Šumava Iron Ore / Hojsova Stráž Brčálník

Hojsova Stráž (German: Eisenstrass) is a village in the southern part of the Pilsen Region, in the district of Klatovy, one of the six parts of the town of Železná ruda. The village lies at an altitude of 890 m] on the western slope of Mount Můstek above the valley of the upper course of the Úhlava and is about 9 km north of Železná Ruda. Part of Hojsova Stráž is also the mountain settlement Prenet with the chapel of St. Kunhuty, which lies on the route of the historic trail called Světelská.

The town of Železná ruda lies in the valley of the Řezná river and is bordered on all sides by mountain peaks. Železná ruda is located on the border of the Šumava National Park, in the immediate vicinity (approximately 2.5 km) of the Bavarian Železná Ruda. Alžbětín, Špičák, Pancíř and Hojsova Stráž also fall under Železná Ruda. The original settlement was established in the first half of the 16th century by the river Řezná on an important trade route from Bohemia to Bavaria, by iron ore deposits - hence the name of the town. In 1849, the settlement received the status of a township and the new owner, Prince Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, expanded the territory to more than 6,000 ha in 1852. At the end of the 19th century, the city gained importance by building a railway line from Pilsen to Bavaria with the longest tunnel in what was then Austria-Hungary. Tourism has been developing since the end of the 19th century. The first mention of the village can be found in historical sources in 1569.