Border stretching on the forest ridge

Itinerary

• In Hangony, turn onto Rákóczi Ferenc Street, then walk left on the first street to the church.
• From the church, continue on the vineyard road ascending the hill next to the mortuary.
• Before the hilltop called Mociarne, turn right onto a forest road that leads to the border.
• At the border, follow the Z mark to the corner of the meadow after the Pogányvári rock.
• At the corner of the meadow, turn onto the crosswise tire tracks.
• Descend to the grassy valley bottom, where turn right onto a vineyard road.
• Upon reaching the village, return to the center via Szabadság Street and then Rákóczi Ferenc Street.

Detailed description of the hike

Amid open hilltops and a ring of forest paths

Hangony, located at the confluence of stream valleys, is surrounded by rolling hilltops and the extensive Gömöri forest ridge rising at the border. Despite the topographical barrier this ridge forms, it formerly belonged to the counties of Gömör and Kishont, symbolized by the black eagle on its coat of arms. We leave the main road through the village heading north, then take the first left onto a steep street with steps at the end. The hill is crowned by the Saint Anna Church, surrounded by a cemetery. Its name matches that of the nearby Barát Valley’s former Pauline monastery church, whose remaining stone crosses can be seen inside. We bypass the church, then pass alongside the mortuary, cutting through the fence gate guarding the pasture to start on a gently ascending vineyard road.

As we climb higher, it is worth looking back to reveal the wide surroundings of Hangony. Mostly treeless, the landscape behind the village rolls in blocky landslides on the hillsides, with the massive mass of the Bükk Mountains visible in the distance. After leaving a planted forest patch, the narrowing ridge marking the border appears fully to the right, its steep mountain character emphasized by the raw cliff face of Pogányvár. Dark pine patches mix with the green mantle of deciduous trees on the side slopes, while broad pastures stretch below – and the sight of flocks or grazing cattle is not unfamiliar here.

Forest tranquility in the border zone

As we enter the forest dominated by acacias and oak, the sandy tire track bends through a few large curves and puts a few short but sweaty climbs on our way. When a grassy wooded patch appears on the steep slope of the hill to the left, we find the Dobra Hill lookout—actually the rotting remains of it—on a path going backward. The "magnified" high stand-like tower lined with resting places has rotted planks and is dangerous to visit; moreover, it offers no panorama as it has been swallowed by the acacia canopy. At the path fork, we can see more: the narrow valley below and the rolling hills to the Bükk.

From here, the forest road follows the gently undulating wooded ridge, revealing the entire Vajdavár region with the Mátra Mountains in the background from the edge of a logging clearing. This view well illustrates that behind the higher Northern Central Mountains and their foothills lies an extensive hilly region. Leaving several detours of the bulldozer road behind, passing young forests and clearings, we get another glimpse of the Pogányvár surroundings. Behind the growing renewal, the massif of the Slovak Carpathians emerges before we reach the main ridge. To do this, turn right at the junction of a felled forest block under the trees (road of similar width to before). Upon stepping on the Z mark, the landscape completely changes: forest management disturbed the border zone less in the second half of the 20th century, so older, more vital forests now provide decoration. The landscape also dons a new character: although the ridge is flat and wide, its side slopes are steep, and dark, closed valley heads reveal wild beech forests.

Ascending through oak forest, the path curves left; to the right, through the trees, you can spot the geodetic concrete cylinder of Barát-fő. With a short detour, you can visit the tower, which is open but forbidden to enter due to its dangerous state. Otherwise, the trees have reached the summit level, so the view is limited – yet you can still see the imposing Bükk Plateau, the green mass of Medves, the cones of the Tokaj Mountains to the east, and numerous Carpathian peaks to the north fading in the mist. The wild ridge with vigorous waves in front of us is also visible.

Following the border stones, our path bends right, cutting through inviting beech forest and bypassing the Biriny (formerly Berény) peak. The terrain changes again here, becoming steeper, with increasing slopes and narrower ridge sections. This border area is an important ecological corridor between Slovakia’s Carpathian forests and our northern mountains. The so-called "green highway" allows species that keep distance from humans to pass through this otherwise plowed and densely populated mountain basin, enriching the Northern Central Mountains’ wildlife with apex predators. Wolves, lynxes, and bears occasionally roam here, migrating in the hope of new habitats. The extensive, uninhabited forest cover of the Vajdavár area principally connects and overlaps with the large predator populations of Bükk and Mátra, and westward it also links through the Cserhát forests to Börzsöny.

In a saddle, the number of bulldozer road branches increases, so the marking describing unexpected small turns must be watched carefully not to lose direction. Next to the neighboring lane stands a cross, traditionally an important orientation mark: the highest point of the old cart road connecting Hangony and the Rima valley, which had significant local importance before the Trianon border delineation. In a splendid grassy oak forest begins the most difficult and at the same time most interesting section of the tour. The path now climbs the Őz hill, then the next summit, from which, thanks to a logging clearance, we can partly gauge the size of the mountains ahead and partly direct our gaze toward the valley leading to Hangony and the Bükk Mountains.

Mountainous terrain below 400 meters

We descend, but the terrain gives no rest: by the end of the next protrusion, the path becomes extremely steep; under the summit, we also cross a trench-like mound. A former earth fort stood on the summit: it is assumed that the Birinyi fort was built in the 10th or possibly only in the 13th century, likely as a lookout post to monitor roads coming from the Rima valley. The only mention is a lawsuit description, stating the neighboring landowner’s son occupied the fort and used it as a robber knight’s stronghold. From the small, grassy plateau, the next robust mountain pyramid and the depth yawning below us are visible. The path descends on an almost inaccessible, difficult, and steep slope, where extra caution is required.

We find ourselves in a saddle; to the left a splendid old beech forest covers the valley side in semi-darkness. Our path crosses the slope of the next ridge transversely (facing straight forward) and then invites us up to its top via a left turn. Although we stand at the same elevation as the following Pogányvár, one more challenge remains; when we reach the small summit equipped with a borderstone, the next narrow but sloping ridge section reveals itself. This ridge here narrows sharply upwards, partly due to its geological structure: the clay layers beneath the sandstone surface can become slippery when wet, forming the topography with small and large landslides. After the landslides, low and sharply winding, thinning ridge lines remain, connecting the individual summits.

The Pogányvár is the last serious challenge, reached by a stretching, wider ascent than earlier. At the 390-meter elevation stood an ancient fort, inspiring several explanations of the name. The most probable is that some pagan culture built it well before the arrival of the Hungarians. Local tradition holds that the name originates from battles against Hungarians, Hussites, or Turks, although the structure might be older. Its legend says the lords of Pogányvár buried their treasure at the base of a pear tree before fleeing, blinding the servant who performed the task to keep the secret. Once a year a flame marks the place; another version holds that the iron gate hiding the treasure opens twice so sunlight can cleanse and brighten the gold: on Good Friday and Palm Sunday, when a priest sings the Passion in the church.

Panoramas over the rolling horizon

The physical climax of the hike is followed by the peak of the landscape experience. The ridge narrows so much that only the path fits on it; bent low acacias in the wind form a windbreak around us. Then suddenly, upon reaching the back of the Pogányvári rock, the landscape opens, and the winding, wild mountainous terrain unfolds. The magnificent view mainly opens toward the pyramid of Pogányvár mountain guarding the landscape and the surrounding forested hills, but the mass of the Vajdavár region is also visible.

The sandstone formation’s material was deposited in the shallow tidewater of a sea, where fossil-filled calcareous reefs accumulated. During lithification, these carbonate shells dissolved, and calcareous solutions penetrated and cemented the sandy matrix. This created the resistant rock wall, which surfaced after a landslide on the hillside. The cirque left behind by the landslide—the curved amphitheater—draws nicely despite forest cover. From the palóc dialect, these sandstone shapes called apokas sometimes appear as regular rows of small "loaves": these nodules are harder than their surroundings due to a higher accumulation of calcareous binder. Traces of pieces falling from the wall reveal the original, yellowish sandstone color, while the gray crust results from rock weathering.

The atmospheric ridge path does not end but helps conquer two further, now much more modest, elevated sites. Between the trees, views open toward neighboring areas until we reach the corner of a spacious meadow. Again, the panorama is excellent, and the perspective new: here we admire the northern hilly region in a wide pasture, spotting the panel blocks and chimneys of Ózd, with the huge Bükk Plateau behind them. On the way down, we don’t have to say goodbye to the scenery: we cut across an unmarked tire track crossing the meadow, guiding us into an open, trough-like valley. The view continues rolling to the Bükk, flanked by forested hillsides. The lush grassy landscape lasts until the edge of the village, as we no longer enter the forest.

At the valley bottom, the pasture narrows, and we reach a vineyard road, turning right on it. Along a pasture bordered with electric fence, we arrive back in Hangony, reaching the village center by following the street.