In the enchanting Réka Valley

Itinerary

• From the Árpád-era church in Mecseknádasd, we start our adventurous route on the Z trail.
• At Stein Mill, on the P+ trail, we head south leaving the main road to Óbánya and enter the Réka Valley.
• At the end of the valley, at the Réka hut, we change the trail and on the K◼ trail head west leaving the Réka Valley.
• We follow the K◼ trail until the Hettyei spring in Püspökszentlászló, then switch to the Z◼ trail in the holiday village, which we follow to the center of Hosszúhetény.

Detailed description of the route

After getting off the bus at the large bend of main road No. 6, we notice the Z trail at the bus stop. Before starting our exciting promised route, let's walk up to the Árpád-era church on the hillside! The first building elements of the St. Stephen's church in the picturesque surroundings probably date back to the 1230s. (Its defensive wall was added in the 16th century.) We walk down the stairs next to the church to the main road leading to Óbánya, where we turn left and continue. First, we pass a winery and then a riding school, arriving at Stein Mill, which operated until the mid-20th century using the energy of the abundant creek. At the junction stands the cross of St. Margaret of Scotland (her birthplace might have been Rékavár, the modest ruins of which we find on the hilltop), and on a small clearing stretching along the Óbányai creek, we find a friendly resting spot.

Behind the mill building, we turn left and continue south on the P+ trail. The P+ arrives from Nagymányok, while the Z climbs a very steep path behind the mill up to Réka Castle. After 100 meters, our sign points right, and from here we follow our path along the Old (Fisher) creek flowing through Réka Valley. On the other side of the creek, the weekend homes of Réka Valley line up. After a few hundred meters, the most exciting adventure of our route begins to unfold before us. We have to cross the creek meandering through the valley a dozen times, in many places only by hopping on stones and rocks thrown into the creek can we keep our feet dry. The gorge valley narrows more and more; in one place, we have to scramble over a small rocky staircase to cross to the other side of the creek; in other places, wide streams block our way.

After overcoming the obstacles, after one and a half kilometers, we reach a small meadow. Here the P+ leads left to a transverse forestry road on the hillside. Those who have had enough excitement can choose this more comfortable route. However, those who still dare and enjoy challenges, I recommend continuing on the wild creek valley. Exploring the unmarked path is an unforgettable experience and a great challenge. We cover the next kilometer by climbing over fallen, decayed tree trunks on a game trail. On the steep hillside, we soon spot the trickling Disznós-kút spring, then climb out of the valley on the P● trail leading to the Kedves spring.

On the forestry road, we soon reach a loading area, from where we continue our valley adventure on a dirt cart road. In the tamed valley, our path is crossed by the Z+ trail, followed by several "easy" creek crossings, thus arriving at the picturesque clearing of the Réka hut and the Etelka spring trickling in the shade of huge pine trees. The small meadow is an ideal place to rest, and the mountain lodge, renovated in 2024, can be rented with prior reservation - an excellent idea for discovering the Eastern Mecsek. Near the hut, there is also a bivouac accommodation.

We leave the valley on the K◼ trail coming from Kisújbánya heading west - the P+ leads left towards Pécsvárad. We creep up a very difficult, steep hillside, deep below a nameless creek carved a picturesque gorge over millions of years, whose view accompanies our route. At the end of the long and continuous ascent, we come out onto a forestry asphalt road. On the small clearing across, we find a rain shelter, rest area, and the memorial plaque of Zengő Stone, where we can catch our breath.

We walk 600 meters along the forestry road when the S trail from Zengő joins us, and together we turn left back into the forest. We descend a very steep, water-washed gully, passing Korsoma meadow and then the Korsoma spring trickling along the hillside, arriving at the Püspökszentlászló castle. We turn left beside the fence and after a few minutes reach the Hettyey spring. It is worth timing our route with the opening hours of the castle and arboretum, as a number of botanical and cultural-historical attractions await us.

Alongside the turreted houses of Püspökszentlászló, we continue our route following the Z◼ trail. We pass the small chapel of the holiday village, then leave the small settlement and walk almost three kilometers on a wide gravel road in the Püspökszentlászló valley. Walking among the houses of Hosszúhetény, we see the statue of leader Hetény in the abandoned quarry of the settlement. From here, we only need to walk a few hundred meters to the village’s main square, where we can board a bus at the Cultural House stop towards Pécs, Komló, or Bonyhád.