Around Egerszalók Lake with a wheelchair

We reach the western tip of the valley dam of the Laskó Creek on the narrow but good-quality service road leading to the lake, and the main attraction of the lake unfolds before us: the magnificent panorama. Looking around, on the left behind the fence is the guard house of the water management, on the right the straight dam invites us. We start to the right along the steep lakeshore section marked by water utilities and a sluice system. It is worthwhile to start our tour eastwards because the final few hundred meters of the hike, a very rocky section, is done descending – making it easier than climbing up it with your assistant on this not wheelchair-friendly short section.

The lake was created by damming the Laskó Creek in 1982 for flood protection. We walk mostly on the developed section of the artificial lake, straight along the top of the dam under an old row of concrete lamp posts, in the panorama of the blue sky and water.

The end of the dam is marked as the asphalt strip underfoot disappears turning left, then the route meanders on variable, mostly gravel, but in many places clay-loess road surfaces until the end of our tour. Turning north, we follow the rather segmented outline of the lake, often moving away from the shoreline by a few hundred meters. On the right are beautifully curved cultivated fields and meadows giving rhythm to the landscape, on the left the rich lakeside bush and tree vegetation, often with forest-like canopy, accompanies us.

Bird-cherry, spindle, blackthorn, henbane, as well as oaks, aspens, and occasional planted locust or willows provide a beautiful overall picture along our way. On the northeastern side of the lake, as on the eventual far side which is even richer in vegetation, there are several opportunities to descend all the way to the shore with a wheelchair. Given the relatively long hike, it is worth appreciating these terrain conditions: approximately 1 km from the start comes the first such possibility. This section runs quite high along the shore, but the view of the lake is breathtaking: wild ducks, herons, cormorants, and lapwings make noise on the full water lake.

After a kilometer-long detour, we reach the “jungliest” northeastern tip of the lake. The road runs right next to the lake, with gently sloping shore accessible fishing spots extending into the water. It is worth taking a longer break here and enjoying the atmosphere. Slowly approaching the northern part of the lake, a long forest path - still passable with a wheelchair - leads across a peninsula deeply extending into the lake to a sandy-gravelly shore. If you missed the previous rest, definitely stop here: the peace of the peninsula tip offers a truly impressive experience.

After returning from the long tunnel-like forest, a few hundred meters later we turn left, then moving away from the lake we reach the clear water of the Laskó creek. Descending, we see that on foot one can cross the romantic watercourse by jumping stone to stone, and with a wheelchair we can wade through the shallow and for a short section concreted riverbed – presumably not possible during the increased water flow in spring.

After a short descent, we reach a beautiful meadow surrounded by mountains, where peacefully grazing horses enjoy the sunshine. We slowly turn in a long curve to the northwest side of the lake, where for a long section we walk on a flat but puddled meadow road in the shade of lush lakeside vegetation. On the right, the valley narrows, and from here it is worth taking advantage of paths that lead directly down to the water. Until the end of our tour, we find 3-4 such accessible spots in total.

We proceed almost straight south along the shore. The west side of the lake is much lusher and wooded than the east; in many places tall grass and shrubs block the descent and view, but occasionally steeper collapses also characterize the terrain. Therefore this shore section seems less disturbed. After a few kilometers, we reach the physically most difficult section of our tour: the heavily clayey water-sealing layer dresses the road with large puddles, then a moderately steep section with heavily embedded rocky parts in the roadbed makes progress difficult. We practically bypass the dam guard's premises, it is advisable to descend slowly with the help of our companion moving backward. At the bottom of the slope, we come out directly to the base of the asphalt strip leading up to the dam through the bushes. The water, sky, and trees’ wonderful union unfolds before us again, fittingly framing this great circular route.