Circular hike to the Hét vezér coffin

Itinerary:

• We hike on the P trail to the Muzsla saddle.
• We descend on the Z▲ marks to the mouth of the Sóbánya stream.
• Turning right on the Z marked road, we return to Szurdokpüspöki.

Detailed description of the hike:

Szurdokpüspöki

We start from the center of Szurdokpüspöki, from Szabadság Square, heading north on the P trail. We bypass the base of the National Flag, then the hexagonal, ornate ornamental fountain, after which we turn right into Béke Street. From the school building, we can make a detour to the baroque historic church and the Hanák Kolos Memorial House underneath it - the founder of Mátra tourism was born in this village in 1851. He made invaluable contributions to organizing domestic nature hiking as the very active president of the Mátra Association. He wrote the mountain range's first guidebook, and actively participated in establishing hiking infrastructure. His name is preserved by a challenge hike and an association.

Leaving the outer houses of the village, from a junction we get a view south towards the Nagy-Hársas massif. The Szurdok stream flows below the former volcano crowned with a geodetic measuring tower, from which the village got its name. If we detour in this direction, we can visit the 150-year-old Maria shrine, Káponka. Those interested in the tradition of the táltos can go a little further to the Holy Cross well located on the eastern edge of the village. The environment of the ancient cultic spring was renovated and rebuilt in 2008.

Walking through the wine cellars, we can recall the village's significant wine history. The Western Mátra is a long-established wine-growing region on the fertile volcanic foothills that gradually merge into the plain of the Zagyva Valley. Wineyards have adorned the slopes on the eastern edge of the settlements along the upper reaches of the river since the Middle Ages, though today the cultivated area is much smaller. We begin to ascend into the Mátra near the old-style wine cellar village's press houses. There are several retro and pressure public wells here - be sure to fill your water bottles for the hike! Leaving the village, we wind on the wide road among vineyards, orchards, and arable fields, whose surface is covered with loess deposited during the Ice Ages. Looking back, the church tower bids farewell in the foreground of the slopes of the Zagyva Valley and Cserhát.

At the viewpoints of the western ridge

Soon we leave the open area and enter an oak forest, then at a fork turn left and descend to the valley floor of the Diós stream. Crossing the usually dry riverbed, the continuous climb of more than 500 meters begins, consisting of a series of peaks that lasts up to the top of Muzsla. Alongside the main P trail, we will also see the unique light blue ʍ signs marking the Mátra Peaks hike route.

On a heavily eroded rocky path, among bushes and shrubs, we climb up to the grassy, rocky ridge line. The lower sections of the ridge ridge heading to Muzsla are characterized by a lack of forest or only smaller, sparse groups of trees. This is due to the thinning of the soil cover caused by centuries of intensive use, so trees can no longer settle as well. In these areas, shrub forests, rock grasslands, and steppe meadows have developed, which please hikers with excellent viewpoints. Some of the forest groups along the ridge consist of non-native species; Scots pine and black pine were planted on the eroded areas to protect the remaining soil. Such conifers are found on the slope of Horka-tető.

As we steadily climb, the surrounding landscape opens wider views. We see a large area: beyond the Zagyva Valley rises the Cserhát, with identifiable peaks Tepke, Szanda, and Purga. Behind these, the ridge of High Börzsöny rises, and to its left the massive block of Naszály ascends to the sky. Further on, the peaks of the Visegrád Mountains and the Pilis can be seen, as well as the top of Budapest's János Hill peeking just above the horizon. Opposite us on the far side of the Diós stream are the Isten-fa-tető and the densely forested slopes of Tilalmas, behind which the ruins of the extinct volcanoes Nagy-hársas and Apci Somlyó rise. The grassy Horka-tető offers a good panorama of Havas, while in the valley below we can admire the houses of Pásztó and Szurdokpüspöki.

The next peak is Kis-Koncsúr, whose rocky viewpoint is found to the right of the hiking trail. It offers a wonderful panorama of the Mátraalja region flattening into the Great Plain, while looking ahead towards Muzsla we see the crest tops turning northeast. We cross an oak forest, then stand on the 640-meter-high Nagy-Koncsúr plateau. Opposite undulates the ridge range of Havas - Káva - Tót-hegyes, behind which the bald peak of Világos rises, and the visible boundary is closed by the Kékes block.

Above the Hétvezér coffin

We descend to the saddle, and from here the shrubby-grassy terrains are replaced by closed forests, limiting the views, but from a point of Harasztos-bérc we still catch sight of the main peak marked by a TV tower, and in the direction of the Great Plain the huge cooling towers of the Mátrai Power Plant emitting smoke appear.

This forested ridge section where we walk is a special part of the entire range. The upper part extending to the Nyikom saddle, the slope falling sharply towards the Zagyva, is dissected by parallel erosion-formed gullies, and steep ridges run down towards the foot of the mountain between the ditches. From the direction of the valley settlements, this seven-peak ridge seems like a coffin, hence the folk name Hétvezér coffin.

Climbing up gray lava rocks, winding among beeches and oaks, we continue along the narrowing ridge path. At the now forested Muzsla clearing, we see a rock field characteristic of the Mátra, resulting from frost weathering in the Ice Age. From here, with one last short climb, we reach the 805-meter-high peak of Muzsla. Although it does not offer a view, the andesite lava ledges’ rocks provide excellent natural resting places. The peak itself is marked by a crumbling concrete pillar, where a lookout tower was inaugurated in 1935 by tourists of the Hungarian Carpathian Association Mátra Section. Unfortunately, the 14-meter tower was damaged after a few years, then completely fell into ruin. Hopefully, a lookout tower will be rebuilt here in the near future so that from the highest point of the Western Mátra we can admire the surrounding panorama.

Down along mountain streams from Muzsla

The Muzsla is a turning point of our hike: so far we have been almost entirely ascending, from here mostly descents follow, but a smaller climb still awaits us.

We start descending on a steep path on the northern side of the peak. We cut through a forest of beautiful old beeches under trees with commanding presence and knobby trunks. We also see huge fallen trunks; these now serve as deadwood habitats for various species. The magical, fairy-tale atmosphere is enhanced by smaller and larger mossy rock outcrops lying on the ground and the twisted, branching root systems. On the left, among the trees, we get a view: the Zagyva Valley is visible, with the silhouette of the Cserhát behind it.

At the Muzsla saddle, we turn right onto the Z▲ trail and, passing through a natural gate between centuries-old beeches, leave the ridge we have faithfully followed so far. We descend towards the rocky bed of the Sóbánya stream through beech forest mixed with oak and hornbeam, then follow the tiny stream. In the narrow valley between the two peaks, we step over trunks lying on the ground and avoid branches broken off by storms. We touch the intermittent flow of the Olgi mama spring, then our path crosses the stream several times over stones and gravel to continue on the opposite side. The gorge widens when the stream flowing from the neighboring valley flows into the Zám stream. The two tributaries meander as the Rédei-Nagy stream toward the Great Plain, eventually joining the Tarna far away. We enjoy its hospitality only for two kilometers, turning right onto the trail marked by the Z sign at the ground level. In this very beautiful, mystical valley, we walk over moss-covered volcanic stones and fallen trunks from earlier times, then sashay between young pole forests to a thinning pine patch. Struggling through the torn and ill-fated conifer chaos, we enter the valley section below János-vár, where we stumble over rotting trees lying beside each other due to windfall.

Through the Diós-patak valley

Our path turns away from the stream and starts ascending towards the ridge. With an approximately 100-meter climb, we head to the far side of the small ridge, into the valley of the Diós stream. Passing through wooded oak groves, at the meeting point of vineyards and forest we join a wide gravel road leading to the saddle of Tilalmas-tető. From the fully open, grassy area here, there is an excellent panorama towards the southern border of Mátra. The view is dominated by the 599-meter-high massif of Havas, next to which lower cones serving as a transition to the Great Plain enliven the surface. The vineyards and arable fields of Gyöngyöspata are clearly visible, and behind us, we can admire the peak of Tilalmas. Over the saddle rises the wooded side of the famous Kis- and Nagy-Koncsúr from the earlier section of our route, with the ridge path on its summit level.

Descending on a wide cart track into the valley of the Diós stream, we begin the final section of our hike. To the right, a path forks leading to the Delelő well with its small house. Its name refers to the southern watering place for animals driven out to pasture. There are resting benches next to the spring. It’s a good opportunity to sit down for a moment and reflect on our hike: we have a beautiful, eventful trail behind us! Continuing, we cross the stream by ford and return through the young oak forest to the junction of the ridge path branching to Muzsla, closing the circular hike. From here, we descend back into the village along the familiar route through the wine cellar row of Szurdokpüspöki.