From Nógrád to High Börzsöny

Itinerary

• At the tourist signpost next to the Nógrád railway station, turn right to join the K marking, which we follow to the Cseresnyés valley.
• We walk along the K+ markings to the bank of the Szén stream.
• After crossing the watercourse, turn right on the asphalt road to the K◼ marking and climb up to the Fultán Cross.
• On the K marking, we ascend to the top of Csóványos.

Detailed description of the hike

Nógrád

Nógrád derives its name from the Slavic word novigrád (New Castle). The fort already stood at the time of the Hungarian Conquest and was later expanded by our ancestors into the center of Nógrád County as an ispán's castle. During the Turkish period of one and a half centuries, it changed hands 4 times. Its first capture in 1544 was the exact opposite of Szondi’s heroism at the nearby Drégely Castle: the defenders fled at the news of the approaching danger. During its last Ottoman possession in 1685, the powder magazine exploded due to a lightning strike, causing significant damage to the walls. What remained intact afterwards was destroyed during the Rákóczi War of Independence. By the early 18th century, the strongly reduced village population was supplemented with Slovaks from Upper Hungary, whose descendants still live in Nógrád today.

On the way to the foot of the Börzsöny

From the tourist signpost next to the railway crossing, turn right along the National Blue Trail K marking towards the attractive peak of the Börzsöny. We walk parallel to the tracks on Vasút street to the last house, next to which the good and abundant Csurgó spring discharged in 1703 flows. Fill our water bottles here, as there will be no reliable water source on our way. From the outskirts of the village, we get a good view of the coffin-shaped Castle Hill, which rises about 100 meters from the flatter surroundings. The Nógrád Castle is built on a unique geological formation called a swelling dome. Millions of years ago, during volcanic activity, the extremely viscous, densely flowing dacite magma flowed very slowly onto the surface and accumulated dome-shaped. While its top began to cool and solidify, the pressure from the continuous fresh magma underneath kneaded and puffed it. This is how this characteristic shape formed, on which the castle was later built.

The western outcrop of this volcano is Calvary Hill, at the foot of which our path leads. With a small detour, we can climb the steps to the chapel built around 1890 in a picturesque environment and to the Golgotha crosses above it. From the hilltop planted with pines and oaks, we get a good panorama of the castle walls. According to geologists, these two lava domes mark the eastern edge of the huge ancient Börzsöny volcano. A few steps further along the hiking path is the Jewish cemetery, where Hebrew gravestones remind us of the former Israelite population of the village. We step out onto the meadows above Nógrád, and suddenly the eastern edge composed of lava domes of Börzsöny opens up. A wonderful sight, but this ridge currently hides the central, higher peaks from us; we will see those only after gaining access later. After a stone cross set up in 1914, we cross the Black Water ford and reach the edge of the forest. Before entering the trees, it is worth looking back, as we get a good view of Castle Hill, Calvary Hill, and beyond them, the peaks of Naszály and Cserhát.

Through the forest to the Szén stream

We bypass a metal gate and then penetrate through a dense, light-poor young forest. On our left used to be a strictly guarded military explosive and ammunition depot operating until 1997. Most of the area is now abandoned, but the buildings have partially been renewed: an event center and hotel opened in the former military storage. On our right, the forest holds a famous place: the ruins of the Madaras-fai tourist lodge. Unfortunately, this shelter, which had a restaurant and could accommodate 80 people, was only available for a few years from 1934 to nature walkers, as the army expropriated and then demolished it.

We bypass another solid steel gate, then turn right to cross a mixed private forest of timber-producing trees parallel to the national park boundary. We pass the protected Sóska Hill in a beautiful oak forest on a forest road. Béla-meadow, once a pasture, has now become forested; from here, we climb above the stream valley and shortly cross the stony riverbed. On an unmarked path branching to the left, we can visit the nearby Büdös lake. In Börzsöny, naturally occurring standing water is scarce. Despite their modest appearance, these peat bogs with high organic matter content play an important role in the area's ecology. Crossing the Szalatnya saddle, we walk into the Cseresnyés stream valley downhill. After the ford, turn left on the K+ marking, and descend further along the asphalt road beside the Szén stream.

In the valley of the watercourse named after former charcoal burning activity, we turn right and walk on the K◼ markings and on the solid pavement built on the route of the old narrow-gauge railway to the Szén-patak hut. For decades, the Spartacus SE operated the small lodge here, so on older maps and guides, it is named after the leader of the slave uprising. There are benches and tables in the yard; it’s a good spot to sit down and catch your breath. Rest is necessary because the most difficult section of our hike follows: we must overcome a height difference of more than 500 meters on a stubborn climb to Csóványos. Halfway, at the Fultán Cross, there will be a chance to rest again.

Direction High Börzsöny!

We leave the buildings behind on the K◼ marking on the asphalt road. We bypass a barrier and then turn left to the steep path of Hárs ridge. We start climbing in a young shoot forest, shortly crossing a winding forest road on the hillside. We continue on a steep, stony-rocky path through shrubs and bushes, which opens a view to the Szén stream basin and the ridge on the other side. If we are here in the right season, we might pick blackberries from bushes within arm's reach on the way. We cross a forestry gravel road once more and arrive at the sunny, pleasant clearing of Hárs-meadow. Turning onto the slope of the Three Limes (Három-hárs), the terrain eases even more; finally, walking on a flat path among old beeches, we reach the saddle of Fultán Cross. There are resting benches offering seating as well as the chance to look closely at the stone cross erected in 1890, commemorating János Fultán, a forest guard killed by wood thieves.

From the clearing, we continue on the K marking towards Csóványos. We ascend through a magnificent beech forest to the summit of Three Limes (Három-hárs), which offers a dual panorama of the ridge section. The atmosphere is special: on the left, we see the valley of Szén stream and the southern ranges and basins of Börzsöny in the distance, while the horizon is closed by the Danube Bend region and the peaks of the Visegrád Mountains. To our right, the impressive view of a beech forest made of venerable trunks fascinates us. A signpost in the Árva-kúti meadow shows the direction of a nearby but only seasonally flowing spring. Even if we cannot get water there, we can visit an old memorial plaque set up at the site of a successful hunt by a forest landowner in the early 20th century.

Our last stage is a steep climb in the Foltán-cut clearing bordered by ash and beech trees. Overcoming nearly 100 meters of altitude difference, we arrive at the resting place on Csóványos.

On top of Csóványos

Originally, there was a geodetic measuring tower on the summit, renovated and rebuilt into a lookout tower in 2014. Climbing up to its top, we can admire one of the most beautiful panoramas in our country. The completely unobstructed circular view is rare, colloquially: there is no such thing on the Boulevard! The view and feeling compensate for the altitude gained so far. We get a great sight of the central part of the mountain range, the High Börzsöny, which is the largest uninhabited mountainous area in the country, with contiguous forests. The ancient volcanic caldera arc is easy to recognize. From Miklós Hill through Magosfá, Csóványos, and Nagy-Hideg Hill, the former rim now forms a section of Börzsöny's highest ridge, supplemented by the Vár-bérc – Hollókő side ridge; this is the western edge of the basin. The basin-shaped depression is pierced northwards by the Csarna stream, collecting runoff from side valleys. Large forests and elevation differences, rock ridges, inner deep stream valleys, and side ridges form a network that makes the High Börzsöny a wilder hiking terrain than average in the country for booted hikers. To the south, the view is framed by the Visegrád Mountains, where we can see the Dobogókő area, and the distinctive break of the Vörös Stone. We can also glimpse a section of the Danube, while in front lie the ranges and basins of the Southern Börzsöny. Closer is the ridge section of Csóványos – Nagy-Hideg Hill – Nagy-Inóc. To the north, far away are Ipolyság, Drégelyvár, and closer the Magosfa. On clear days, the Mátra and the volcanic mountains of the Upper Hungarian Carpathians (such as Szitnya, Körmöci Mountains, Polyána) and the Tatras also become visible. To the west, the flat floodplain where the Ipoly and Garam rivers flow into the Danube extends into infinity. The identification of sights is helped by labeled photo boards, and the lookout levels and foot have displays providing much information about Csóványos and Börzsöny. After climbing down from the tower, we can sit for a while at the developed resting place.

To the west of the lookout, we also find lava rocks originating from former volcanic activity. On one of them stands the Peace Monument, which has a touching and attention-grabbing story. In early September 1914, four young men set out on a tour of Börzsöny. By then, Europe was already engulfed in flames: World War I broke out. Here on Csóványos, they vowed to climb the peak every ten years with the intention of expressing their yearning for peace, thus emphasizing the senselessness of wars. This gave rise to the Peace Hikes movement, which was first organized in 1924 by the nature lovers of Újpest (an association that included the four hikers) and most recently celebrated its centenary in 2014. The memorial stone was built in 1964 on the 50th anniversary. World War I took many members from numerous tourist organizations to the front, and in the 1920s and '30s, many associations erected monuments in honor of their fallen heroes.

After spending enough time on Csóványos, we can return to Nógrád by the already known route or descend to Diósjenő, or possibly to Kóspallag, Királyrét, or Királyháza. If spending the night on the mountain, we can bivouac on the peak or walk to the roughly 1-hour-distance Nagy-Hideg Hill refuge.