Vrchmezí, Mountain summit in Eagle Mountains, Czech Republic.
Hohe Mense is a mountain summit in the Eagle Mountains on the Czech-Polish border that rises to 1,084 meters elevation. It marks the northernmost point of the ridge system in this area and is connected by several marked hiking trails.
A first viewing platform was built on the summit in 1779, and the road from Duszniki-Zdrój to Zieleniec, called the Road to Happiness, soon brought more visitors. Before 1945 a year-round lodge, the Hohe Mense-Baude, stood below the summit, built and run by Heinrich Rübartsch (1852–1930), a pioneer of mountain tourism and skiing in the Sudetes. It never reopened after the Second World War, was soon burned and fell into ruin; only faint traces of its masonry remain.
The summit is called Vrchmezí in Czech, Hohe Mense in German, and Orlica in Polish, reflecting how different communities have lived in this border area. These multiple names show the meeting point of Central European cultures.
Several marked hiking trails lead to the summit from nearby villages and towns in the area. The routes are generally accessible and easier to walk during dry weather conditions.
A monument unveiled on 21 September 2012 marks three visits to the top: John Quincy Adams, later US president, in 1800; Emperor Joseph II in 1779; and Frédéric Chopin in 1826. About 200 m below the summit on the eastern slope lies the Złota Sztolnia cave.
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