Soběnov Reservoir
The Soběnov Reservoir is the oldest functioning reservoir in South Bohemia.
Located on the Černá stream near the village of Soběnov, a dam was completed in 1925, making it the oldest operational reservoir in South Bohemia. Its original stone dam holds back a lake covering 3.9 hectares with a capacity of 73,500 cubic meters of water. The reservoir’s main significance was its energy use by a nearby hydroelectric plant in the Černá valley, where water was diverted via a tunnel and underground pipeline with a height difference of 59.5 meters. During the floods of 2002, the Zlatá Ktiš dam upstream on the Černá burst, and the inflowing water caused a breach in part of the Soběnov dam. The resulting flood wave completely devastated a roughly 2 km stretch leading to the power station below the village of Blansko. The once lively stream turned almost stagnant in an enormous riverbed with exposed boulders. In 2006, a new concrete dam clad in stone was built in place of the original earthfill dam. After the 2002 event, the educational trail "Through the Černá Valley" was also restored.
