Climbing to the "Palóc Olympus"

 Itinerary

• From Somoskőújfalu railway station, head towards the wooded hillside to find the S trail marker. (The hiking trails cross the tracks via a bridge.) Southwest, proceed along Szigligeti Ede Street, then continue on Bányász Boulevard to enter the forest.
• The S trail turns northwest, then joins the border-following Z trail. The two hiking trails diverge, but it doesn’t matter which you choose as they run parallel just a few meters apart. Soon you will reach their next junction, here choose the S trail!
• The S trail soon bends west: for now, don’t turn with it but continue straight on the southwest-bound path to visit the panoramic quarry yard. After sightseeing, return to the S trail!
• The S trail reaches a valley head at the hiking trail junction near Margit spring: from here the P trail leads straight to the summit, but continue following the S trail all the way to the junction with the S▲ trail marker!
• This soon merges into the P and Z+ marked trails, where turning left leads shortly to the Karancs lookout.
• After leaving the lookout, return via the S▲ trail to the S junction. Here follow the S hiking trail in the direction you haven’t walked yet that day: southwards.
• The S trail guides us all the way to the boundary of Salgótarján, where we follow the viewing terrace adorned with the national color flag! From the terrace, return to the already visited Calvary (you can go right, on an unmarked level path through the pine forest), then descend on the zigzag path to the stairs starting in front of the Trianon memorial.
• From the bottom of the stairs, go straight to reach the railway station.

Detailed tour description

From the railway terminus, lifting our gaze upward, we can spot our primary destination, the Karancs lookout, confronting us with the seriousness of the challenge. The short distance ahead should not mislead anyone! We must climb 400 meters over 2 strenuous kilometers.

The settlement barely fits in the narrow valley, accordingly the hiking trail quickly enters the forest. After a sharp right turn, the village’s road quiets behind us and we set off on the forest road leading to the border. Looking back, the silhouette of Salgó with its castle ruins emerges behind the trees. Alongside the appearance of boundary stones and the network notifications we usually get on our phone, the Z trail also appears. Even in winter, sunlight barely reaches the dense forest floor, although the narrow line of the border strip lets in some sun rays. The Z trail and the P and S trails do not run together, but it doesn't matter which we choose as they soon converge again.

After their meeting, the P and S trails turn left, and where they would soon head up the hillside, it is worth continuing straight to the nearby quarry’s top. The path is unmarked but easily followable, and behind the trees the sunlit quarry is not hard to spot. From the top, there is a wide panorama over Northern Hungary's hills, bordered in the distance by the Mátra. To the left dominates the Medves plateau and its volcanic cone-shaped Salgóvár mountain; to the south, the valley reveals the panel blocks of Salgótarján. To the east, behind the Karancs ridges, the rolling hills of the Cserhát extend all the way to the Börzsöny.

Returning to the path, we traverse the side of Kis-Karancs. The pleasant mountain trail meets the trails leading to the summit in a deep valley section, where a rain shelter can also be found. For summer tours, the Katalin spring below can be useful, though you have to descend a bit on the P▲ trail to reach it.

The P trail ascending the hillside is the fastest route to the summit, but it’s better to choose the S▲ marker, which offers a slightly longer, easier, and prettier alternative. For this, continue along the almost level S ridge on the hillside, then in the saddle before Kápolna Hill, with a sharp turn, join the steep southwestern ridge of Karancs.

The half-kilometer section is the most beautiful, passing through quiet beech woods to finally reach the radio tower at the end of the southern ridge extension of the summit. At the next corner we come across a lookout tower, usually a popular destination where we often meet other hikers.

From the steel structure’s roof level, we can admire views from Börzsöny through Mátra all the way to Bükk. To the north, behind the Nógrád basin and the Ipoly valley plains rise the Polyána and Jávoros hills, and in lucky cases even the cliff edges of the High Tatras can be seen. The Karancs block stands like an island above its surroundings; its sharp separation is due to geological history. The area's territory was once covered by shallow sea sediments, then andesitic magma intruded from deep into the accumulated clay and sandstone. The magma did not reach the surface but slightly lifted it. In the meantime magma penetrated every crack and solidified, forming a large deep-seated rock lens (laccolith). Later erosion wore away the weaker sedimentary cover rock, allowing the Karancs block, the "Palóc Olympus," to rise above the lowering surroundings.

From the lookout, we have to descend back to the S junction. The trail leads all the way to Salgótarján. It descends moderately at first, then turns down to the Cseberna valley on a slippery, steep, and difficult path. We are walking in a typical valley of Karancs: high ridge slopes enclose a gorge-like, usually dry valley. At the valley end, on the Cseberna clearing, we reach the mountain block’s base. On the charming, spacious meadow’s southern side, we already enter the hills near Sátoraljaújhely, and after about 5 kilometers of walking, reach the Calvary hill of Pipis mountain.

The change opening before our eyes is quite sudden: until now the forest had modestly hidden the city’s panel blocks transformed by industrial development. We are currently standing above the highest floors, providing an opportunity to observe the interesting city structure, rarely seen in our country. The narrow valley mainly favors the formation of single-street settlements, but beyond one point, expansion was only upwards, constructing numerous panel buildings.

Continuing on the S trail, we reach the lookout terrace adorned with a flag, from which we can view Salgótarján lengthwise. Galya Hill closes the visible horizon in the background. Turning back, choose the unmarked path turning right, burrowing into the pine forest, which leads again to the stations of the Calvary. Here turning right and downhill, we first pass a Trianon memorial, then after a long staircase arrive at the city center edge. Walking straight, within minutes we find ourselves at the end point, the underpass entrance of Salgótarján railway station.