Lutonina can be explored through two clearly distinct themes: the Průkopa natural monument and the traces of local and transport history that extend back to the unfinished Baťa Railway project. A cultural monument and the history of a village forge built in 1889 add to the picture of rural architecture. Visitors choosing Lutonina as a destination can focus either on nature and the route or on historical evidence and architecture.

Průkopa and the route across the meadows

The Průkopa natural monument covers 2.56 hectares, most of the protected area lying within the cadastral territory of Lutonina. The protected area is home to kruštík bahenní, kruštík růžkatý and kruštík širolistý. Thus, both the size of the area and three specific plant species are part of its natural profile.

The route described is 12.2 kilometres long and of moderate difficulty. About halfway along, it turns towards Lutonina, crosses extensive meadows and passes Průkopa. It also follows a cycle path along the trackbed of the never-completed Baťa Railway. The two figures describe different scales: 2.56 hectares refers to the natural monument, while 12.2 kilometres refers to the entire route. This makes it possible to understand Průkopa as a natural feature along a longer route.

Local and transport history

The first written mention of Lutonina dates from 1261 and is associated with the founding of the Cistercian monastery of Smilheim in Vizovice. This connection places the early history of the village within a specific monastic project and links its name to a documented historical relationship in the surrounding region.

A later chapter in infrastructure history began in 1934, when the Baťa company started construction of the Zlín–Valašská Polanka railway line. The project was intended to be extended to Púchov; the Baťa Railway was never completed. The planned extension shows that the project was meant to reach beyond the line on which work had begun. The early monastic history and the later railway plans thus offer two different historical perspectives on Lutonina: religious founding history and technical infrastructure.

Architectural heritage

The granary of rural homestead No. 34 in Lutonina is a cultural monument. Another architectural feature associated with the village can be seen outside Lutonina: the Valašské muzeum v přírodě in Rožnov pod Radhoštěm houses a copy of the stone part of the village forge built in Lutonina in 1889. This makes it possible to distinguish the place of origin from the place of display: the forge was built in Lutonina, while its copy can be seen at the museum in Rožnov. The granary and the forge represent different facets of architectural history: a rural homestead in the village and a craft building whose stone part is displayed as a copy outside Lutonina.

Discover more destinations: Nedašova Lhota, Machová, Dobrkovice, Kaňovice, Provodov, Petrůvka, Podhradí U Luhačovic, Vysoké Pole.

For the overview of the wider area: Zlín District.