Forest wandering on the bare hills

Itinerary

• From the parking lot, head north on an unmarked but well-followed path until after a few meters you join the marked hiking trail.
• Turn left on the S+ marking, then after a few meters reach a junction.
• From the junction, follow the S marking straight ahead, which leads to the edge of Nagyszénásug via Sorrento.
• Turn right at the intersecting P marking and follow it until the junction after the piktortégla caves.
• At the junction, continue straight and switch to following the P+ markings, continuing this way to the top of Farkas Hill.
• At the peak of Farkas Hill, turn left onto the Gubóvirág nature trail KT marking, which is followed until the next junction.
• At the junction, turn left onto the P+ marking and follow it to the intersection with Meggy Street.
• Turn right onto the S+ marking, following it to the forest edge.
• At the forest edge (which also marks the boundary of Budaörs), turn left on an unmarked path that leads back to the parking lot.

Detailed description of the hike

The "hairstyle" of the bare hills

Most of the hike explores the Budai Protected Landscape Area, with some sections enjoying NATURA 2000 protection. Already at the parking lot, a sign warns us that we are entering a strictly protected area. To avoid disturbing the local wildlife, please do not leave the designated paths.

Although the name "bare hills" suggests otherwise, the majority of our hike passes through forest. We leave the parking lot heading north on an unmarked path and join the S+ trail after 2 minutes (turning left). This soon leads to a junction where we continue straight on the S trail. The path, winding comfortably on the mountainside through a wooden tunnel, begins a short climb. Step by step, the forest changes: the native oak forest is replaced by planted black pine groves emitting a sharp scent as we climb over root mats. Where the trees thin out, warm air flows in and colorful flowers cover the hillside. The Mediterranean atmosphere is enhanced by the specially shaped dolomite mounds on our right, whose "big brothers" we will see after a few steps.

Sorrento

At a bend, sawtooth-like rock giants stretch toward the sky, often inspiring children to imagine dragon crests, dinosaur backs, or giant holey cheeses. This formation arose as erosion wore away the softer layers around the harder rock. The difficulty plants have in settling on the gravelly, easily washed dolomite surface is well illustrated here: due to visitor trampling, loose small stones shift on top of each other, making it hard for plant roots to anchor. Nearby rock-close boulders are almost encircled by roots of black pines planted in the 1920s and 1950s to stop erosion. For soil and vegetation protection, do not climb the steep hillsides and rocks!

After leaving the view of Sorrento, vegetation gradually closes in. Occasionally, looking left, we catch narrow panoramas toward the Zsámbék Basin. We begin to descend, crossing a ditch, and reach the edge of Nagyszénásug, part of the Budakeszi holiday area. Our zigzagging route is well marked and cannot be missed.

Mysterious tunnels beneath the ground

After leaving Nagyszénásug, we take a right turn uphill on the P trail, heading toward Budaörs. A wide climb leads to the top of Magas-Frank Hill. This section is most beautiful in early spring when the forest floor is covered with lily-of-the-valley carpets as far as the eye can see.

Descending from the peak, watch the edges of the path for smaller or larger fox-den-shaped dark openings, some collapsed or partially filled. These are the so-called piktortégla caves, which from the 1850s for about a century provided income for many families. They mined whitish clay, or paint earth, which was crushed, mixed with some lime, and thickened with water before being molded into rectangular bricks and dried for sale to painters. These bricks were stronger and longer-lasting materials than usual.

Old maps show many more piktortégla caves in the area, but some have collapsed, others have had their entrances closed or filled in. No matter how tempting, do not enter the cracks due to the risk of collapse!

On the sunny side

At the left turn in the curve of the P marking, we switch to the straight P+ marking to continue. At the foot of Farkas Hill, the gateway sign of the Gubóvirág nature trail welcomes us. Browsing through, we learn more about the realm of dolomite bare hills, dry grasslands, identify species that have survived tens of thousands of years of changes, and uncover secrets of insects pinned on sticks. Our route misses some of the six stations, but if curious about all features, it is worth visiting them.

Leaving the forest, we continue on a path paved with fist-sized stones. Here we reach the top of the famously named bare hills. In this heavily human-altered landscape, we discover traces of a former motocross track and sweep through Hungary’s first glider airfield, which opened in 1929 and operated until 1959. On Szekrényes Hill, we see remnants of the ramp that launched planes with rubber ropes. Where old hangars once stood, at the highest point of the area now stands the glider memorial. After the 2017 inauguration, two wing sculptures stood in a V-shape at the highest point but were broken by storm winds in spring 2023; now only a plaque remains. Further on are remains of the lodging building.

The characteristic of dolomite forming these hills is that instead of chemical weathering, it crumbles. The more resistant parts form jagged rock shapes. Plant growth is island-like on the soil. Signs along the Gubóvirág nature trail introduce the area’s rare plants and drought-tolerant animals. For a short section, we replace the P+ marking with the trail’s KT marking, enjoying a panorama view toward Budaörs on its left branch. Under hills dotted with rocks, the noise of the highway, shopping centers, and Budaörs buildings color the landscape. Names of surrounding landmarks are readable on information panels.

Returning to the P+ marking, we begin a steep descent over a stony, water-washed slope. We pass by a quarry on the side of Szállás Hill where every junction has a sign warning of the strictly protected area. Finally, we reach a populated area; at the first intersection turn right from Mogyoró Street to Meggy Street and switch to the S+ marking. A short walk along Csalogány Street climbs to the last summer house, whose fence leads back to the parking lot.