Troják 🐾

This cache takes you to the now almost forgotten railway site known as Troják. You can find it in a small park established in 2022 on former railway land, on the site of disused tracks behind the locomotive depot. This area was once called "Na Trojáku," and in its heyday, it was a very busy railway hub.

Although the park itself is not named after Troják, our cache is about the history of this place. This is where the interchange tracks were located. Trains were hauled from here to the steelworks (formerly Vojtěšská huť, later Koněv SONP), while trains returning from the steelworks had to be pushed back. On this industrial spur, the elevation difference (according to our measurements) was 48 meters. With a track length of 3 km, this resulted in a gradient of 16 per mille (1.6%). This is why returning trains had to be pushed. In the era of steam engines, a railway wye (triangular junction) was used here to turn the locomotives.

Historical Context: Troják was part of the link between the Kladno-Nučice Railway (KND) and the Buschtiehrad Railway (BD). The KND opened in 1858 to transport iron ore and limestone to the steelworks. After the KND was partially closed in 1968, only the spur to the steelworks and the Max Mine remained. The small signal box "St. Troják" was one of the last surviving structures from the KND era (standing until at least 1981). Today, the dead-end tracks behind the park fence are the last remains of the Troják interchange tracks.

The name Troják (The Triple) likely refers to the splitting of the line into three directions: 1) towards Nučice, 2) towards the Amálie/Max Mine, and 3) the connecting link to the Buschtiehrad Railway.

Timeline of Development:

• 1846: Jan Váňa discovers the main coal seam – Kladno's industrial boom begins.

• 1854: Vojtěšská Steelworks opens.

• 1858: KND (Kladno–Nučice) and the railway wye open.

• 1890: Branch line to the Max Mine opens.

• 1990: Final decommissioning of the steelworks spur.

• 2022: New park and roundabout constructed.

About the Cache: Watch out for muggles and please do not use force. All you need is nimble fingers. Happy hunting!