Bike highway from Püspökvár to the abbey in the Little Hungarian Plain

Itinerary:

• From the railway station head north towards Győr city center, where we will make a loop.
• Returning to the railway station, cross the Baross bridge heading south, then after leaving the overpass turn right, then turn right twice more, circling around the bus station. Passing under the overpass turn right again – from here the bike path leads straight to Pannonhalma, so just keep going straight to the destination. (Inside Győr follow the cycling infrastructure on the Bartók Béla Road-Szent Imre Road-Veszprémi Road route, which appears as bike paths, bike lanes, or combined pedestrian and bike paths.)
• In the center of Nyúl, turn right at the church if you want to see the wine cellar row; the road leads straight there from the village center (Jókai Street-Szurdik Street-Vaskapu Street). Return to the cycle path to Pannonhalma along the same route.
• On arrival in Pannonhalma, follow the bike path, then where it ends continue towards the town center along Dózsa Street, then Mátyás Király Street up to Porta Pannonhalma.
• From the Porta ride back to the old marketplace, then turn right, and at the upper end of the square take another right, and follow the road all the way to the abbey.
• Upon reaching the abbey, turn right and follow the road running along the ridge to Boldog Mór Lookout.
• From the lookout return along the same route to the abbey – you can reach the tourist entrance by rolling along an atmospheric chestnut tree avenue.
• From the abbey, passing under the visitor center Tricollis’ pedestrian bridge, ride straight along the steep Hunyadi (then Petőfi) Street all the way to the railway station.

Detailed description of the route

Leaving the railway station, it is worth heading straight toward the city center alongside the imposing building of the town hall. At the neat square in front of the town hall, we immediately find an attraction: the recently erected Győr Cross with the iron rooster on top reminding visitors of the Turkish times. The oldest symbol of the city is the crowing iron rooster, whose legend says that in 1594, when the Turks occupied Győr and placed the crescent and red brass weathercock on the tower of the Danube bastion, the Grand Vizier Sinan allegedly shouted: "When this copper rooster crows, and the crescent beneath the rooster fills, then the Hungarians will retake Győr." Indeed, in March 1598, this happened: a soldier climbed the Danube bastion and crowed, and the Turks who raised their heads saw the rising sun complete the crescent, prompting them to flee headlong. The significance of the victory is shown by a decree issued one month later in Lower Austria in the name of Emperor Rudolf: "On all roads, passes, and borders of Lower and Upper Austria, downed or weather-beaten crosses and statues shall be renewed with a cross within two months and inscribed or carved with easily readable black letters on stone or metal these memorial words: Give thanks and praise to God for returning the fortress of Győr to us."

Napoleon’s visit

After this little historical "warm-up" of the city, we cross Saint Stephen Street and head towards the city center. The "city of rivers," the seat of Győr-Moson-Sopron County, offers enough sights and programs for cyclists for several days, so if you only come for a one-day route, you can just taste the city's atmosphere.

In the city center, it is worth having a look at the eclectic facades from various eras. You can head out on any small street toward Széchenyi Square, discovering small courtyards characteristic to Győr, but Király Street promises a real attraction: Napoleon stayed here in 1809 (according to the plaque on the house: "I. Napoleon stayed here on Aug 31, 1809."). The French armies marched into Vienna in May, after which Napoleon issued a proclamation to the Hungarians calling for separation from the Habsburg dynasty and election of a national king. The Hungarian nobility chose resistance instead and was defeated by the French on June 14. According to contemporary records, Napoleon arrived in the city in a six-horse carriage to personally assess the city's defenses. A legend is associated with this unusual event: the bullet lodged in the opposite house's wall was allegedly shot by Napoleon himself at night to silence the loud partying people.

The nearby Széchenyi Square has always been the city's main square: the stage for popular assemblies, trials, executions, and markets throughout history. The Vastuskós House, the Saint Ignatius Church, and the Marian column erected in 1686 after the liberation of Buda could all be symbols of Győr if the iron rooster didn’t claim this right. The small streets around the square are hard to resist from spring to autumn: numerous cafés, restaurants, and confectioneries tempt passersby with terraces on the pedestrian streets.

Leaving the city center's streets behind but not getting too far from the baroque atmosphere part of the city, many other sights can be discovered in the surroundings. At Bécsi Gate Square, the dominant Carmelite Church (and the monastery hiding behind it) draws attention; then head towards the bridge crossing the Rába River. On the one hand, on Radó Island, it’s worth taking a look at Heroes’ Square (in the background by the riverside stands the country's oldest boathouse built in 1897, awaiting its fate to turn right), and in the other direction, towards Püspökvár. The fortress on the northwest side of Káptalandomb has been the residence of Győr's bishops, and it's very likely the Romans also liked this strategic point, as finds suggest a castrum belonging to the Arrabona camp might have stood here. The medieval castle site that became Káptalandomb housed not only the bishopric but also the county administration in the Middle Ages; today besides Püspökvár, the most significant building is the Győr Basilica. The first version of the cathedral was built in the 11th century; however, due to historical storms and multiple reconstructions, the oldest parts today exhibit Gothic style elements but are mostly dominated by early Baroque. The basilica is perhaps not architecturally but rather sacral significant, as Saint Ladislaus’s reliquary is kept here, containing a piece of the king’s skull.

Not far from here on the banks of the Rába, near the Petőfi Bridge, stands the Győr synagogue. The large historic and Art Nouveau-style building visibly served a populous community from its opening in 1870 until the perilous era. In 1944, 5700 people were deported from Győr and its surroundings, and although the synagogue was rededicated in 1946, the greatly diminished Jewish community could no longer maintain the synagogue or the adjoining school, and the building became state property. Since then, it has been used as a cultural space up to this day.

On this side of Nyúl, beyond Nyúl

Wherever we end the sightseeing, we must definitely get back to the railway station; from there a practically straight road leads to Pannonhalma. Crossing the Baross bridge over the tracks, a small loop follows around the bus station (be careful here, traffic is heavy especially during weekday rush hours), before reaching the southbound cycling path leading out of the city to the bike highway. Just as it is often not easy to leave a big city by car, this bike route also has small and large challenges, but at least cycling infrastructure is available all the way. Nevertheless, be alert at roundabouts and at one or two joining side streets. At the border of Győr – after crossing main road 82 – a true bike highway welcomes you without exaggeration. The wide, mirror-smooth asphalt road – from almost every point of which you can see the abbey rising on the hilltop – runs mostly parallel with the railway and road 82 to Écs and is worth stopping at a few places due to a few minor sights.

Immediately at the county seat border, we see the first cyclist rest area, which is truly comfortable (bike stands, tables, benches, rain shelter house welcome the cycling tourist), and nearby there is also a monument commemorating the fight against Napoleon. There are quite a few similar rest areas along the route – without monuments of course. The next facility could compete for the title of coolest cyclist rest area, as you can even roll in through a Székely gate to enjoy a muesli or a sandwich. Nyúl is not far from here, where it is worth leaving (or at least visiting the church) the mostly main road-adjacent pedestrian and bike path towards the wine cellar row. As is generally the case, the facility is also on a hill here, but no one should be discouraged by the initial 10% ascent: it’s tough but not long. The road leads through the Sárkánylik gorge towards the cellars (interestingly, this gorge is also called like this, for example, in the Szekszárd region): it is 650 meters long, 40-60 meters wide, and even 20-30 meters deep; there is a 50-meter altitude difference between its lower and upper end. But let’s look behind the numbers – how was the gorge formed? After the expulsion of the Turks, the growing population cleared larger forest areas to increase vineyard areas, allowing water mixed with loess to rush down unimpeded after heavy rainfall. Initially, this mass of water flowed down another street, then cutting through a watershed it was led to Sárkánylik, where it could cause damage for decades, shaping the valley’s current form until between 1936 and 1980, ten stone dams were built to tame the flood. In the Sárkánylik loess wall, you can also see cellars, even some where local wine can be purchased.

After Nyúl, we reach Écs, whose most famous landmark is the Rábaring – the test track started to be built by Rába Magyar Vagon- és Gépgyár in 1984 (truck manufacturing still thrived in Győr back then). Thanks to a well-built test track, newly developed machines and parts can undergo load tests where they can endure even a hundred or a thousand "weekday" kilometers of strain per kilometer. The multi-part area has a high-speed track with banked turns, a so-called fatigue track, and a cobbled section, but gravel roads, parallel and broken ribbed shutter roads, short and long wave tracks, a water-floodable basin, and a winding mountain road can also be found. In 1990, a motorsport race was held on the track completed two years earlier, accessible by turning right at the "Rábaring" sign from the village main road. New winds are also blowing in Écs, as right next to the bike path there is a cool pump track that local youths apparently quickly took over. It’s worth trying, and it’s not as dangerous as it looks to those who have not cycled on similar bumps. You can roll through it at very low speed, but of course, it is real fun when after a few laps you can pump up and down the asphalt strip with higher momentum.

Leaving the last houses of Écs behind, then after a slight curve crossing the Győr–Veszprém railway line (once the Győr-Dombóvár HÉV line, trains originally rattled from Veszprém along the Hajmáskér-Lepsény-Tamási route), we turn onto a straight stretch. And what a straight stretch it is! The block dominating the landscape on the hilltop, the Pannonhalma Benedictine Archabbey, is already visible while we ride almost on flat, perfect asphalt road lined with trees. Upon entering the border of Pannonhalma, a mild ascent starts, lasting all the way to the village center. Here we do not turn immediately towards the abbey but first drop in at the Porta Pannonhalma visitor center. The Porta serves three functions: an exhibition is available from the local Tourinform office, especially popular with children as it presents the Turkish wars using various interactive tools. The building also houses a restaurant, while on the other side of the parking lot there is a bike shop, where besides service, e-bike rental is also possible.

Climb, library, lookout

Leaving the Porta, head towards the abbey – whichever direction you approach from, the steep climb will definitely be a bit challenging. It is worth choosing a deep uphill direction on the Castle Lower Road because here there is almost always shade, and many information boards tell about the settlement and the abbey’s history (thus all giving a reason for a breath during the climb with frequent stops). Overcoming the roughly 120-meter altitude is worth the effort, because if we don’t head straight to the abbey gate but instead choose the other direction along the ridge road, besides many sights, we can enjoy a wonderful panorama. First the Millennium Memorial, then the Chapel of the Blessed Virgin, and finally continuing in the forest we reach the Boldog Mór Lookout and the canopy trail inaugurated in 2018. The Millennium Memorial was built in 1896 along with six others (only the one in Ópusztaszer has survived besides this; the buildings in Zimony, Brassó, Mukachevo, Nyitra, and Dévény have been destroyed); originally, its top was decorated with a three-meter diameter replica of the Holy Crown, but this was dismantled in 1936-37 due to deterioration. Regarding the canopy trail, the name is a bit misleading: walking along the 80-meter-long fish-shaped structure, we learn very little about the foliage, but much more about the surrounding settlements by reading the information boards. The view, however, is spectacular both from the "head" of the fish and from the top of the 20-meter-high wooden structure; from there looking south, you see the Bakony Hills, to the east the ranges of Gerecse and Vértes, and naturally, you can also contemplate the view of the plains surrounding Sokorót in the Little Hungarian Plain.

The Pannonhalma Archabbey offers another kind of reflection. Having bought the ticket at the cashier, we can step out with an audio guide on our neck onto the terrace of the former monastery, now abbey, founded in 996 by Prince Géza bringing in Czech monks.

Entering the library, a stunning sight greets the visitor: thousands of volumes are lined up on high shelves in amazing order. At the end of the 11th century, the abbey already had 80 volumes (which today would be considered a small number in a home library, but was a serious collection 900 years ago); today, about 400,000 volumes are preserved here. From the library building erected at the beginning of the 19th century, we can walk across to the 13th century basilica preserving early Gothic features. During this time travel, it is worth stopping in front of the richly decorated main door of the church and looking more closely at the door through which we enter: snakes, lizards, frogs, and various other animals appear in its decoration. The basilica creates a particularly clear effect, thanks to the restoration completed in 2012. The transformation of the three-naved interior space sparked intense debates among conservationists and architects at the time – it can be claimed confidently by laypeople that excellent work was done during the renovation. After visiting the crypt with its narrow but especially beautiful capitals filled with Gothic columns, we can reach the cloister from the church, where Gothic stained glass windows shield the meditators from the noise of the outside world.

From the abbey, riding towards the arboretum and lavender field, a slight detour can be made – though in this case, you have to climb back up the hill. There is much to discover on this side too: besides the arboretum and tea room (even the wine cellar), there is already a perfume museum waiting for visitors. As implied from the list, those who want to see everything thoroughly should certainly devote at least half a day to Pannonhalma. Those who prefer more cycling can return to Győr on the bike path, or make a loop from Pázmándfalu to return to the county seat, but a détour towards Ravazd-Tényő-Ménfőcsanak is also possible. A direct road leads from the abbey to the railway station through the settlement.