Discovering an unknown icon, Nagy-kő

Itinerary

• We start the route by turning left onto Szabadság Street (main road).
• At the first intersection we turn right onto Ady Endre Street, which we follow up to the cemetery.
• From the Tarnalelesz cemetery, the nature trail marked PT leads up to the Nagy-kő, then down to Bükkszenterzsóbet.

Detailed description of the route

On panoramic and acacia-lined roads

We start our hike in Tarnalelesz, turning left onto the main road, then immediately right onto the gently ascending Ady Endre Street. There are no signs here yet, but when we reach the parking area in front of the cemetery, the nature trail's starting board also appears. The tourist trail marked PT is rarely marked but easy to follow and leads out of the village to the left alongside the cemetery fence. We climb along treeless hill foots, then with a sharp left turn between an electric fence-bordered pasture and arable land, the dirt road begins to ascend. Looking back, there is a beautiful view of the village nestled at the foot of treeless and wooded hills, while to the right the soft undulations of the terrain extend into the higher peaks of the Vajdavár region. Our target also appears, the gray cliff of Nagy-kő: standing as a striking feature in the gentle landscape with a crown of black pines behind abandoned pastures. On the right side of the Mocsolyás valley, named after its swampy area, a sandstone peak also emerges, the Ordas-kő pasture—these two rocks, although rising significantly above their surroundings, rarely reveal themselves as the foothills modestly conceal their gray scars.

Arriving at the hilltop is rewarded with a splendid view: where forests long cleared remain trees only in groups, otherwise green grassy hills rise all around. The shallow soil cannot reclaim the area covered by thickets, and the open landscape provides a view of the distant Mátra ridge. The hilly, lowland surface formations have been shaped by landslides as well as streams cutting the valleys: on clay layers, sometimes abruptly sliding, other times slowly creeping down sandy layers, leaving behind hollow, arched shapes.

The treelessness of the poor soil is unusual and offers a splendid view but has caused problems for locals over centuries: after heavy downpours, the rushing water cut ditches into the surface that sometimes slid down. To prevent damage and control erosion, non-native acacias began to be planted from the late 19th century. Turning right at the fence corner (on the ridge), we slowly say goodbye to the magnificent view and enter the mixed acacia forest. This aggressively spreading species sometimes displaces native communities, impoverishing the undergrowth and is very hard to stop. We climb on a deep path (at some points we can see the effects of rushing, intermittent water flows on the sandstone surface), then after a meadow, we spot the cliff face of Nagy-kő again, this time quite close.

Shoes on the chimney wall

The last challenge is a short climb on a rocky surface through a grove-like forest where rails and stairs aid progress. The acacia is replaced by another distant newcomer, the black pine specialized for desolate rocky habitats, whose resin scent pervades the area. Emerging onto the Nagy-kő terrace, the panorama is astonishing: from the dizzying edge we admire the rolling hilly landscape all around, framed to the south by the long, massive backbone of the Mátra Mountains, creating a Carpathian frame, while to the east the Bükks form the boundary. No plains are visible; the hill country in the mountain's shadow almost "raises" and makes the Mátra region feel higher. Although the Běl-kő rock cleft alongside is the highest edge of the Bükk Plateau, Hungary's highest average elevation mountain range does not appear particularly striking from here—Tarnalelesz and its valley appear in the foreground.

Even more characteristic is the face of Nagy-kő—the edges should be avoided as the depth reaches 80 meters in places, and the sandstone-covered surface is dangerously slippery. Still, we can see the velvety curved rock face, whose material was deposited in the shallow sea tidal zone, where carbonate skeleton fossils accumulated. During lithification, these carbonate shells dissolved, calcite solutions permeated the sandy layers, and cemented them together. This formed the resistant, huge rock wall (and its similar companions), which later rose along a fracture line during the mountain range's breakup before slightly tilting northwards and being exposed to erosion from the softer surroundings. In the Palóc dialect, these stone formations, known as "apokas" or chimney-like knobs protruding forward, sometimes stand in neat rows: these knobs are harder than their surroundings due to the accumulation of more calcareous binder. Marks of pieces falling off the wall reveal sandstone's original yellowish color, while the gray crust results from rock weathering.

As we climb to the meadow on the summit, we find a rain shelter to rest before beginning the descent. An information board on the shelter wall tells us that the well-defendable peak may have hosted a late Bronze Age fortification of the Kyjatice culture (Kiétei culture) known from other mountain ranges. The trail descends from the meadow, close to the rock edge. It is worth cautiously venturing onto the western cliff top, where the distant view of Mátra is complemented by the densely forested Vajdavár ridges and the Karancs peak towering behind them. We can also look down the short valley we are heading into.

Land of ditches, cirques, and terraces

The trail descends steeply, crosses old natural oak forests, and crosses a water-eroded ditch coming from the rock base, signaling the dramatic erosion of the sandstone. We pass through a reforested meadow whose fruit trees bear the footprints of old land use. The narrow walls of the small cirque appear, and further down we enter an nettle-covered acacia undergrowth. At the end of a muddy ditch starting to the right, about a 5-minute walk leads to the Kő spring—its water is drinkable and reliably flows after rainy periods. Before the spring, ruined rain shelters and decaying steps show that nature walkers of Ózd were active in this mountain range.

The nature trail clings to the bottom of a narrow, deeply eroded water-cut ravine; despite the acacias, we wander among a visibly wild forest enjoying the shade of the leafy tunnel. Soon we step out of the trees onto open terrain and reach the valley of the Darazs stream. Turning left onto the exposed trail, we continue through a charming landscape. The marshy valley bottom is only dotted with small groups of trees, and the bordering hills are also not forested. To the left, a picturesque valley cirque unfolds, shaped and formed by landslide processes, that is a circular amphitheater. At the bottom lurks a heron well, a memento of former grazing together with the absence of forest. The lines breaking the slopes (along with remaining fruit trees) bear the marks of terracing used for planting orchards. Somewhere in the small valley corner deepens a mysterious hollow, the Turkish bunker, named according to local legend for stolen livestock hidden by Turks. This artificial cave was probably a shepherd's shelter, cellar, or hideout for escaped soldiers.

To the right, the gigantic block of Kékes appears once more behind the hills, and finally at the border of Bükkszenterzsóbet, the windblown reeds close the route. On entering the village's main road, it is worth inspecting the geological outcrop at the playground side, which showcases a Pleistocene, i.e., Ice Age sediment layer sequence. Bus stops are found on both sides of the intersection.