Ploučnice

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The Ploučnice is a river in the Czech Republic. It is a right tributary of the Elbe and flows through the Liberec and Ústí nad Labem regions. The river is about 101 kilometers long and its drainage basin covers about 1,188 square kilometers. It begins in Osečná in the Ralsko Uplands at 387 meters above sea level, with a second spring on Ještěd Mountain at 613 meters. The Ploučnice flows to Děčín, where it joins the Elbe at 124 meters above sea level. It is the 23rd longest river in the country.

The largest lake in its basin is Lake Mácha. Several water bodies are built on the river, including the Stráž pod Ralskem Reservoir and Hamerské jezero, and near the main spring there is Jenišovský rybník. From 2007 to 2011, researchers found 66 mollusc species in and around the river, including some endangered ones: Clausilia bidentata, Daudebardia brevipes, Ruthenica filograna, Vertigo angustior and Vertigo antivertigo.

Near Mimoň the river meanders and that area is protected as a nature monument called Meandry Ploučnice u Mimoně, covering about 49.4 hectares. The river and its wetlands are home to wildlife such as the green snaketail dragonfly, the scarce large blue and large copper butterflies, as well as Atlantic salmon and the Eurasian otter.

The Ploučnice is popular for river tourism and is navigable year-round up to Benešov nad Ploučnicí because it carries a lot of water. It flows through a landscape that remains largely intact, including the Ralsko Military Training Area, which makes it attractive for paddlers. A famous feature is the Ploučnice Gap near Noviny pod Ralskem, an old man-made tunnel through rock that once served a hammer mill and is protected as a cultural monument.