High Snow Mountain (Děčínský Sněžník, Czech Republic)

The Děčínský Sněžník, also known as the High Snow Mountain, is the highest peak in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains at 723 meters. It is located in the Ústecký kraj region in northern Bohemia, near the town of Děčín. It is a striking table mountain in Bohemian Switzerland.

A historic lookout tower built in 1864 stands on the summit and is one of the oldest lookout towers in the Czech Republic. The stone tower is 33 meters high and was originally used for surveying the country. From the viewing platform and other parts of the summit, visitors have a sweeping view of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains, Bohemian Switzerland and, on a clear day, other mountain ranges.

In 1999, a faithful replica of the inn that had stood on this site since 1865 was rebuilt.

The summit plateau measures around 1.6 kilometers in length and 0.6 kilometers in width. Surrounded by dense forests and with steep sandstone flanks, the Hoher Schneeberg offers numerous hiking trails and routes that lead to the summit from both the Czech and German sides.

Inspiration site of Caspar David Friedrich
Sketched as early as August 1806, the Hoher Schneeberg with its characteristic, elongated summit appears again and again in paintings and drawings by Caspar David Friedrich. Friedrich used the Hoher Schneeberg with its peculiar coffin-like shape as a motif several times:
Woman in front of the setting sun, oil, around 1818
Elbe valley landscape, oil, around 1820
Coffin at the grave, pencil, around 1836
Coffin at the grave, sepia, around 1836