Beautiful view: In the footsteps of the discovered southern Eurovelo

Itinerary:

• From the Clark Ádám tér starting point, follow the Eurovelo signposts to Nagytétény.
• The section without markings begins at Campona Street in Nagytétény, where the route leads along a narrow path by the guardrail on the Danube side of Road 6, then on a dirt road to the start of the dam.
• The dam leads into Érd Ófalu, from where we exit onto Római Street and then Mély Street.
• At the city border turn left onto the gravel road Fehérkereszt, then continue along Battai Road to Sánchegyi Street, where a cliffside detour is possible.
• After the detour, Battai Road takes you into the Old Town.

Detailed description of the route:

From zero to the Roman camp

From the starting point, we set off southward along the marked Eurovelo 6 route on the embankment. The riverside bike path from here to Kopaszi-gát is quite well known and relatively easy to ride. The designated route crosses to the Szerémi Street bike path, sheltered by the noise barrier, but many prefer to ride by the water beside Kopaszi-gát and return to the riverside dam from Budafoki Road near Kondorosi Road.

The asphalt on the dam is of relatively good quality, allowing the tires to glide, leaving the inner-city crowds far behind. Recently, an increasing number of people have discovered this path too, quietly expanding the Dunaparty Megálló terrace inside the London double-decker bus, which has become a popular cyclist destination. Similarly further south, next to the riverside bike path, are the ruin-pub style Kompház bistro and the upscale Vasmacska terrace. It is certainly worth stopping in one of these for a refreshment during the ride.

Especially because a somewhat less pleasant section follows. First, through a grassy area between the riverbank trees and the industrial district fence, where suspicious odors come from the yeast factory and paper processing plant beyond the fence, but thanks to the smooth asphalt here, it can be crossed quickly. Next to the ruined waterworks building of the former paper mill, the broken, rocky sidewalk is tough on kidneys. Fortunately, this section is also short. On Háros Street beside Road 6, we roll into the garden plot fishermen's colony, where every street is named after a fish, and at Csutak pub, a holdout from the 1980s, you can take a short break with a beer among friends.

The quality bike path leads from the pub to the M0 bridge, over which you can even cycle to Csepel, but we stay by the river and roll on a dirt road to the Nagytétény Castle Museum beside the park. The castle and park can only be viewed from outside for now, as renovations are underway. The former Rudnyánszky Castle is one of the best-known Hungarian Baroque monuments. Built around 1750 on the foundations of a Roman villa about 1500 years older, its once vast Baroque park has shrunk. Its pheasant garden and most of its special plants are now part of history.

Next to the ancient Roman villa was a military camp, which gave its name to the nearby shopping center. Campona Castrum was part of the fortress chain that included Aquincum and the southern Matrica settlement and lay along the Roman road running by the Danube. Built after Emperor Trajan's reign, it was burned by the Sarmatians, rebuilt again, and destroyed once more—this cycle lasted until the 4th century. Its ruins still show some wall fragments.

Towards a minaret alongside the guardrail

From the camp, we ride along the Nagytétény Road bike path to Campona Street, which crosses the busy Road 6. Cycling on the road is unsafe, but the route is drawn on the opposite side, so we cross over and, alongside a dirt pile to avoid, start looking for the path. The narrow path pressed against the guardrail is not easy to find, but this 800-meter section is literally and figuratively the narrowest point of the route. Whoever does not give up and struggles through it will soon reach a wider dirt road followed by a nice paved bike path on the Érd dam. This is one of the most beautiful and peaceful parts of the route. On both sides, grassy meadows and rows of trees, behind them the wide mirror of the Danube—the cyclist seems to disappear in the vast space.

On the right side, a strange tall pointed building appears: a minaret. Few know that Érd has Hungary's third largest minaret after Pécs and Eger. Built by the Turks in the 1600s, the 23-meter-high, polygonal tower is open to visitors who can climb to its top, from where you can see Érd Ófalu, and towards the Danube, the former Beliczay Island.

The former island is no longer separated from the shore by a river, but its large green area still makes it island-like. If the ride is not rushed, the Tőzike nature trail meanders on the island, leading to the summer snowflake meadows that are currently in bloom. According to the information board, the island was a true island until the 1800s, but an old side arm of the river became swampy and filled in due to river regulation. It is named after a famous gingerbread family from Pest, who owned the island between the two world wars.

From the island entrance, the street also called Római út on the map continues towards Százhalombatta, as it has for some two thousand years. Wide strips of the alleged Roman pavement have been preserved along the street, but according to archaeologist Flóris Rómer, the Roman limes road section in Érd had earlier been so damaged that "it is actually covered by flat stones laid in modern times."

Matrica: the imprint of the Roman era

The cyclist must struggle up a fairly steep incline from Római út. Luckily, the road is flanked by wine cellars on both sides, where cool spritzers can boost performance. Next to Érd's Kakukkhegy holiday garden outskirts, we pedal along a long gravel road towards the Old Town of Batta, but midway we must add a detour to the Danube. Here rises the vertical cliff face of the Érd high bank 40 meters above the Danube. Along the cliff are three viewpoints, probably the most beautiful being the Sánc Hill. One can sit for a long time up there; the Danube can rarely be seen from such a beautiful angle. The battai Old Town is now near, where at the edge we almost collide with the gates of the Matrica Museum and Archaeological Park.

The museum is named after Matrica (pronounced mátrika), the Roman-era settlement located on the site of Százhalombatta. The permanent exhibition guides visitors through a large space from the Ice Age to the 19th century—through locally found artifacts. In the archaeological park, there are five burial mounds, one of which has been restored to its original state after archaeological excavation. Százhalombatta owes its name to these 2700-year-old Iron Age mounds, built by the so-called Hallstatt culture.

From here, the cyclist can reach the leafy pebble beach in a few minutes downhill and wait at the ferry harbor for the occasional ferry. This is the end turnaround point, but those wanting to explore a bit more can do so at the nearby Pali Csárda with a beer, whose atmosphere—if lucky—is accented by the shouts of footballers training on a nearby pitch. The return follows the same route, but if there is still strength and time, one can cycle over the M0 bridge to Csepel and, heading towards Szigetszentmiklós, take a big detour along the completely different atmosphere of the Ráckevei-Duna back to Budapest.