Castles, mansions, caves in Bükkalja

Itinerary

• The tour leaves the center of Eger along the bicycle path next to the Eger creek, and all we have to do is follow the bike path to the border of Felnémet, where you turn right onto the bike path leading to Felsőtárkány.
• In Felsőtárkány, the bike path leads all the way to the terminus of the narrow-gauge railway (but bypasses the village center). Upon reaching the Main Street, turn right and proceed straight on the road towards Miskolc. The route leaves the settlement through a gorge, after which at the first opportunity, turn right onto a forest management road. (There is a cycling direction sign pointing the way to Bogács.)
• The forest management road leads to Bükkzsérc (at the only junction, go straight), then from the village border as a regular road through Cserépfalu to Bogács.
• A detour is required to the Bükkzsérc wine cellar row: turn right at the Black Ram Inn, then turn left at the hilltop. From the Baglyos wine cellar row, choose the vineyard road leading back in the valley of the Cherry creek.
• In Cserépfalu, turning left on Arany János Street, we make a detour towards the cave dwellings and the lookout tower.
• In Bogács, turn right at the fork in the village center onto the road leading through Noszvaj back to Eger.
• In Noszvaj, you can reach the Síkfőkút lakes by turning right onto Béke Street.
• Returning to Eger, turn left before the railway crossing (Bástya Street), then at the roundabout take the first right (Almagyar Street), then left onto Kossuth Lajos Street, which leads to the basilica.

Detailed description of the tour

From Eger to Bükk

Eger immediately brings to mind the castle, Dobó Square, or the Szépasszony Valley – and rightly so. The archbishop's seat and its surroundings tempt with many sights, many of which the route links together. Accordingly, we start from the impressive basilica, which is 90 meters long, its dome is 40 meters, the tower is 55 meters high; yet it was built quite quickly, within six years (between 1831-37) as the main cathedral of the Eger Archdiocese.

The diocese itself was likely founded by Saint Stephen as one of the first, probably around 1004. Initially, it consisted of nine, later fourteen counties and the Jászság region under its jurisdiction, from Heves all the way to Máramaros. Its center was originally the castle, but during the Turkish occupation, the rulers of Eger were mostly Protestant captains, and in 1566 Gáspár Mágóchy had the bishop and chapter's seat removed not only from the castle but also from Eger (which moved to Kassa). After the anti-Turkish wars, the bishopric could return to Eger, and in 1804 it was elevated to archbishopric rank by Pope Pius VII.

After this brief historical detour, let's see what we owe to the Eger archdiocese: next to (or rather beneath) the archbishop's palace lies the archbishop's cellar system, the basilica, and the archdiocesan library. The archbishop's palace now houses a visitor center where the world of the archbishops can be discovered in an authentic environment. The 4-kilometer-long tunnel system showcases the history and present of the cellars (where part of the 10-13 million liters of wine collected annually as church tithes was stored, including the archbishop's own wine), and presents the steps of cellar construction, grape growing, and winemaking.

Emerging from the cellar, it is worth heading towards Dobó Square through one of the narrow but atmospheric small streets. On the town's main square, besides masterpieces of Baroque architecture, you can admire the Centrum Department Store, built in the socialist era, dominated from the east by the well-known Eger Castle towering above and behind the houses. The castle’s name is linked with the famous siege of 1552, although a fortress stood there before: an earlier, smaller fort was expanded and fortified after the Tatar invasion. In the mid-16th century, the fortress was an important link in the border defense system, its captain from 1548 was István Dobó, who prioritized strengthening it. He undoubtedly expected the inevitable Turkish siege, which four years later was led by Pasha Kara Ahmed, Szokoli Mehmed from Rumelia, and Hadim Ali Beglerbég from Buda. Despite vastly outnumbered, the defenders heroically repelled the attacks for five weeks.

The castle houses numerous exhibitions: you can learn about the fortress’s history, descend into the casemates, shiver at the prison exhibition, or face the heroes of Egri csillagok in the wax museum. Géza Gárdonyi wrote his well-known novel about the siege during his years in Eger; his house serves as a memorial site not far from the castle and is worth visiting (it appears on the last few kilometers of the tour). The Turks, however, occupied the castle in 1596 and settled in the town for the long term, as testified by the still visible Turkish relics: the minaret, a bathhouse still in use, and another in ruins. Although many museums, churches, and curiosities await in Eger’s streets, it is time to head towards Bükk (and perhaps spend another day exploring the town before or after cycling).

Eger’s city center is bisected by a bicycle path along the Eger creek, which leads north all the way to Felsőtárkány, from where we begin the conquest of Bükkalja. The partly well-developed bike path turns into a true cycling freeway at the city limits – a label earned by both its quality and traffic.

At the border of Felnémet, turn right, then, winding past the timber yard, you reach the road leading to Felsőtárkány. The bike path runs on the former track of the forest railway in Felsőtárkány: the short current section where you can still ride the narrow-gauge train was once part of a longer network. The first rails were laid in 1915 for timber harvesting, and after World War I the traffic increased significantly when it was connected to Felnémet, followed in 1938 by a branch line toward Berva Valley for transporting raw materials from the quarry, and in 1965 the dolomite mine near Felsőtárkány also received an industrial siding. Today, only passenger transport remains on the five-kilometer line to Stimeczháza. Near the narrow-gauge terminus is a pond created by damming the water of the Szikla spring, where you can rest before the next stretch, which includes a long climb.

You leave the village on the road towards Miskolc through a gorge, then cycle in a wider, slightly ascending valley up to the first junction where you turn right onto a forest management road. (A cycling signpost also shows the way to Bogács, so it is difficult to miss.) Here begins a more serious climb, where you need to overcome 200 meters of elevation over five kilometers – the highest point of the climb (and the tour) can be easily recognized by a hunter's lodge (Völgyfő-ház). From here, a pleasant descent awaits us to Bükkzsérc through the Cherry creek valley.

Upon arrival in the village, a short detour to the wine cellars carved into the rhyolite tuff is recommended (they cannot be reached on asphalt). The atmospheric wine cellar row was created beneath the vineyard using the easily workable rock, but – as we will see later – not only wine cellars but also cave dwellings were made from it in the area.

Before viewing the latter, a real cave is almost on the way between Bükkzsérc and Cserépfalu: the Suba-lyuk is one of the most important prehistoric human fossil sites in Hungary. The bone fragments found here might belong to a 25-35-year-old woman and a three-year-old child, dating back 60-70 thousand years; they likely lived by hunting, their main prey being cave bears, wild horses, chamois, hares, and mammoths. At the entrance to the Hór Valley that hides the cave (next to the tour route), a visitor center awaits tourists, showcasing the geological foundations of Bükkalja’s stone culture (Miocene volcanic processes and geological formations, surface morphological features) as well as its cultural history (stoneworking artifacts and the beehive stones). A special exhibition presents the beginnings of Bükk prehistoric research, the 1932 excavation findings of Suba-lyuk cave, and the world of Neanderthal man. The resting place around the visitor center is perfect for eating brought sandwiches, but you can also choose from the menu of the on-site restaurant.

In Cserépfalu, reachable by a short descent, there is also reason to stop: like every worthy village in the area, there is a wine cellar row, but you can also discover "Kisamerika" and from the Millennium lookout tower, you can take a glance at the landscape. Kisamerika is the mocking name given to the local cave dwellings by the Reformed community, referring to how during the Great Depression richer villagers emigrated to America, while the poor dug their homes into the tuff walls and only reached "Little America." It is likely these cavities were carved at the beginning of the 20th century; a 1938 record shows that at that time 36 people lived in twelve cave dwellings here. (This is not so many, as the same source reports that together with ten surrounding settlements, 805 such dwellings were counted, inhabited by 4005 residents.) In 1975, someone definitely still lived in one of the homes; today, only sad memories remain. The lookout tower on the hill above the cave dwellings recalls the beehive stones found in many places in the area, its small openings form the Ursa Major constellation.

Bogács, mostly known for its baths, is only a few kilometers' ride away in the widening valley of the Hór stream. The renowned medicinal water surfaced due to a minor accident: in 1955, while primarily searching for petroleum on the village border, a careless move caused the drill pipe approximately 465 meters deep to fall 5-7 meters inside the already drilled hole, piercing the bedrock. Ten minutes later, 60-70°C calcium, magnesium bicarbonate and sulfur medicinal water came to the surface. It effectively aids the treatment of rheumatic, joint, and musculoskeletal diseases, is useful for the aftercare of fractures, and is also suitable for drinking cures. Those lucky enough not to require treatment in the medicinal pools can try the slide park, and children can enjoy swimming in two additional pools.

The village’s less known sight is the Árpád-era church standing in the cemetery. The Church dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours certainly existed by 1248, initially as a Romanesque building, which was later rebuilt in Gothic style. Research suggests the old structure might have been larger, possibly a three-nave building, maybe even with a crypt, and could have been part of a monastery. It is worth entering if open, as the ancient walls hide a unique interior.

In Noszvaj, besides the De la Motte Castle, the Farmer’s House, cave dwellings, and the Granary are worth visiting. The castle was built by Sámuel Szepessy between 1774–1778 in late Baroque, Copf style and is described on the village website as a "miniature masterpiece of Hungarian castle building." The park surrounding the castle was created as an English garden, where you can find a variety of special trees and ornamental shrubs, from yew to columnar oak, unusual acacia to lily tree. Inside, richly decorated rooms, original oak doors and windows with ornate locks can be found, and the ceremonial hall features a period Copf-style tiled stove. The Farmer’s House, or Noszvaj folklore house, was originally built in 1889 for the two households of two brothers from a wealthy farming family; since 1976 it has functioned as a folklore house, hosting local history exhibitions and preparing regional delicacies in its two ovens on special occasions, showcasing all the tricks of plum jam cooking during the Plum Day.

The cave dwellings (most easily reached by a small detour rolling inward to the village) demonstrate a very different lifestyle, although wealthier landowners also lived here (some even had verandas cut in front of their homes), not only the poorest residents as seen in Kisamerika. The easily moldable rhyolite tuff was originally quarried to allow the creation of the cave dwellings, which were gradually abandoned by their inhabitants. In 1997 the Farkaskő creative workshop was established (the dwellings are located in the Farkaskő hillside area), with the initial goal of restoring the dilapidated dwellings; now this has been achieved in ten houses, which as part of the Creative Camp host gatherings for visual arts, music, and landscape architecture.

Continuing from Noszvaj, a tough climb awaits the cyclist, during which a small detour allows resting by the beautifully situated Síkfőkút lakes. In the picturesque valley of the Kánya stream, fed by six springs, the resort began development in the 1930s and was already a popular destination for Eger locals. Previously, the lake formed from the water of the Saint Emeric spring was used as a bathing lake (in the 17th-18th centuries, sheep farming dominated here rather than tourism), a water mill operated on the Kánya stream, and today hundreds of weekend houses hide among the trees.

Between Noszvaj and Eger, you only need to climb the Nagy-Eged hill, the highest and most valuable vineyard site of the Eger wine region. It is worth mentioning the wines here, the most famous of which is Bikavér, a blend made from several grape varieties. The most typical varieties of the wine region are Italian Riesling, Chardonnay, and Linden leaf. Among the white grape varieties, Leányka is dominant, while among the blue grapes, Kékfrankos, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, Portugieser, Kadarka, and Cabernet Sauvignon dominate. Returning to Eger, it is worth tasting a good local wine, perhaps spending some time in one of the cellars of Szépasszony Valley.