From peak to ridge in the central wilderness

Itinerary:

• The K mark leads from Regéc up to Bekecs Garden.
• From Bekecs Garden we follow the Z mark for a long stretch to Telkibánya.
• From Telkibánya we return to Regéc along the P mark.
• We make a detour to the Amadévár on the branching and then rejoining PL mark.
• We continue following the P mark up to the fork at Sólyom-kő.
• To reach Sólyom-kő we take the right branch, then follow the P▲ marks that reconnect back to the P signs for a detour.
• We descend to Regéc on the P mark.

Detailed description of the route:

Up into the mountains from Regéc

We start from the top end of the single-street village Regéc, at the junction leading to Háromhuta, on the K mark. We soon leave the sleepy little village and head towards the groves lining the shallow valley of the Puskás Stream. The road surface has been renewed with gravel, making this first short section a bit tricky for ankles. From the mountain meadows on the slope behind us appears the dominating Regéc Castle, the historical center of the wider area. Although the fortress was already ruined by imperial troops at the end of the 17th century during the battles of the country divided into three parts, recently the northern part of the castle has been rebuilt based on the remaining walls of the old tower, proudly sitting atop the steep rocky peak.

At the upper reaches of the stream, the path becomes increasingly steep. Passing through mossy rock blocks and andesite towers, and through a rocky gorge, we reach Torintas, a gently sloping plateau-like, wide terrain. Formerly, the village’s hayfields extended up to here, but for the most part the forest has reclaimed them. The remaining groves and small forest clearings create a very atmospheric, winding area in the source region of the stream. At the saddle between the valleys of the Puskás Stream and the Gönci (Nagy) Stream, we find the clearest preserved hay meadow, after which we turn onto the steep mountainside covered with dense forest. The gradual ascent up to now intensifies here: we climb to the summit region in one go through the hornbeam-beech forest. In the last section, the cart track cuts deeply into the rocky mountainside, and the scree surface makes the way more difficult to overcome.

Our hardships ease in the saddle between the Dorgó and Kerékkötő hills: from here we proceed for a long section at an altitude of about 700 meters, roughly on level ground towards the escarpment above Telkibánya. The clear-cuts at Bekecs Garden have swallowed the earlier dark forest atmosphere when vast areas of surrounding pine and beech forests were felled. The large-scale deforestation of the early 20th century was filled in again with pine, which was then considered more valuable timber than beech. This tradition was broken by the rapidly changing climate of the following century and the pest infestation of the weakened pine forests due to long droughts and heatwaves. The severe wood decay problem affecting Europe was prevented here by cutting down most of the conifers, so today only a few remnant pines are visible at the roadside, the last witnesses of the once famous Dorgó pine forest.

Below the Dorgó saddle, in Bekecs Garden, we turn left onto the Z mark, but continue along the previous forest road following the Hosszú-kő ridge northwards. The source area of the Suta Stream, a bowl-shaped valley basin cut bare, accompanies our route, although the regenerating and reforested young beech forest presumably presents great attraction for the game population for feeding and hiding. The isolated catchment area of the Gönci (Nagy) Stream is home once again to the region’s native large predators after a long hiatus of over a century. There is a stable population of wolves and lynxes, which have been proven to reproduce for decades, but bears also occasionally pass through from the Slovakian mountains.

Below the Hosszú-kő ridge we traverse sideways for a long time, then the Z mark climbs up the side of Bohó Hill – the cart road we have followed continues towards the Gyertyán-kúti meadows with the Z● mark. It is worth taking a short detour to Gyertyán-kút to collect fresh fissure water from the spring at the edge of the hornbeam grove. It is worth resting in the shade of the old trees, as benches and tables provide simple comfort in this charming spot. The nearby series of clearings belongs to the mountains’ and country’s particularly valuable and spectacular mountain hay meadows. Valuable Carpathian flora and its fragile ecosystem have developed on the meadows stretched between the old heritage trees. The area is therefore strictly protected; only researchers and national park workers may enter. (On the western edge lies the core zone of the Nagy-Sertés-hegy Forest Reserve.)

We continue on the Z mark around Bodó Hill. The path is also scenic here: maple, hornbeam, and birch trees color the forest among old beech trees. The rocky ridge touches a small grove at the summit, from where we descend on the northern slope to the hornbeam meadow rows of Gyertyán-kút. Left from an old beech tree we follow the forest road which meanders below Hemzső and Reszelt ridges in the gently rolling beech forest. Although marks lead to both hilltops, the rocky peaks are covered with dense forest offering no view. (True, from the lower Hemzső-kő there is a view as far as the Füzes valley and Nagy-Milic.)

The Z mark reaches the northern end of the high-altitude mountain ridge on the side of Magas-tér. Here the path winding in a patchy mixed forest begins to descend, and from the saddle of Fenyő-kő it cuts into the steep, scree-covered northern mountainside. Over the next more than a kilometer we lose significant elevation on a forest management road winding between beech forests, arriving at Hatvanas saddle near Kis-Bikk spring. In the Middle Ages, water was supplied to Telkibánya deep below by a copper pipe destroyed during the Hussite wars. From Hatvanas saddle there is a chance to shorten the tour: you can turn off to Potácsház on the Z◼ mark. But if we've come this far, it is worth taking this detour and descending to the historically rich, "aranygombos" Telkibánya.

Telkibánya and the Pauline monastery of Gönc

The Z mark bypasses Kis-kerek hill from the right through the cutting of a gently descending forest road, and buildings of Telkibánya become closer under us. We arrive at a junction above the cemetery where the P mark joins. From here we descend together on the asphalt road of the Silver Fir Hotel into the village center. Once a mining town, the settlement now lives its sleepy everyday life. The gold-dusted quartz veins that brought sudden wealth and boom became exhausted after a few centuries. The settlement’s golden era lasted from the reign of Charles Robert until the time of King Sigismund in the 14th and 15th centuries. Prince Rákóczi restarted mining with deep mines to finance the war against the Habsburgs - these workings were active until the end of the 19th century. Post-war research showed no economically viable ore deposits at depth, so the area remained a center for traditional forest management in the 20th century.

We reach the village square, only alive with memories of its once-glory days. Around the bus stop, shop, and church triangle we also find a pub to refresh and gather strength for the continuation. Many options are available for overnight stays if we want to interrupt the tour, and it is worth allocating time for the industrial history exhibition found at the eastern end of the village.

On the combined Z and P mark, we climb back the way we came, but now continue on the P mark from the old oak. We climb to the saddle between Bizsóka and Ökör hills, crossing a water erosion, then descend to Potácsház. Ash fat was long cooked here, an ingredient for soap and glass production derived from ash, hence the name. For one quintal of ash fat, 60-70 cubic meters of wood had to be burned and leached, with beech ash being the most suitable. With this demanding raw material, it was easiest to obtain wood in the mountain interior near the confluence of the Big and Small Gönc streams, surrounded by beech forests, without having to drag timber from the mountains. Post World War I poverty was solved by building a narrow-gauge railway from Gönc to the upper flows of the Ósva and Small streams, with which they plundered the surrounding mountains and hauled the old forests of the mountain interiors away.

Next to the house, we cross the Gönci (Nagy) stream and cut through the ridge end to the valley of the Small stream. Here we climb in a young oak stand until amongst old heritage trees the ruins of the Pauline monastery appear. After the Árpád era, in the 14th century the monastery was maintained by Pauline monks, first mentioned in the time of Louis the Great. The community operating also a hospital in Telkibánya became impoverished after the 15th century golden age, finally presumably abandoning the monastery due to Hussite harassment. The former living quarters and the presumed cloister are now collapsed and can only be guessed beneath uneven ground, but the church surprisingly remains well-preserved against time. We can see decorated capitals, carved pillars, arched ceilings and remnants of the gate, as well as the rose window’s place in the nearly 30-meter-long building. The almost eight-century-old church ruins imbue the place with devotion.

The Amadévár and Sólyom-kő, notable viewpoints of the mountain range

We traverse sideways in youthful oak forest on the P mark following a cart road leading to the deeply incised valley of the Small stream. Where the road cutting narrows, the railway also penetrated the valley. From here we follow a forest path in dense, shady woods upwards along waterfalls and roaring brooks. The rocky bend’s stony scree slopes disappear, and passing through a pine forest we arrive at a widening valley bottom meadow, which we cross on the cart road. On the far side of the charming forest clearing is the fork leading onto the Amadévár ridge.

The bold cliff on which the castle once stood is about 200 meters above us; the slope’s steepness is also significant. We climb the slope through a young clearing and then old beech woods. Reaching the ridge of Kis-Amadé Hill, the steepness temporarily eases, and we snake further in old beech woods towards Nagy-Amadé Hill. Below the rocky peak, we bypass a few ditches and rock blocks, then in the last few meters follow the PL marks to reach the upper part of the castle on the natural rock ridge forming the eastern edge.

The panorama, although limited, presents a typical view of the central region of the Tokaj Mountains. We have a long view of the Gönci (Nagy) stream valley from around the Pauline monastery to the source area. The forested back ridge we crossed in the first half of the tour stands out clearly with its plateau-like shape. To the north, beyond the meadows bordering Telkibánya, the massive Nagy-Milic block stands, to its left the Košice basin, and on its edge the Carpathian mountain ranges appear blue.

The steep rock wall falling below us is a legacy of the Ice Age climate, which carved out the harder, solidified andesite lava layer from the mountain slope. This frost-shattering form is a textbook example along the entire ridge as well as on the far side of Téglás-kő, the cliff wall of Sólyom-kő.

Further on, our path follows the rocky, stony ridge through primeval forest-like old beech woods. The western side of the ridge has been cleared, allowing views between the trees of the neighboring Borsó Hill and the Hernád valley. We climb for over a kilometer to the northern forepeak of Téglás-kő on this wild terrain – on the flatter ridge of the mountain top we already walk in forestry land, on clearings surrounded by clearcuts and planted forests. With a sharp turn, also on a firebreak clearing, the P mark descends westward; then in the saddle between Téglás-kő and Borsó Hill we pass Cicés meadow, an idyllic mountain hayfield. This characteristic meadow of the mountain range, surrounded by birch and pine groves and mixed forest, perhaps most evokes the Carpathian atmosphere. We take another sharp turn on the far side of the meadow, then head south. After barely a hundred meters, a short loop descends on the right along the P▲ mark. Near the summit the forest thins out and finally we reach the rocky cliff edge. Several andesite towers offer great views; this andesite bastion row is the natural fortress of Sólyom-kő.

What we did not see from Amadévár, due to the mountain range stretching behind us, is now covered by the panorama unfolding from the southwest-facing cliff wall. The imposing volcano of the western ends of the mountain range, Gergely Hill, and the smaller cones alongside it define the landscape. The source region of Szerencs Stream lies below us with dense mixed forests stretching all the way to Hejcé, from where the wide, flat space of the Hernád valley extends to the horizon. On clear days, the tilted plateau of Bükk is also recognizable on the southwest horizon, while beyond the Hernád valley the Cserehát and the Gömör hills disappear over flat, karstic, forested ridges. The panoramic viewpoint on the 700-meter summit has a striking atmosphere, as if looking down at the world below from a box seat. The sunset here is enchanting: the wooded, hilly landscape in the background, and the red disc descends exactly in front.

Following the cliff row, the path curves back on the south side to the forest road, where we reconnect to the P mark. From here, we descend the rocky, stony mountainside in the white oak beech forest below Fekete-kő to the Fehér-kúti hunting lodge. From the meadow beside the building, we follow the forest road ascending to the saddle on the left, which, with a large curve, arrives in a hall of imposing beech trees leading to the mountain pass into the mountain interior.

Descent below Regéc Castle

The wide forestry road makes a large arc around Bán Hill between clear-cuts, young shoot forests, and still-standing old beeches. We descend comfortably, but on the far side of the hill, arriving at the steep source area of the Lapu stream, we have to climb again – although for the last time. Behind the flattening saddle a short, steeply descending section awaits, then we turn more gently onto the side of Nagy-Szár-kő. Above us, beyond the dense forest the peak descends to the south below an impressive cliff with a meadow. The clearing is one of the most beautiful lookout points in the mountain range, where the area around Regéc Castle unfolds like a model landscape: wide hayfields and the mountain ring surrounding the castle ruins are visible. According to some experts, the Regéc Basin is the clearest caldera of the mountain range, a volcanic collapse, and the Várhegy is the solidified lava plug remaining in the volcano’s center. This view unfolds here in all its glory. (The viewpoint and road are not accessible by marks.)

The descending P mark curves decisively towards Regéc, the beech forest of the summit region changes to oak with decreasing altitude; above the village the mountainside is already strongly groved and clearing-dotted. After the resting place on Kovács Hill slope, the terrain becomes steeper again; with one last effort we descend to the meadows of the village. An impressive sight is the cone-shaped andesite rib bursting from the basin, topped by the newly rebuilt castle tower.

At the northern edge of the village, we arrive among the houses alongside fenced pastures, where the K mark we recognized at the start appears, leading us back to our starting point.