In the crater of volcanoes among the Sátoros Mountains

Itinerary:

• From Rudabányácska follow the P mark up to the side of Magas-hegy.
• Turn left onto the K◼ mark, which leads to the parking next to the cable car.
• Turn right onto the K▲ signs, climbing up to the viewpoint standing on top of Magas-hegy.
• Descend on the K▲ mark to the Vörös-nyereg (Red Saddle).
• From the saddle, continue the hike on the right branch of the K mark to the junction in front of the Vöröskő Guesthouse.
• Straight on, follow the K◼ mark back to Rudabányácska.

Detailed description of the hike:

Land of the Dolisnyánok

Located at the end of a north-facing valley in the shadow of Magas-hegy lies Rudabányácska, whose name may be familiar from another, more famous settlement. The similarity of their names is no coincidence: "ruda" is a Slavic-origin word meaning red earth or ore (iron), referring to the extraction of resources from the nearby mountains. Since the 14th century, serious silver and gold mining has been conducted around the village, initially bringing in Italian and German settlers. The settlement, then called Szépbánya, was attached during the 14th century peak to another exploited mining site, Telkibánya. Starting on the P sign at the left wing of the Y-shaped forked street, within minutes, you find yourself opposite the Greek Catholic church. Until the late 1950s, services were held in Slavic here, as the Rusyns who arrived in the 18th century preserved their linguistic and cultural customs for a long time (older inhabitants still speak this eastern Slovak dialect). This lesser-known ethnic group is also commonly called "Kárpátukrán," hinting at their home in the Northeastern Carpathians. Among their two main groups, the mountain-dwelling "Verhovinai" (Slavic vrch means mountain) and the lower-lying "Dolisnyánok" (their name comes from the Slavic word dolina, meaning valley), the latter inhabited Rudabányácska, which was among several Rusyn-Hungarian settlements in the northern part of the region. (Hungarians only became the majority after population exchanges in the 20th century.)

At the foot of the mountain

At the edge of the village, we leave behind the old atmospheric cemetery, cross a meadow, then start the long, gradual ascent. A wide dozer path rises through mixed forest, moving away from the creek bed with an S-turn, then we switch left onto a narrower trail. We inch upwards through mostly medieval forests, sometimes thinned. Maple and beech leaves form a thick carpet of leaf litter in the valley bottom, where the P● mark beckons. A short detour leads to the double, unusually tall spring holder of Fejedelem Spring. In the 1930s, this was the first water spring of the mountain group, captured and managed by the enthusiastic Hegyalja Department working on the development of tourist facilities in the area. The P mark soon joins the K◼ hiking trail, where turning left offers a relaxing section: we traverse transversely about a kilometer along the side of Magas-hegy. As we turn toward the northern slopes, the silvery-trunked beech forest takes over the shaded habitat. Crossing ski slope clearings, one can spot the Hegyköz area and the forehead of Fekete-hegy.

The alpine-style developed mountain

The highest member of the mountain group, Magas-hegy, attracted special attention even in the heyday of Zemplén nature hiking. In 1927, on its first anniversary, a lookout tower was erected by the eager Hegyalja Department of the Hungarian Tourist Association. On its snow-retaining northern side, ski slopes and a ski jump were developed in the following years on the steep southern side. Interest in the height has enjoyed a new bloom since the early 21st century: the Zemplén Adventure Park opened here, whose attractions you'll encounter in the next bend. Modeled on Western examples, the mountain's slopes feature the country's longest bobsled and cable car; from the summit, a thrilling zipline takes you over to the neighboring Szár-hegy (with a cable car to fly back). At the middle station, there is not only a buffet but also a ski museum housed in the old ski house, the first and only one of its kind in Hungary.

The K▲ sign meanders up to the summit, alternating between grassy ski pastures and thick beech woods, but correct direction here is not always easy to follow due to dense infrastructure. The best choice might be to buy a ticket for the cable car (ticket office at the base of the large building) and slowly, pleasantly sway and rest as you reach the 514-meter mountain top. The viewpoint's steel structure naturally directs you from the platform of the exit stop. From the tower, you can calmly observe brave people sliding across to Szár-hegy on the ropeway, and all the characteristic terrain features of the Tokaji Mountains unfold. Standing on the edge of the mountain region, the panorama is extremely lively and versatile: in one direction lie the Ronyva plain and Slovak hills, as well as the basin of Hegyköz framed by the Vilyvitányi blockhouses deep below. In the background, the Milic group appears blue, the Füzeri Castle stands out with its rather bright white walls. Although a transmission tower interferes somewhat, turning west reveals the entire mass of the Central Zemplén before us. Among the long ridges and valleys, many distinct peaks combine, all covered in forest, with no traces of settlements visible from here – although the Regéc castle tower is easily spotted. To the south, the solitary outpost of Tokaji Mountain rises, its feet already merging into the plains of the Great Plain. Next up are the wooded peaks of the Sátoros Mountains, with holiday homes and garden houses scattered among them, and on the edge, the streets of Sátoraljaújhely are lined up. On especially clear days, parts of the Northeastern Carpathians also appear: the Vihorlát, Szinyák, and Borló belong, similarly to the Prešov-Tokaji mountain area, to the volcanic arc of the mountain ring. Rudabányácska shows itself at the foot of Magas-hegy, and since we have only covered half the tour so far, the return trip will take some time.

Back into the depths

Leaving the lookout, continue on the K▲ mark. (If the faded marks are not found, head down to the cable car reception station, from where turning left and heading west on the same level, the trail should be found. Staying atop the ski slopes, heading straight through the trees, painted pictograms will soon appear.) Say goodbye to the magnificent view and climb across to the other side of the summit on the steep, slippery, trampled, rocky, root-obstacle trail on the left branch of the K▲ mark! Caution is needed, and the trunks of trees handy as handholds. A large rock pile on the left of the path is the remains of a dismantled ski jump, and the extensive rock sea is due to Ice Age frost shattering. Fortunately, this section is short: the terrain mellows, and we approach the Kis-Magas-hegy peak on much friendlier ground.

Shortly, we reach the otherwise unremarkable intersection of Vörös-nyereg, named for the red color of the earth and presence of iron ores. The saddle point is traditionally called Bandalak because in the past it was an area inhabited by notorious "ruffians." Located sufficiently far from the town and squeezed between mountains, the site is accessible only by exhausting climb, thus understandably attracting those wanting to live far from the law and settlements. Several holiday homes still climb the hillside, but before the phylloxera devastation at the end of the 19th century, vineyards and orchards reached even higher here.

From the junction downward, continue on the western (right) branch of the K mark, continuously bypassing the edges of Kecske-hát. The slope is covered by sparse beech-oak forest – as if the trees themselves cannot agree on how to adapt to the terrain conditions. Due to the level-holding sharp turns, sunny and shady pastures alternate frequently despite the northern exposure. We touch the Körtefa saddle, where a nature trail board stands on the mountain, and from here we descend in oak woods along the side of Borz-hegy. At the bottom of a narrow clearing, we reach the paved road connecting Károlyfalva with Rudabányácska, turning right. Initially, branches arch over our heads as we wind curves, then the valley clearing widens. Leaves swim on a pond just beyond a fence, then the charming natural stone building of the Vöröskő Guesthouse appears. Staying on the road, on the K◼ mark, about one and a half kilometers from Rudabányácska center, we just need to walk through the valley bottom to the endpoint.