From Bretka through Muráň Gorge to the Meliatsky profile

The starting point is the center of the village Bretka, near Tornaľa.

From the wooden information panel, we turn right, ascending on a path towards the church. Soon, we examine from outside and inside a reinforced concrete military bunker, called the "ROPík model 37," hidden among houses on a rise. There used to be 7 such bunkers in the village cadastre, but only this one has been preserved as one of the few in the region.

Our next steps are guided by a wooden sign with the inscription PEŠKÓ. We pass the last small house and its barking guard until the path leads us after a few minutes to stairs in the middle of the forest. We go down the stairs until we reach the entrance of a short cave, which we explore entirely even without lighting. A trilingual educational panel tells us more about its origin and the name PešKó.

We descend further, where an iron bridge takes us across to the lower floodplain of the Muráň river, locally known as Muránka. Through a wide meadow, we reach the 3rd of 6 stops on the trail. A green sign warns us that we are entering an exceptionally valuable area - level 4 of territorial nature protection.

This romantic valley was formed 2 million years ago at the boundary of the Tertiary and Quaternary periods. The Muránka river has cut into limestone here, creating a gorge over 3 km long with a unique fauna and flora.

From the path on the bank of the calmly flowing river, we admire a natural scene as if from another world. (If we are lucky, we may also see the protected European otter.) Suddenly the path veers away from the river, leading us up gently and then steeply down to the destination of our journey - the Muráň Gorge.

The rushing river in the past created yet another of the 15 "holes" here in the rocky cliff - the Hutnianska Cave, which served as a German command shelter during the war. As its name suggests, there once was a smelter in the narrow valley, a nail production factory, and one of the oldest blast furnaces in Slovakia. Their ruins can be seen on the opposite riverbank.

There is also an option to turn off along a green trail to the village Gemer, 9 km away, but we decide to continue along the river to the nearby village Meliata. Besides beautiful village architecture, it is mainly known for an important geological site - the MELIATSKY PROFILE.

Here, geologists were able for the first time to prove the occurrence of deep-sea sediments on the territory of Slovakia. The tectonic superunit of the Western Carpathians - Meliatikum is also named after the village. On the way to this rock outcrop, we encounter the remains of an old mill and try our courage on a wooden bridge over the Muráň river.

For the return to Bretka, you can use the educational trail again or a cycle route via Okrúhly Hill. Depending on your pace and stops, the hike takes 2.5 to 3.5 hours.