A legend has it: In the village of Vilemovice once lived a widower with his son. He married a second time and his little son got a step mother.
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In time, the woman gave birth to her own child and wanted to get rid of the stepson. She asked him to join her in collecting the fruits of the forest. As they came close to the very edge of the abyss, the woman threw her stepson down into the depth.
However, the boy was spared from death by being caught on extending tree branches. Wood cutters, working nearby, heard the desperate cries, and saved the boy.
Upon hearing the tales of the wood cutters, the village people of Vilemovice threw the step mother over the abyss. Since that day the abyss has been called Macocha, the Czech word for stepmother.
The Moravian Karst is undoubtedly the most outstanding karst region in the Czech Republic. The limestone is 350-380 million years old and stretches over an area 25 kilometres long and 3-6 kilometres wide north of the city of Brno.
Over 1,000 caves have been registered here along with the biggest cave system in the Czech Republic, called the Amateur Caves.
Four caves are open to the public. The Macocha gorge (138.7 metres) is the deepest one open to the public in the country.
Visit the bottom of the Macocha gorge and a ride on boats with electric motors through the Macocha caves.
Nearby is the no less beautiful Kateřina Cave with massive underground spaces and wonderful stalactites and high stalagmites.
Visitors should not forget to visit the magical Balcarka cave and especially the newly adapted Sloup-Šošůvka caves which are bound to impress all cave specialists and admirers.
Movement within the nature reserve itself is facilitated by the Macocha cable car carrying visitors from the Punkva caves to the gorge bridges and back.
There is also a sightseeing shuttle between Skalnà Mlýn and the entrance to the Punkva caves. Those who prefer to walk can use the well-maintained network of hiking paths as well as the Macocha nature trail.
The caves are open all year round except for December 24-26 and January 1.
To get to the cave from the ticket office, you can either get the ‘Eko-Express’, a little train that will bring you to your starting point, or you can walk the very quiet and green pathway of 2.5 kilometers (about 25 minutes).
The ticket includes a boat ride on the underground river Punkva and a guide (Czech or English). ■