Bílina kyselka (German: Bilin-Sauerbrunn): a hike of just over seven kilometres, with magnificent views, an outdoor swimming pool (admission: CZK 200) and its connection to Goethe. The route follows the green hiking trail markers. It leads from Kyselka railway station/car park across the River Bílina/Biela, through an underpass beneath the Teplice–Most motorway, then – you’ll need to pay attention here – across rough, undeveloped ground and past a residential area. It then continues across a meadow and through a wood (take the first fork to the left) to Bořeň/Borschen, a phonolite rock formation also known as the ‘Bílina Lion’ due to its shape.
Sure-footedness and a head for heights are essential; avoid this route in wet or snowy conditions. Your efforts will be rewarded with views from the summit plateau over the surrounding countryside, the Louny Mountains, the Central Bohemian Mountains and (a broad band stretching to the north and north-west) the Ore Mountains, as well as views of opencast lignite mines and power stations – a testament to the heavy industrialisation of Northern Bohemia in the communist Czechoslovakia from the 1960s to the 1980s.
“Drove to Bilin in the evening with Beethoven”
Alexander von Humboldt had been there. Goethe, who took a keen interest in the history of the Earth and the volcanism/Neptunism controversy of his day (did the stones originate from fire or from the sea?), visited the area several times as a spa guest in nearby Teplice/Teplitz, sometimes in equally distinguished company. On 20 July 1812, he noted in his diary: “Bath [Teplitz spa]. At 9 o’clock, read aloud with [Karl] F[ürst] Li[ch]nowski in the Empress’s garden temple. Elegies II were particularly well received. Lunch at the table. In the evening, travelled with Beethoven to Bilin.” Their first encounter the previous day in Teplitz was immortalised in an anecdote that portrays the composer as self-assured in the face of authority, while the poet comes across as rather subservient and not in the best light.
Just under a year later, on 28 May 1813, Goethe climbed the mountain. His diary notes: “Edited the 12th book [of Poetry and Truth], dressed for the 11th. Bathed for the 24th time. Ate early. To Bilin. With Dr [Franz Ambrosius] Reuß to the rock which the locals call Borschen. Conversations on geology and news of various types of rock found in Bohemia. The Bilin rock rests directly on gneiss, fragments of which have been discovered in phonolite. Macbeth in the evening./ A beautiful, clear day.”
In the spa gardens (19th century), which feature an alkaline healing spring, there is a relief sculpture dedicated to ‘Goethe – the protector of our homeland’. This sounds more like Richard Wagner’s Lohengrin than the ‘Prince of Poets’ and seems to be due to the fact that it was created in the first half of the 20th century. A monument commemorates Goethe’s companion on his walks and in conversation, the geologist and spa doctor Reuß, and his son August Emanuel, who played a significant role in the development of Sauerbrunn.
TOUR ON KOMOOT/MAPY.CZ
* The route shown on Komoot corresponds to the route described above.
* Mapy.cz shows the entire official, slightly longer walking route, starting at the railway station in the town (rather than from Bílina kyselka).
REFERENCES AND TIPS
* Goethe’s diaries on Zeno.org (German)
* Kaj Kinzel: Rother Wanderführer Böhmische Schweiz mit Böhmischem Mittelgebirge, Rother Bergverlag, 2. Aufl., München 2023, 224 Seiten, 19,90 Euro (German).
* Martin Krsek: Beethoven 250 – Das verschollene Bildnis einer vergessenen Begegnung (referring to the encounter in Karlsbad, Goethe-Institut website 2020) (German)
* Goethe’s drawing of the Borschen from his visit in August 1810 (in the database of the Klassik Stiftung Weimar)
PLACES TO VISIT, EAT AND TAKE A BREAK
* Muzeum Bílinská kyselka – exhibition on the history of the mineral water and of Sauerbrunn
(closed during my visit in June due to renovation work; according to the website, closed until 9 July)
* U Kádi inn and beer garden (‘At the Tub’, sometimes with live music), new café by the tennis courts
* Albert supermarket Bílina (open daily until 9 pm), Lidl, Penny
(as of 06/2026; translated with DeepL.com; revised with AI assistance.)
