Stožec Chapel
The Chapel of the Virgin Mary (known as Stožec Chapel) is a wooden pilgrimage chapel located at an altitude of 950 meters.
The best way to reach the chapel is from the village of Stožec, about 4 km away. The path leads through the Stožec Primeval Forest, and above the chapel there is a beautiful viewpoint from the Stožec Rock. The chapel was built in 1791 by Jakoubek Klauser, a blacksmith from Volary, in gratitude for the miraculous healing of his eyesight. It is built above a spring of healing water, which according to legend, has miraculous curative properties.
Thanks to the healing power of the local spring, the chapel became a popular pilgrimage site for people from Bohemia and nearby Bavaria. On the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary on August 15, 1920, as many as 5,600 people came to attend the service from both sides of the border. The main pilgrimage takes place every year on the first Sunday after August 14.
The chapel is generally not accessible. It can be visited during scheduled religious services.
There are several routes, but we recommend the following: Start the hike at the train station in Stožec and follow the yellow tourist trail to the Stožecká Meadow. There, turn onto the blue trail toward the crossroads “Pod Stožeckou skálou.” A sign will point you to the pilgrimage site Stožecká Chapel, located below Stožecká Rock. From the chapel, return to the “Pod Stožeckou skálou” junction and follow the blue trail across the Forest Road to the crossroads “Bridge over the Cold Vltava.” There, turn right onto an unmarked road and follow the paved path, which runs parallel to the railway, back to Stožec and the train station.
The Šumava National Park Authority occasionally restricts access to this area to protect nature.
Do you know that...
A newly built Way of the Cross leads to the chapel, funded in part by local residents and descendants of the original inhabitants displaced after the war.
