Architecture

Dolní Morava's Sky Walk has visitors walking tall

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The Sky Walk is located at the top of a mountain 1,116 m (3,661 ft) above sea level
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is located at the top of a mountain 1,116 m (3,661 ft) above sea level
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is 700 m (2,300 ft) long
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is 55 m (180 ft) tall
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is made of 600 cu m (21,200 cu ft) of larch wood
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is made of 380 tons (345 tonnes) of steel
Dolní Morava
The site of the Sky Walk is very windy and often covered by clouds or fog
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is said to be easy to climb, even with strollers or for those in wheelchairs
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is aimed at being both fun and educational
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk spirals upwards
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk can theoretically accommodate up to 4,000 people
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk has a practical capacity of 1,400
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk provides views of the Králický Sněžník massif, the Morava river and the Krkonoše mountain range
Dolní Morava
Information boards along the Sky Walk will allow visitors to learn about the history of the adjacent valley and about the clouds as a meteorological phenomenon
Dolní Morava
The Sky Walk is part of the Dolní Morava Relax & Sport Resort
Dolní Morava
Visitors can descend from the Sky Walk via a 100-m (328-ft) long helter-skelter
Dolní Morava
The view from the Sky Walk looking out over the surrounding area
Dolní Morava
The view looking down from the Sky Walk
Dolní Morava
View gallery - 17 images

A new attraction at the Dolní Morava resort in the Czech Republic has visitors walking around with their heads in the clouds. The Sky Walk is a 55-m (180-ft)-high wooden walkway on top of a mountain. It is aimed at being both fun and educational, with a helter skelter-type slide providing a fast way down.

The Dolní Morava resort caters for visitors all year round. In the summer, it's possible to walk, cycle, rent Segways and use the year-round bobsleigh run. There is also a water park, an "adrenaline park" and a picnic and grill area. In the winter, the resort offers snow sports such as skiing and sledging.

Designed by architect Zdeněk Fránek, the Sky Walk is the latest addition to the resort. The idea was first conceived in 2012, but construction only began in April of this year. To begin, any snow remaining on the slopes was removed and 6.5-m (21.3-ft) foundations were dug into solid rock.

Ondřej Černý of the Dolní Morava resort tells Gizmag that the the biggest challenge was the process of building the structure in such testing climate conditions. Located at the top of a mountain 1,116 m (3,661 ft) above sea level, the site is very windy and often covered with fog or clouds. As a result, construction had to be paused on several occasions.

The site of the Sky Walk is very windy and often covered by clouds or fog
Dolní Morava

Now complete, the walkway spirals upwards with a length of 700 m (2,300 ft). It is made of 600 cu m (21,200 cu ft) of larch wood and 380 tons (345 tonnes) of steel. Černý says the Sky Walk can resist winds of up to 300 km/h (186 mph) and can theoretically accommodate up to 4,000 people, although the practical capacity is 1,400.

The Sky Walk is said to be easy to climb, even with strollers or for those in wheelchairs. Once at the top, visitors can take in views of the Králický Sněžník massif, the Morava river and the Krkonoše mountain range. They can also learn from information boards about the history of the adjacent valley and about the clouds as a meteorological phenomenon. When it's time to leave, the 100-m (328-ft) long helter-skelter can take visitors back to ground level.

The Sky Walk opened on Dec 5th. The video below is a timelapse of the Sky Walk's construction and shows the wildly variable weather conditions of the site.

Source: Dolní Morava Relax & Sport Resort

View gallery - 17 images
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3 comments
LKT1
Looks like an eyesore compared to the beautiful background. Oh well at least it will be a good place for birds to poop on.
the.other.will
An observation structure at a location that gets so much fog & clouds that it forced pauses of construction? I guess the kids can still enjoy the slide so long as the wind & cold isn't too much for them.
noteugene
um, ok, I can see where if they were to install a couple of rails and had electric transport chairs or something that this would be ok but who wants to do all that walking? and even if you could find anyone to walk...they could walk on the outside of the cars..as is..kind of nuts.