Bird Sanctuary

When the first warm winds blow, delicate buds appear on the branches, the birds singing and chirping happily, then nature awakens back to life.

Basic information:
Total length: 96 km, 89.5 km of which are in the Czech Republic.
Course of the river: The Maltsch rises in Austria on the north-eastern slopes of the Viehberg. It forms a natural border with the Czech Republic over a length of 22 km. At Dolní Dvorište, it finally turns towards the Czech Republic and flows through Rychnov nad Malší, Kaplice, Rímov and Doudleby to Ceské Budejovice. Here it flows into the Vltava in the centre of the town at an altitude of 385 metres above sea level.

History:
The Maltsch is believed to be the site of the oldest timber float in the Mühlviertel, with the oldest documentary evidence dating back to 1685. The timber was floated from the Freiwald forest towards Leopoldschlag and Unterhaid and transported northwards from there. From the 1830s, this was done with the help of the horse-drawn railway. The timber mainly came from the areas around the villages of Windhaag, Leopoldschlag and Zettwing, which alternately had the right of first refusal for the first alluvium of the year. It is unclear whether the pond was in regular use, as the lack of ponds, the low gradient and the low flow of the river made it very difficult to float the timber. The alluvial pond would often have lain fallow for long periods of time. For this reason, it is assumed that the last alluvium of this kind took place in 1842.