Špičák, Mountain summit in Czech Republic.
Spitzberg, called Špičák in Czech, is a basalt hill of the Zákupská pahorkatina about 2.5 km north of Česká Lípa, rising to 446 m (other sources give 459 m). Its slopes are covered by mixed forest, and on the summit stands a 14-metre lookout tower with a round tower and antenna transmitters, fenced off and closed to the public.
A stone chapel stood on the summit around 1700; near 1850 a wooden hut was built in its ruins, soon gone. In 1880 the town collected funds, supported by the Excursions Club, for a lookout tower named Stephanie-Turm, built in 1884 to Gottlob Alber's design for 5,000 guilders and opened on 10 May 1885. After a fire in 1887 it was rebuilt in stone and reopened on 28 August 1887; the city took it over in 1939, and in 1997 Real Invest converted it into a transmitter.
The name Špičák gave its name to the adjacent housing estate, the library, the school and other institutions in Česká Lípa. The lookout tower was to be called Stephanie-Turm, and a public collection in 1880, supported by the local press and the Excursions Club, paid for its construction.
No marked trail reaches the summit; the blue route from Česká Lípa railway station to Sloup passes the southern foot at the Pod Špičákem signpost (460 m). From there, unmarked forest paths climb to the fenced lookout tower, which cannot be entered. A 2008 nature trail, Naučná stezka Špičák, was built at the foot of the hill.
A 300-metre funicular railway with a wooden track, about 500 mm gauge and 150 m of climb, links the road end below the hill to the summit relay station. No road or wider path reaches the top, so it carries equipment and spare parts; it was still in use in 2003.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,364 contributors worldwide.