Andělský vrch (573 m a.s.l.) is the highest point of the Frýdlant Highlands — a quiet, dome-shaped hill straddling the Polish-Czech border in the Western Sudetes. It is a rewarding destination for those who enjoy off-the-beaten-path exploration rather than crowded marked trails.
The summit has a broad, gently rounded top with no dramatic peak, and its slopes fall away softly in every direction — westward toward the Czech town of Nové Město pod Smrkem, northward to Jindřichovice pod Smrkem, and eastward to the Polish village of Pobiedná. The hill is cloaked in coniferous forest at the top, while meadows and farmland open up on the lower eastern and western flanks. In autumn especially, the contrast between forest and open land gives the surroundings a peaceful, unhurried feel. The very fact that the summit is hard to pinpoint in the field makes reaching it feel like a genuine little adventure.
How to reach the summitOn the north-eastern slope at 535 m a.s.l., the Mon Plaisir tower once stood — an astronomical and meteorological observatory built in 1803–1804 by Count Adolf Traugott von Gersdorf. The tower is long gone, but its story gives this unassuming hill a surprisingly rich history.