica measuring 8 x 2.5 meters captures how the Stachelberg artillery fortress would have looked like upon completion. After descending two hundred steps, you will get to the previously inaccessible underground labyrinth of corridors and halls still under construction.

Nature trail

The experience can be expanded to include a nature trail full of nearby fortress buildings, which form a compact line of considerable military-historical value.

Lookout Tower

In the immediate vicinity of Stachelberg is the Eliška lookout tower, evoking the idea of a typical military observatory located at an altitude of 632 meters. Its height reaches 24.5 meters and offers views of the Libavské sedlo - a massive mountain pass connecting Silesia with the Czech hinterland, Vraní, Jestřebí and Orlické mountains and the foothills of the Giant Mountains.

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