Carpathian circular route at the border of Komlóska and the hut villages

Itinerary:

• From Komlóska we start northwards on the Z trail.
• Still at the edge of the village, after the bridge over the Gyuri Stream, we turn right onto the K+ trail, which we follow until the Blue Trail connection.
• Upon reaching the Kecske Back, we turn left following the K trail towards the Jew Meadow.
• From the Jew Meadow, the K◼ trail leads down to the center of Újhuta.
• From Újhuta, we return to Komlóska following the Z trail.

Detailed description of the route:

On the meadows of Komlóska

From the village center, we head north on the Z trail, then right after the stream bridge onto the K+ trail. After a few hundred meters, we turn off towards the meeting point of the Nagy-Egres and Gyuri Streams, where we climb the ridge rising between the two streams and leave the village. At the edge of Komlóska, a deep path in the tufa rock is lined with cellars on both sides, carved into the soft rock. Tokaj-Hegyalja is just a stone's throw away: looking back in space and time, on the southwest border of Komlóska, on the southern side of Bolhás Hill, vineyards were once cultivated, traces of which remain only as fragments today.

After the cellars, the deep path leads out to the long meadow pastures of Közép Hill. The panorama opening around us is impressive: among volcanic cones towering above the Egres Stream valley, the meadows surrounding the village occupy the gentler slopes, where fodder for livestock was produced during the summer. The farming tradition typical of the Carpathians is special in this forested area. Rusyn settlers who arrived at the end of the 17th century brought this land use form with them, clearing forests from the gentler slopes and preventing tree regrowth through intense grazing and mowing. This created meadows and clearings above the village and along the saddles, which today represent unique botanical value. Mountain meadows, less typical in our country, have settled with Carpathian, mountainous species.

We follow the path along the ridge of Közép Hill for a long time, passing interesting terraces formed meadows. After about one and a half kilometers, we turn right towards the source area of the Gyuri Stream, where we traverse in dense, wooded groves and shrubby forests. We cross the stream in territory reclaimed by the forest after animal husbandry ceased - here we can see how valuable meadows are increasingly swallowed up by the forest due to the retreat of grazing.

At the edge of a clearing on the mountainside, we find a historic spring shelter. At the Black Well, surrounded by lush vegetation, water flows clearly from the fissure, where we can wash ourselves halfway up the ascent. At this point, we are already halfway through the elevation gain; the steepest part of the path leading to the saddle follows. Between Borz Hill and Kecske Back, on a winding bowl-shaped path climbing up, we overcome the remaining 80 meters of elevation and join the forestry road along the crest at the level side marked by the K trail.

In the "hutai mountains", on the meadow saddles

Alongside Kecske Back, we follow the K trail for one and a half kilometers to the Jew Meadow. After the junction, we pass through the wooded clearing of Hosszú-meadow, then skirt the youthful forest of Kecske Back to reach the clearings of Perhács and Jew Meadow on the other side. The meadows lining the ridge have extraordinary botanical value. We can experience this ourselves in spring and early summer, when the fields are colorful with flowers: pasqueflowers, primroses, adonis, and in the advancing summer season, lilies and various orchids as well as many wildflowers bloom.

At the beginning of the Jew Meadow, on the western side in old beech forest, we find a shaded resting place with benches, tables, and a fire pit. It's worth resting here, enjoying the mountain air, tree shade, the view over the meadow, and organizing ourselves. From here, we head downhill, leaving the exhausting ascent behind.

At the saddle of Jew Meadow, we turn left on the K◼ trail towards Újhuta. Leaving behind the meadow's floral idyll, we descend with increasing steepness through mixed forest towards the valley of the Tolcsva Stream. We pass through a forest planted for observation: groups of pine and red oak brighten the native hornbeam-oak and beech forests. The surrounding forest was harvested several times in the 18th-19th centuries to fuel the glassworks in the valley. Later owners, the Waldbotts, planted significant pine stands experimentally around Újhuta, contributing to the Carpathian atmosphere.

At Újhuta’s border, we reach the Tolcsva Stream valley, where we pass the hunting castle operating as a hotel and its park before the settlement. If thirsty or hungry, Újhuta’s center is just a few hundred meters to the right, eastwards. Behind the bus loop and bell tower, there is a restaurant and a freely flowing spring for water. The settlement was founded in the 18th century by Slovak glassblowers and forest workers settled from northern parts of the Carpathians. Initially, forests were cut down in Óhuta to produce glass bottles for the Tokaj wine region from potash and quartzite mined nearby, later moving here as local timber resources depleted. The one-street settlement surrounded by beech and pine forests along the stream strongly resembles Upper Hungary villages.

Back to Komlóska via Pasika Meadow and Barlang Hill

We leave the settlement at the southwest end, after the hunting castle park, turning to the south side on the forestry road marked by the Z trail. We cover over 100 meters of elevation on a comfortable dozer road cut into the steep slope. In the dense forest, there is no view, but we still sense the wild character of the steep mountainside under the trees. After the closed, dark forest, the landscape opens when we bypass a ridge and step onto the wildflower meadow above Újhuta.

At the edge of Pasika Meadow, lined with old trees, we reach the saddle leading towards Komlóska. Here, at the border of the Tolcsva and Nagy-Egres Streams, between volcanic cones covered with dense oak forests, there was enough gentle terrain for residents of hut villages to mow their small hay fields for their animals. On the cheerful meadow clearing breaking the forest environment, we can enjoy for the last time the fragrant mountain hay air. From here, over the next three kilometers, we descend back to Komlóska through progressively younger forests.

At the western edge of the meadow, on a road lined with horse chestnut trees, we enter the forest, and a wide cart road leads on the eastern slope of Barlang Hill. Halfway, we traverse gently sloping terrain between the ridge and the Nagy-Egres Stream, following the natural descent of the valley. The mosaic forests are dominated mainly by oak, but sometimes pines break the meditative monotony. Our path crosses a long clearcut stretching from the stream up to the saddle of Barlang Hill. In the middle of the clearing is the János Fénia, a sacred monument to locals.

Leaving Barlang Hill, we exit the protected area. The path descends steeply in a rocky ditch to the Nagy-Egres Stream. Among old oaks, at the Rusyn Cultural Center, we reach the village. The charming streamside clearing with a stage and wooden benches remind of the local community’s strong connection to nature. From the junction of the two streams, we return on the known path to our starting point in the village center.