Network of hiking tourist trails in the Izerskie Mountains Landscape Park in the northern Czech Republic

Located in the Czech Western Sudetes, the Izerskie Mountains Landscape Park has a quite developed network of tourist trails. Among them are hiking trails, which were analysed in this article. The density of this network was examined with reference to the natural conditions, tourist attractiveness of certain parts of the park and directions of tourist movement. Using coefficients connected with the graph theory the connectivity and the type of the network was defined. The course of the trails was analysed in comparison with the distribution of the most valuable areas (nature reserves), tourist infrastructure was also taken into account. Besides methods connected with the graph theory the analysis of tourist maps (including comparative analysis of maps from different periods) and results of field studies focused on inventory of types of trail’s surface and connected infrastructure were used in the paper. A stress was laid on changes introduced in the network in recent years (new trails and changes of course of those already existing), which resulted in reduction in the length of sections having asphalt or concrete surface and sections of combined course of trails intended for different forms of tourism. The network of hiking trails in the Izerskie Mountains Landscape Park can be assessed as proper and being a source of some good standards.

Located in the Czech Western Sudetes, the Izerskie Mountains Landscape Park has a quite developed network of tourist trails. Among them are hiking trails, which were analysed in this article. The density of this network was examined with reference to the natural conditions, tourist attractiveness of certain parts of the park and directions of tourist movement. Using coefficients connected with the graph theory the connectivity and the type of the network was defined. The course of the trails was analysed in comparison with the distribution of the most valuable areas (nature reserves), tourist infrastructure was also taken into account. Besides methods connected with the graph theory the analysis of tourist maps (including comparative analysis of maps from different periods) and results of field studies focused on inventory of types of trail’s surface and connected infrastructure were used in the paper. A stress was laid on changes introduced in the network in recent years (new trails and changes of course of those already existing), which resulted in reduction in the length of sections having asphalt or concrete surface and sections of combined course of trails intended for different forms of tourism. The network of hiking trails in the Izerskie Mountains Landscape Park can be assessed as proper and being a source of some good standards.