Bélapátfalva – Bánkút (OKT Day 52 Hike)

From the train stop (stamp station)—whose name recalls the former cement factory—an asphalt road leads to Gyári Lake, from whose shore we can catch one last glimpse of the jagged monster that is Bél-kő. Mining continued until the 1960s using a terraced and stepped method (at which point the walls, which had become dangerous, were abandoned, and quarrying continued at the top of the mountain), and the traces this left behind are a defining feature of the western face of the Bükk Mountains.

The small reservoir dammed up on the stream supplied water to the former cement factory. There’s also a stamp at the entrance to the Szomjas Csuka restaurant on the bank. We continue our journey through the valley toward the Bükk Mountains; to the left is a campsite equipped with a water spigot, followed by a covered rest area, as the trail begins a gentle ascent. Even when reaching steeper slopes, the Blue Trail’s route remains gentle, as we wind our way higher and higher in wide curves beneath the closing canopy of trees. There is a rest area at a saddle, but two green helmets draw attention to soldiers’ graves: Horst Ostenburg and his unknown comrade lost their lives here in the winter of 1944 during the battles of World War II.

From here on, the atmosphere of the higher reaches of the Bükk Mountains begins to appear in the forest landscape: there are more and more beech trees and rocky outcrops breaking through the ground, and the slopes become steeper. At another simple rest stop, the K trail markers turn right to make a wide loop around Ördög Hill. A short detour takes us to the western edge of the Bükk Plateau, Bél-kő, where, standing above the mine yard on a terrace, we can look out over the North-Central Mountains and, on a clear day, the mountains of the Felvidék region. The blue trail turns back and, crossing a meadow (another rest stop), heads to the southern edge of the plateau—we’ll be walking along its slope for the next few hours.

We follow a forest road carved into limestone and winding through a beech forest on the southern slope of Ördög Hill, catching glimpses of the surrounding landscape through the trees—which lies far below us, as we are well above 800 meters in elevation. We cross another meadow, then pass through a dark, rocky section of forest, and finally arrive at the edge of a clear-cut pine forest—a simple rest area stands beside the trail.

The Blue Trail leads to the foot of Őr-kő; to the left, the limestone cliff face of the second most prominent peak in the Bükk mountain range (from the west) rises. To the right, the silhouette of a small, terraced house emerges from the dark beech forest: the Őr-kő House operated as a mountain lodge until the 2010s; today it is closed. Emerging from the hollow beneath the rock face, we reach the Őr-kő meadow, equipped with a rest area, from where it’s worth following the K▲ trail, which branches off to the left, for a detour of about 2x10 minutes to climb to the top of Őr-kő. The trail, winding through the rocks, eventually cuts across the scree field at the back of the cliff and offers a view of a significant portion of the Southern Bükk from the edge of the cliff. Őr-kő rises not on the edge of the plateau but in the second line of the Bükk Mountains. To the left, the “necks” of Tar-kő and Pes-kő come into view, with the southeastern part of the mountain range undulating behind them. In the distance, Felsőtárkány, Vár-hegy, and Eger come into view—in this direction, long, forested ridges stretch out, with the Kékes massif rising in the background. The name Őr-kő may refer to its prehistoric function.

Returning to the Blue Trail, the wildest section of the hike begins: the narrow path winds through a natural forest, often over rocky terrain, as we traverse one of the country’s most desolate, remote wildernesses, far from any settlements. The trail winds its way across a rugged rocky surface, among ash and beech trees; with the Kocsmáros Meadow visible to the left, but we bypass it before reaching the Pes-kő-kapu cliff, which offers a view of the Felsőtárkány basin. The long, winding valleys make it clear just how far we are from the nearest inhabited areas.

After descending a limestone escarpment, we bypass the strictly protected Pes-kő through an old beech forest on undulating terrain, then arrive at the Cserepes-kői rock shelter through a breezy, grassy, and stony-bottomed ash and beech grove; the shelter appears nestled between the cliffs rising to the left. A door visible in the semicircular cave opening conceals the cave shelter, which had been used for centuries by hunters and foresters before it was converted into a refuge in 1950. (Even outlaws took refuge here in the 19th century.) The 6x4-meter cavity contains bunks, a potbelly stove, and some equipment—nomadic conditions, but the atmosphere of the place makes it worth spending a night here. The stamp is located next to the door.

Cserepes-kői Cave Lodging – Bánkút

Leaving the cave, the trail winds beneath old, gnarled trees; walking is made difficult by the dense network of limestone ridges crisscrossing the ground. The rock carpet actually formed beneath the ground as acids produced by the trees’ roots and rainwater—which absorbed carbon dioxide from the soil—began to dissolve and furrow the limestone. Later, the soil was washed away, exposing the rocky surface. This furrowed karst formation, known as a “karst,” is also colloquially called “the devil’s plow.”

The trail eventually turns right, and when it emerges from the trees, perhaps the most beautiful stretch of the entire National Blue Trail—a few dozen meters long—begins: the trail cuts across a sloping, grassy meadow; to the right, behind the Vörös-kő Valley, the rolling hills of the Southern Bükk range stretch out. Leaving the clearing behind, rocky terrain follows, then we turn left into a dense ash and beech forest. Climbing over fallen trees, we ascend a gentle slope through a tall beech forest—from the early 20th century, railroad tracks were used here to transport timber, connecting to the Szalajka Valley Railroad via a funicular built in the Kukucsófunicular, which connected to the Szalajka Valley railway. When the Primeval Forest was designated a protected area, this section was dismantled.

In this particularly dark, enclosed terrain, we finally reach the base of the Tar-kő rock formation. The Blue Trail turns right, and we arrive at the fenced-off boundary of the Őserdő. Only a few mountain maples and tall ash trees mingle with the beech trees, but in a small patch on the southern side, an oak grove also thrives. Some of these giant trees are “only” 200 years old, yet the view that unfolds before us is that of a forest untouched by human influence. The area is part of the Forest Reserve Program; accordingly, there is no human intervention here, and the forest’s life is governed by the natural cycle. The old trees (mainly) split and fall during windstorms, and their decaying trunks sustain countless decomposers and enrich the soil as humus. Fallen trees create gaps in the canopy, allowing sunlight to penetrate to the forest floor, where saplings begin to grow, competing with one another. Thus, we see a forest with a varied age composition and an uneven canopy level, whose sheltered environment results in exceptional species richness.

The Primeval Forest was taken out of agricultural use in the early 19th century, and in 1942, Lajos Király, a forestry engineer from Szilvásvárad who worked locally, persuaded the owner of the area, Count Pallavicini, who held him in high regard, to ensure that the forest area would remain undisturbed and be designated as a protected area—since then, it has served as a site for scientific research into the natural processes of the forest ecosystem.

We skirt around the reserve along its fence; a short climb is followed by a descent, and then, in an old beech forest, we tackle the long, sometimes steep ascent to Tar-kő. Although the Blue Trail bypasses the highest of the Bükk rocks, we should definitely make a detour to the rocky outcrop, from which the entire Southern Bükk—along with the Mátra—comes into view. Although the forests of the undulating mountain range below us are scarred by massive clear-cuts, the forest on the plateau’s edge is interrupted only by limestone cliffs (e.g., Sima-kő and Három-kő to the left). The vertical limestone layers of the rock formation—which run in a roughly straight line—lost their support due to the faster erosion of the shale beneath them, and eventually cracked and broke off—leaving behind enormous, gleaming “scars.” Their cavities, ledges, and rocky grasslands provide shelter for a rich variety of wildlife and serve as nesting sites for numerous protected birds of prey.

From Tar-kő, we turn toward the center of the plateau and descend through a dense, mixed forest to a meadow, from which we can take a 10-minute detour to Három-kő. The Blue Trail, however, turns toward a long chain of meadows: we soon cross the Zsidó Meadow, one of the Bükk’s most beautiful and distinctive spots. The meadow, dotted with juniper bushes and featuring a surface undulating with sinkholes, exudes the atmosphere of higher mountains. Cold air pools at the bottom of the former sinkholes, and it is these depressions that hold the record for the lowest summer temperatures in our region.

Beginning in the 18th century, nearby brick and ironworks, as well as glassworks, cleared vast areas of the Bükk forests. Although the need for forest management became apparent—and cadastral surveys were initially conducted with the help of experienced foresters from Liptó—regulations were established not only for harvest volumes but also for rotation periods and the process of reforestation; but grazing and acorn gathering played a very important role in forest use at that time. Cattle, horses, pigs, and sheep roamed the mountainous areas, grazing the saplings in large numbers and thus creating clearings. Their size is vividly illustrated by the fact that by 1911, these clearings had merged in the areas of Létrás, Jávorkút, and what is now Nagy-mező. Today, of course, many of them have disappeared, and the remaining ones have shrunk in size, but they still exist—and this is thanks to mowing. This activity, which was previously carried out to provide fodder for livestock, is also ideal for the soil because it does not compact it; furthermore, it helps preserve the diversity of species in this unique habitat—which is precisely why it is now carried out primarily for nature conservation purposes.

Leaving Zsidó Meadow behind, we cross the plateau mostly through the forest toward Bánkút. We walk along a paved road; near the meadow of the Kis-Sár Valley, a covered rain shelter is hidden beneath the trees. The trail climbs gently; only at the elongated, pitted meadow of the Mély-Sár Valley does the forest open up, and here and there a group of spruce trees still appears—though most have already been harvested, as climate change is destroying this species, which was originally planted and is not native to this elevation. Upon reaching the northern side of the plateau, we turn right—here, beneath the trees, the Madonna of Faktor Meadow is found on an old beech tree. The holy image served as a place of prayer for forest workers laboring far from the villages; it was placed here (at an unknown date) because, according to oral tradition, the Virgin Mary appeared here on several occasions.

A short stretch through the forest gives way to a meadow, and then, following the power line, we reach the mountain settlement of Bánkút. Built by 1930 alongside a plentiful spring in the center of the plateau, the Bánkút Tourist House now bears the name Fehér Sas Guesthouse. The owner of the property, Margrave Alfonz Károly Pallavicini, made the site available to the Hungarian Tourist Association for an annual (nominal) rent of 1 pengő, specifically for the purpose of building the house (to which he also contributed building materials and transportation). The tourist facility, which was popular in its early days, came under state management after World War II and gradually fell into disrepair due to a lack of necessary modernization and renovations. The facility, which had endured a turbulent history, closed by the end of the 1980s and, left to its own devices, fell into complete disrepair. The ruins were purchased in 1997, and the guesthouse has been in operation ever since. Moving on, at the foot of the ski slopes, we find today’s tourist lodge, the Bánkút Ski Club’s ski lodge.

The current tourist lodge, located at the base of the ski slopes, was originally built as a ski lodge in 1979 and operated as a self-catering lodge for a time starting the following year. The stamps can be found in the lodge’s common room and on the wall of the dining hall building behind it. Both the tourist lodge and the Fehér Sas guesthouse have kitchens, so we can round out our hike with a meal. And don’t miss the detour to Bálvány: at the end of this roughly 15-minute, slightly uphill hike, you can admire the panoramic view from the highest point in the Bükk Mountains, which encompasses the plateau, the mountains of Northern Hungary, and a significant portion of the Slovakian section of the Carpathians—it’s worth arriving at sunset. (However, it’s worth noting the tower’s design: the upper observation level is accessed via a steep, exposed ladder, which may be daunting for those with a fear of heights.)