So "Prijut 12" is a bizarre name for a bar - and for a place where you are supposed to meet one or two Oberwiesenthal bike locals. At first glance, it sounds like a launch pad for Soyuz rockets at the Baikonur space centre. Well, actually, you wouldn't be far wrong. After all, you can always shoot yourself down in the rustic pub at the end of the Fichtelberg ski slope. Jens König has his finger on the trigger and there is plenty of fuel in the form of absinthe, vodka or Cuba Libre ... Tomorrow is a long tour and Jens has promised to take the lead. Jens casually combines his job as a barman with his passion for bikes. Jens raves about the 300-metre Uphill up the Fichtelberg almost every morning. "Respect!" These stories make my sips from my beer glass noticeably smaller and a quiet "I'll have another apple spritzer" is already on my lips.
Philipp Heinrich joins us. His family owns Prijut 12 and the Leipzig native explains: "My father once spent the night in the 'Prijut 11' refuge when he climbed Mount Elbrus, hence the name." The busy mountain biker apologises for tomorrow's tour. He has to finish a presentation that he is due to give in the Czech Republic. Of course it's about biking. Bohemia is only a few turns of the crank away and while the 1215 metre high Fichtelberg is the number one destination for many tourists, there is a second local mountain for bikers, Klinovec. At 1244 metres, it is also the highest in the Ore Mountains. Philipp has promised a tour of both peaks for the day after next.
You can find these MTB tours around Oberwiesenthal in the PDF download:
1st Kalahari Hut Tour (35.7 km, 1040 m elevation gain, 3 h 00 min)
2nd Bohemia Tour (60.7 km, 1620 m elevation gain, 5 h 30 min)
3rd two-summit tour (24.9 km, 830 m elevation gain, 2 h 30 min)
