Česká Lípa - A Protected Landscape Zone (Chráněná krajinná oblast, CHKO) in the Kokořín region is among the most important discovery sites of prehistoric relics.
The 14th century Kokořín Castle and its surroundings, some 50 km north of Prague, also ranks among the most favored places by Czech campers.
However, the campers (called "tramps" in Czech) are said to have irreversibly damaged the area by making campfires in caves without a permit.
In the north-western part of the region, there are tens of such illegal campsites.
The campers themselves, however, claim they don´t destroy the nature but protect it.
Historic landmark protection failing
"The zone is known in Czech and foreign literature as an example of how nature and historic landmark protection can fail," complained the Regional Museum and Gallery in Česká Lípa in their appeal to the Liberec regional authorities and to the Czech Environmental Inspectorate (Česká inspekce životního prostředí, ČIŽP).
Jana Maříková-Kubková from the Department of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences informed that caves in the Kokořín region contain relics of all eras and cultures known in the Czech Republic territory, including Upper Paleolithic, Roman era or late middle ages.
Archaeologists discovered here one of the first human bones (teeth and parts of a skull) in the Czech territory. Instruments used in the prehistoric era for cooking and craftwork were also found in this area.
"It is one of the oldest and the most densely populated areas in our territory. The archaeology as well as the surrounding nature are unique in this region," assured Maříková-Kubková.
One hundred illegal campsites
In the area of 40 square kilometers, nearly one hundred illegal campsites were discovered by the employees of Česká Lípa´s Regional Museum. Half of the caves in the area are seriously damaged.
"These data are not final yet since the mapping process is still going on," informed the Museum in their formal appeal.
In addition, the Museum has complained about the attitude of the representatives of the CHKO Kokořínsko who were informed some time ago about the damage caused by the campers.
"From the beginning we feel that CHKO Kokořínsko is not very keen on solving the problem at all," informed the Museum.
Official campsites a solution?
The Agency of Nature Conservation and Landscape Protection of the Czech Republic, an umbrella organization that the CHKO Kokořínsko reports to, has stated it is going to address the issue in a few days.
The Czech Environmental Inspectorate (ČIŽP) however believes that it will take years to solve the camping problem.
"Banning illegal campsites would bring only short-time effect, with the new campsites emerging again shortly," said spokeswoman of the ČIŽP Ivana Awwadová, adding that a possible solution could be to establish official campsites.
Feeling home
The campers themselves claim that they started to found the first campsites in the Kokořínsko region in the 1960s. They intend to preserve the campsites.
"Here we feel like home," said a tramp nicknamed Řopík to Aktuálně.cz. "We are actually helping to save the forests. We clean the place after the backpakers who leave garbage everywhere they go. We are trying to be helpful."
Řopík rejected the archaealogists´ accusations that tramps destroy the archeological landmarks.
"The campers happened to be here in the 1960s and the campsites have been here since then," Řopík informed Aktuálně.cz. "Therefore there is nothing left and the archeologists want to turn down the campsites and do research here. I find this contradictory and I believe the only thing they want is to evict the campers."
