From the Károlyi estate to the realm of tourists

Itinerary

• From Parádsasvár follow the P mark uphill to the Mátra-nyereg road junction.
• At Mátra-nyereg, head west (right) on the K mark, which leads to Galyatető.
• At the Galyatető Tourist Centre, the K mark turns right, guiding to the viewpoint.
• Continue on the K mark until the first fork.
• Turn right onto the P▲ mark.
• When the P mark crosses, continue right on it.
• At the edge of Galyatető, return to the K mark, turn left and descend.
• Shortly after crossing the forestry road, turn left onto the P+ mark, which leads back to Parádsasvár, the starting point.

Details about the route

Surviving a glassworks

The beech forests favoring cool, rainy climate have taken up large areas especially on the shady northern side of the Mátra. Their habitat descends quite low, resulting in settlements for forestry and utilization at the foot of the mountains (otherwise, the steep, cliff-like northern slopes would barely allow stable human settlement). The ash fat made from beech ash was the raw material for glassworks before the rise of modern industry - hence it is easy to understand why Parádsasvár was formerly called Üveghuta (glassworks). In the 1770s, a small factory was established on today's settlement area. Its successor, founded in 1815, is the now dilapidated and partly demolished glass factory (which closed in 2005). The small glass manufactory set up in Petőfi Sándor Street offers an insight into this interesting craft, enriched with hands-on experience - it’s definitely worth trying this activity once organically connected to the Mátra region, if time permits!

Following Vörösmarty’s footsteps

The P mark starts behind a small restaurant. We cross the creek and follow the castle's fence (see later) along a narrow path traversing the hillside. At a rear gate, we set off uphill, but the sounds of civilization stay with us as we barely move away from the winding asphalt road. The protrusion called Gyalogút-bérc indicates how important the cart track was before the construction of asphalt. When Mihály Vörösmarty made an excursion in the region in September 1829, he himself walked this path - thus the P marked section from Parádsasvár to Mátraháza bears his name.

The wall

The Mátra is a considerable natural barrier between the rolling hills north of it and the plain of the Great Hungarian Plain to the south. High, mostly steep northern peaks form an east-west running wall between the settlements of the two regions: crossing is easiest here at the lowering Mátra saddle. Today, significant traffic passes this way, with numerous buses easily "climbing" the mountains – improving access to the popular Parád Basin in tourism. During the hike, you may likely hear motorcyclists testing their machines’ limits on the serpentine road, which is their favorite challenge and adrenaline source.

The P mark initially directs upward through oak forest, then increasingly through beeches. We pass a waterworks and then get a view of a huge deforestation edge on the northern hills. The last section below the saddle is the most unpleasant experience: the trail leads onto a busy, winding paved road. Stray attentively here, especially when the asphalt is slippery! At the junction, we stand in the Mátra saddle; rightward the K mark leads on to probably the toughest challenge of the hike.

On the ridge panoramic road

We climb up painfully steeply on the sunny edge of a clear-cut on Csór-hegy. Looking back, the sight of the giant Kékes block provides compensation – we can observe inside it, under the summit, a striking primeval forest patch with “holey” fabric due to its varied age composition. A spear-shaped lookout named after Károly Kós stood for a short time on Csór-hegy but was ruined by vandalism, so today we cross the dark beech forest at its base.

We begin a roller coaster on the middle section of the mountain range: first gently down, with sunlight filtering through giant beech curtains onto the clear-cut on the right side. Then we ascend again, where rocks emerge from the ground at a young forest mixed with pine. At Bagoly-kő we feel for the first time how narrowed the ridge around us has become. The huge rock wall formed during the ice age’s cool climate, when water seeping into andesite cracks repeatedly froze and expanded around freezing point, breaking the rock into an increasingly retreating wall. (The best formations of the so-called cryoplanation phenomenon are hidden in Hungary’s Zemplén forests.) From the rocky peak, we have a view of the Mátralába below, which looks flat from here.

The beeches open up further, and a clear-cut has left only a few trunks on the ridge edge. From here, the view is best on the middle Mátra ridge: we watch Parádsasvár and surrounding villages from a box seat, and besides the distant Mátra mountains, the large Bükk plateau also appears. On clear days, we can even spot the waves of the Aggtelek karst.

Spirits and prayers

We cross the forest again at Vércverés, which, besides being a stamp point on the National Blue Trail, holds an interesting legend. Previously admired from the bird's-eye viewpoint, spirits called lúdvérc also used the place to watch over the villagers. Sometimes, they caused mischief too, but prayers were finally heard, and the Virgin Mary’s descent drove away the evil – since then, the place is called Vércverés according to legend.

We bypass a quarry wall from above and descend. At Nagy-Lápafő, the ridge narrows so much that the hiking path and road must share a few meters closely. Again, we have a view down from the mountain area, colored by numerous hills and the vast hard waves of Bükk in the distance. We surge up the steep Nagy-Lipót ridge (again with a panorama to the long Eastern Mátra ridge), then reach a junction along a dense pine forest with rich pine scent. This junction will later be an important point on our hike. But now the last challenge awaits us as we march continuously uphill on the side of Galya-tető. Beeches, hornbeams, pines share the slope. We reach a pathmarking board in a young forest; from here, only a few steps remain to the parking lot.

Galyatető, the top of the Upper Mátra

Galyatető is the gateway to the resorts of the Upper Mátra and one of its most popular tourist destinations. It has a long tradition of diverse accommodation offers: a tourist house stood at this rather neglected mountain's key point already at the end of the 19th century, later dominated by skiing. Everything turned upside down: ski slopes and their facilities (buildings, ski lifts, etc.) fell into ruin, but the highest parts of the Mátra have almost revived from the post-regime change downturn under the pressure of mass tourism. Today, a renewed, modern Tourist Centre operates on the former tourist house's site. After refreshing ourselves by trying its kitchen (or one of the neighboring restaurants), don't forget to exchange a 200-forint coin to enter the lookout!

The K mark leads to the panoramic tower raised in the 2010s, famous for its prestigious architectural awards. The building, which also contains bivouac rooms, offers a breathtaking view from the top: you can survey nearly the entire Mátra ridge. Next to the Kékes block, the Bükk is also well visible, and a wide slice of the Carpathians unfolds before us, as on clear days the Gömör-Szepesi ore mountains and the Low Tatras behind, the rocky crown of Felvidék, and the High Tatras appear. To the west, the volcanic blocks of Felvidék stand next to Karancs, and the Western Mátra can be scanned along with Muzsla in the background.

A hidden region

If you manage to tear yourself away from the lingering views, continue westward along the Blue Trail! The route’s best forests follow: walking among giant, old beech groves, in a typical Mátra landscape. Soon, we reach a junction where we turn right, downwards on the P▲ marks, returning. The wide forest road-connected trail’s atmosphere sharply contrasts with the hustle of Galyatető: tourists disappear, vehicle noise fades, and we can enjoy the quiet, closed forest magic. The wild rock outcrops gradually vanish when at another junction we turn right again, now onto the P mark. We cross the grassy pastures of abandoned ski lifts and slopes and find ourselves at a well-known junction near ruined buildings.

Downhill is harder

On the left branch of the K mark, retracing a previously traveled section (in the opposite direction), we hike for the next approx. 1.5-2 kilometers. Shortly after crossing the forestry road branching from the paved road, we turn left onto the P+ mark. A technically difficult challenge awaits us on the side of Kis-Lipót. Descend carefully and attentively, wearing only hiking footwear with adequate grip, as a slip or stumble can be dangerous! On the steep slope, the eroded, loose soil trail with rock outcrops and root nets is beautiful and atmospheric but demands at least as much effort as an uphill climb. Our fatigue is not alleviated but is explained by the fact that we lose 150 meters altitude over about 500 meters distance. Meanwhile, we can at least glimpse above a young forest edge towards Bükk.

When crossing a forestry road, a short but unpleasant water-washed rut forces us to crawl or slide down sitting. Once passed, only a leisurely walk remains: down a valley path and then at the clear-cut edge to the foot of the mountain. The water of some springs of the Parád-Tarna here is dammed in a park behind a fence but unfortunately isn’t accessible to the bank. Along a flattening terrain and a former chestnut grove, we follow the creek, and Parádsasvár’s street replaces the forest. Opposite renovated accommodations, the dilapidated block of the closed glass factory spoils the pleasant village image significantly. To the right, near houses, the impressive block near Kékes peak appears, and finally, leaving the houses behind, we step into the late 20th-century scenery evoking the village’s glorious days.

Sulfur-smelling gases - but from where?

The decorated buildings evoking an Ótátrafüred atmosphere surround the pavilion designed by Miklós Ybl, which hides the famous csevice, the spring of “Parádi water.” For a long time, the carbonated, sulfur-smelling discharge was thought to be, as in volcanic regions (and other parts of the Carpathians), a consequence of volcanic post-activity. However, the Mátra active period ended about 12 million years ago, and volcanic-origin gases hardly remain stored underground now. Under the mountain’s lava rocks, sedimentary rocks exist at great depths – these chemically decompose under enormous pressure and heat. The resulting carbon dioxide escapes to the surface and dissolves in the spring water when approaching it. The sulfur (“rotten egg”) smell is caused by weathering of the mineral pyrite. The csevice springs, also used for healing gastric and digestive diseases, therefore are in fact not related to the much younger (approx. 30,000 years ago extinct) volcanic post-activities producing Transylvanian mineral waters (also called sparkling waters).

Throwers and counts

Parádsasvár offers one last attraction – detailed exploration requires a thick wallet. The Károlyi Castle, also designed by Miklós Ybl and built in 1881, today is a shining luxury hotel. György Károlyi intended the splendid building for his wife in exile in Kossuth’s camp – later she returned and moved in at the turn of the century, renaming the castle Sasvár. Later, the cosmopolitan grandson Mihály Károlyi became owner, who, not enjoying rural life, granted usage of the estate to his wife, the “red countess.” After their quarrels, Katinka Andrássy (the wife) reportedly often hid here, hence locals called the palace “the Sulking One.” Partly a hotel operated between the walls then, later functioning as a children’s holiday resort called Sasvár after its acquisition. It has been privately owned since 1996.

On the P+ mark, we return to the starting point by the road bend buffet and parking lot, passing colorful flowerbeds and saying goodbye to the castle sight.