Písník u Sokolovce

Písník u Sokolovce is a small nature monument born from a former sand quarry, tucked into the forests of the Železné hory Protected Landscape Area, roughly 500 metres southwest of the village of Dolní Sokolovec in the Havlíčkův Brod district. It has carried protected status since 1990, making it a well-established, if little-known, conservation site in the region.

How did this place come to exist?

The site began its life as a working sandpit. Once extraction stopped, the abandoned pit was left as a scar in the landscape until 1994, when the terrain inside the old quarry was reshaped to restore a body of water. What was once an industrial excavation gradually turned into a pond fringed by sphagnum and other mosses, creating a habitat that has nothing in common with the surrounding forest floor.

Why is it protected?

The entire nature monument covers only about 0.30 hectares, yet its ecological value far outweighs its size. The pond that formed in the old sandpit is the only body of water in the surrounding area situated above the Doubrava river's watercourse, which makes it an important watering spot for forest wildlife that would otherwise have to travel much further to drink.

The main reason for the protection, however, is the presence of round-leaved sundew (Drosera rotundifolia), an insectivorous plant that thrives only in nutrient-poor, acidic, and consistently damp conditions — exactly the kind of microhabitat that has developed around the sphagnum-lined edges of the pond. Alongside the sundew, the site also supports chickweed-wintergreen (trientalis) and clubmosses. The presence of sphagnum around the water gives the small area the character of a miniature bog, despite its modest overall footprint.

The pond also serves amphibians as a breeding site. Its calm, sheltered, and predator-light conditions make it well suited for egg-laying and larval development, adding another layer of ecological importance to a site that might otherwise look like an unremarkable pool in the woods.

Can you visit?

Písník u Sokolovce is not open to the public. The main reasons are its very small size and the high risk of mechanical damage to the protected round-leaved sundew from trampling. The fragile bog vegetation along the pond's edges reacts poorly to foot traffic, so active conservation here focuses on limiting human interference rather than building trails or visitor infrastructure.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is Písník u Sokolovce located? In the cadastral territory of Horní Sokolovec, in the Havlíčkův Brod district, about 500 metres southwest of the village of Dolní Sokolovec, within the Železné hory Protected Landscape Area.

How large is this nature monument? It covers approximately 0.30 hectares, making it one of the smaller protected sites of its kind in the region.

What is the site's most distinctive natural feature? The presence of round-leaved sundew, combined with the fact that its pond is the only body of water in the area above the Doubrava river's watercourse, giving it real value as a wildlife watering point.

Is it possible to visit Písník u Sokolovce? No. The site is closed to public access because of its small size and the risk that trampling would destroy the protected sundew population.

When was the site placed under protection? It was declared a nature monument in 1990, and in 1994 the terrain of the former sandpit was reshaped to recreate the water surface seen today.