Endurance route in the world of szerek

ENDURANCE ROUTE IN THE WORLD OF SZEREK

We are in Vas County, Hungary's westernmost region, getting a glimpse of the magical Őrség landscape and the world of szerek.

Leaving the start in Őriszentpéter and the town center, we find ourselves among the local szerek as we follow the curves of the asphalt strip in the early morning sunlight. One after another come Városszer, Kovácsszer, Templomszer, Keserűszer, which are actually all parts of Őriszentpéter, even though they may appear as separate small villages or sometimes isolated farms or homesteads. These szerek preserve in their names the family names or occupations of those who once lived here or some characteristic typical of the place.

The name Pityerszer likely comes from the pityer bird which was once common here. Papszer needs less explanation... The settlement forms on hilltops, sometimes with only a few houses, fundamentally served to protect the border area since the time of the Hungarian conquest. The name Őrség can also be traced back to this. In 1286, King Ladislaus IV rewarded the privileged guarding and protective duties of the former clans of the region with noble rights, which applied until the construction of the border castles.

But locals settled on the hilltops not only for defense. Besides the view, the wet, marshy valleys also pushed them here, as the clay soil that prevents rainwater seepage is hardly suitable as a permanent residence, especially when the spring thaw begins. Moreover, due to the nearby Alps, Őrség is much wetter than other parts of Hungary. This fact is also reflected in the diverse and vivid green vegetation.

We cover less than ten kilometers on the road when we reach Pityerszer, belonging to Szalafő, probably one of the best-known Őrség szerek as a village museum. Most of the beautifully renovated and maintained thatched houses here represent the 19th-century homesteads, farm buildings, and the everyday life of the people living then.

Continuing, we reach Orfalú, with barely sixty inhabitants, where locals recently renovated, in collective work, among other things, the village bell tower, the roadside crucifix, and fences. Here too, we can observe the huge maypoles decorated with colorful ribbons that are found in almost every settlement in the area.

Less than a kilometer from the village, we reach the Sűrű Forest rest area, where there is an opportunity to refresh before setting off to explore the Slovenian-Hungarian border. We follow the green trail running through the border strip clearing, passing just a few meters from Slovenia's northernmost point, which is also marked as a separate geographical point. The narrow border clearing is sometimes covered from above by tree canopies, creating atmospheric green tunnels where we can travel for kilometers, dodging the whitewashed border stones.

As we zigzag along the border, we have a view of the szerek of Kerkafő (Čepinci) as well, since the village structure in Slovenia is the same as ours, although it is called Vendvidék rather than Őrség. The traditional Hungarian name for Slovenians in Hungary is "Vendek"; from this comes the folk names Rábavidék and Muravidék as "Vendvidék." The inhabitants of the Vend villages in today's Hungary are mostly of Slovenian descent and maintain their traditions. Felsőszölnök is such a small village, the westernmost settlement of our country. We passed through it during our route. Here you can see both beautifully renovated homesteads and ruined houses indicating depopulation.

From the village, along the Szölnök stream and the Hampó valley, we reach the Austrian-Slovenian-Hungarian tripoint existing since 1920. After World War II, the area was inaccessible. The border was guarded by barbed wire and soldiers with orders to shoot. Then on May 27, 1989, the first opening of the Iron Curtain happened here, at the memorial stone marking the tripoint, where the three nations have since held a ceremonial meeting every year. From the tripoint rest area, we continue into Austria, but only about one and a half kilometers – meanwhile, we don’t even realize we are in a foreign country.

On this section, we also encounter a smaller historical border section before finally leaving the former Iron Curtain line. A short, barbed-wire fence section and a watchtower indicate that crossing here was strictly forbidden once. Nowadays anyone can climb the watchtower, but due to surrounding trees, there is hardly a view.

We continue winding through the hilly landscape, whose 300-meter altitudes bring a barely noticeable ascent of only 1330 meters throughout the whole day. We don’t need to climb steeply to the few-house János Hill belonging to Felsőszölnök, allowing us to look around the area from a small wooden observation tower, where our next stop is already visible.

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Continuing, we reach Kétvölgy, which once officially bore the name Ritkaháza. The sparsely populated settlement can still be found on maps near Permise, together with which it forms today’s Kétvölgy village. The szerek settlement structure can also be excellently observed here, although this place is not typically mentioned as an example.

We wind up to Kétvölgy’s bell tower through an alpine-like, tidy landscape, where we find the 8th checkpoint and refreshment place of our route. However, we cannot rest here for long because there are still 30 km ahead of us.

At the border of Permise, not only a huge maypole but an even bigger lookout tower stands. From here, a really beautiful panorama opens onto Őrség and Vendvidék, and the Alpine ranges are clearly visible. We head towards Farkasfa, belonging to Szentgotthárd.

On this section, we alternate between pine forests and birch groves, but the rich flora previously characteristic of the region is starting to diminish. Typical ferns and sedges are hardly present on the marshy meadows anymore, and fewer flowers are seen. Nevertheless, we can admire the bell tower so typical of Őrség settlements in Farkasfa as well. We stamp at the pub and, after some fatty bread, refreshments, and a breath, continue on our way.

From the village, we follow the red mark through the Nagy-árok area, crossing smaller and larger creek beds. This way, we reach Kondorfa, formerly belonging to Őriszentpéter, named after the now-extinct kondor bird once native here. Eleven kilometers remain from here. The last checkpoint is at the frog-croaking Bárkás-tó rest area. After so much walking, the comfortable benches can be quite inviting, although only 4 km remain to the finish.

The Őrség-Vendvidék routes organized by the Endurance Hikers' Association were held for the 25th time in 2017. Every five years, the 50 and 25 km distances can be completed together. We explore Őrség and the szerek under excellent organization, and I must especially mention the professional itinerary, which not only leads precisely through the world of szerek and the route but also stylishly allows collecting unique stamps.