Žárový vrch

Žárový vrch (German: Brandberg) is a mountain in the Hrubý Jeseník mountain range in the Czech Republic. It has an elevation of 1,101 m (3,612 ft) above sea level. It is located in the municipality of Ludvíkov, about 6.4 km northeast of the summit of Praděd mountain. There is a scenic viewpoint on the peak rock formation. The mountain is located in the Jeseníky Protected Landscape Area. The Jelení bučina nature reserve has been established on part of the western slope.

Characteristics

Location Žárový vrch mountain is located slightly east of the centre of the entire Hrubý Jeseník range, lying in a part of the Hrubý Jeseník, in the central area of the Medvědí Mountains on a side arm, stretching from Kóta Pass to Zámecká hora mountain. Žárový vrch is a hard-to-recognize and not very distinctive mountain, located in the massif of three mountains: Lyra - Žárový vrch - Plošina, having heights above 1,000 meters above sea level. At the same time, it is one of the higher peaks of this ridge, located about 4 km north of Karlova Studánka, between the passing roads: No. 451 Nové Heřminovy - Vidly and No. 445 Šternberk - Zlaté Hory. It is a peak visible, among other things, from the road surrounding the summit area of Praděd mountain (the peak is visible to the left of the line of sight to Vysoká hora mountain, but is easily confused with the neighboring Lyra peak), and from another distinctive vantage point - from the road surrounding the summit of Dlouhé stráně mountain it is invisible because it is obscured by Velký Děd peak and Praděd mountain. The summit of Žárový vrch, on the other hand, is clearly visible from the summit rock of Lyra mountain or from the summit slope of Sokol mountain, among others. The mountain is bounded by: from the northwest by the valley of the Střední Opava stream, from the northeast by a pass of 1,003 m (3,291 ft) above sea level toward the Plošina peak, from the east and southeast by a short unnamed tributary of the Bílá Opava stream, the Bílá Opava stream, two passes: one of 756 meters above sea level toward the Brantloch peak and another of 835 meters above sea level toward the Na vyhlídce (2) peak, the valley of an unnamed tributary of the Bílá Opava stream to the south, and a 950-meter-high pass to the southwest toward Lyra peak and the valley of an unnamed tributary of the Střední Opava stream from that pass. Surrounding the mountain are the following peaks: from the northwest Mrazový vrch, Zlatá stráň-JV and Zadní plošina, from the north Skály and Jelení kameny, from the northeast Plošina, from the southeast Brantloch and Na vyhlídce (2), from the south Rolandův kámen and from the southwest Lyra, Bučina and Nad kapličkou.

Slopes The following five major slopes can be distinguished within the mountain:

eastern, stretching from the main summit to the pass towards the summit of Brantloch southern, the longest with a length of about 2.5 km, stretching from the main summit to the valley of an unnamed stream, which is a tributary of the Bílá Opava stream southwestern, named Pytlácká skála, the shortest with a length of about 950 m, stretching from the main peak to the pass towards the Lyra peak western, stretching from the main peak to the valley of the Střední Opava stream (more or less to the lowest parts of the Jelení bučina nature reserve) northwestern, stretching from the main summit to the valley of the Střední Opava (more or less around the mouth of an unnamed stream - a tributary of the Střední Opava; at the foot of this slope, near the place named Ptačí Mlýn, is the lowest point of the mountain, which has an altitude of about 627 m)

All forestation types are present: spruce forest, mixed coniferous forest and deciduous forest, with spruce forestation definitely dominating. The southwestern slope is mostly covered with spruce forest, while the other slopes with decreasing elevation are covered with mixed coniferous forest and deciduous forest in addition to spruce forest. On almost all slopes there are glades, firebreaks and slight stubble. At the foot of the eastern slopes, near road No. 445, and the northwestern slopes, near road No. 451, run 22 kV overhead electric transmission lines. The mountain is interspersed with numerous individual rocky outcrops and rock groups found on almost all slopes (including secondary peaks or the so-called Nedělní skála). In addition, on the western slope at an altitude of 850–915 meters above sea level, there is an area covered with boulders. The slopes are relatively uniform, generally gentle and with little variation. The average slope varies from 8° (southwestern slope) to 16° (northwestern slope). The average slope of all mountainsides of the mountain (weighted arithmetic mean of slopes) is about 12°. The maximum slope of the northwestern slope near the road named Chladná cesta at a distance of 50 m does not exceed 40°. The slopes are covered by a network of numerous roads (including Chladná cesta, Čtverková cesta, Do Brantlochu, Šestková cesta, U Ptačího Mlýna or Zámecká cesta) and generally unmarked paths and ducts. When traversing them, it is advisable to use detailed maps, due to the intricacies of their course, forest cover and orientation in the terrain.

At the foot of the southwestern slope, near the pass towards the Lyra peak, opposite the cottage named Sedlová chata, there is a boulder on which a metal memorial plaque with an inscription has been placed (the inscription is now barely legible).

Main summit

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