Šumava National Park, National park in Plzeňský kraj, Czech Republic
Šumava National Park is a protected area in the southwestern part of the Czech Republic, spreading across Klatovy, Prachatice and Český Krumlov. The terrain rises to about 1,378 meters (4,521 feet) in elevation and consists of thick conifer forests, flat raised bogs and several glacial lakes formed in the Ice Age.
The first proposal for a nature park in Šumava dates to 1911. A protected landscape area of 163,000 hectares was declared on 27 December 1963, then the most valuable part became a national park by government regulation of 20 March 1991, effective 10 May 1991. UNESCO designated the area a biosphere reserve in Paris in 1990.
The protected area takes its name from the old Czech word for the rustling sound of wind through forests and streams. This region now connects people from both countries through shared walking routes and nature projects along the border.
The park spans elevations from 600 m in the Otava valley near Rejštejn to 1,378 m at the summit of Plechý, the highest Czech peak of the range. The Šumava PLA buffer zone adds 99,624 ha around the park. The core first zone is left to natural development without human intervention, so stay on marked paths there.
The protected area shelters rare species such as lynx, capercaillie and endemic insects that live only in the local bogs. Some raised bogs are among the oldest ecosystems in Central Europe and date back more than 12,000 years.
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