In the footsteps of Mecsek springs on Tölgyes road

Itinerary

• From the Hősök tere bus turnaround to the Pálos church, we follow the Z+ marking all the way.
• After leaving the Kantavári spring, we climb up to the ruins of Kanta Castle on the PL marking – with a short detour.

Detailed description of the route

After getting off the bus, we start on the Z+ marking painted on the utility poles. We need to cover 200 meters north along the busy main road 6, then turn left at the last house of the suburbs, and by crossing a small meadow we are already in the forest. From here, walking on a nice path, we reach the Rigó spring within half an hour. Continuing further, we soon leave the forest road to the left and continue our hike on a narrow trail. The area is carpeted with wild garlic in April-May.

We cross wild stream beds and side valleys, then after 500 meters we can turn right to the Bokor spring on the Z● marking. From here, a few minutes' walk brings us to the Zsolnay well, then from the spring we arrive at the Melegmány country road by an ascent, where we continue left. For a short section, the Z● marking coming from Páfrányos to Gesztenyés joins us. After a hundred meters, we turn left off the country road and find the trickling Andor spring in the valley. Bypassing the valley basin, we shortly leave the Z● marking to the right and join the Tölgyes road that begins at Letics clearing.

The Tölgyes road is a very pleasant, comfortable walking path meandering through a beautiful beech forest. Its winding trails run on almost the same contour line, avoiding the cuts of the valleys leading into the Karolina open pit.

In the beautiful beech forest, our path is crossed by the K+, and shortly after, the K● marking offers a diversion towards the Hármas spring. Continuing further, the forest opens a little, and we get a nice view of the Misina and Tubes ranges, which lie almost within arm's reach. On the winding forest road, passing by the trickling Black Stone spring, we arrive at the Rábay oak, where the P and P+ markings cross our path. Both come from the direction of Dömörkapu and head towards the Nagy-Mély valley and the Melegmány valley.

The stalkless oak standing at the intersection of hiking trails was named after Gyula Rábay, the former forest master of the city of Pécs.

Following our mark further, after a kilometer we meet the S● marking with which we descend left into the valley. From here, we can make a short detour to the nearby trickling Kantavári spring, where there is a rain shelter and a resting place.

After leaving the spring, we continue in the company of the P marking. After 200 meters, the PL marking beckons us to the ruins of Kantavár on the hilltop. Let’s give in to the temptation: start the very steep path and explore the former realm of warrior Kanta!

The legend of Kantavár

After the Mohács catastrophe, a robber knight named Kanta settled in an abandoned rock castle standing on the northern side of the Mecsek. He went on terrible adventures from here and hid many treasures and the most beautiful girl from distant lands, whom he had also abducted from her parents. He was going to sell her to a rich Turk, but he fell in love with her himself. However, despite covering her with treasures, she did not reciprocate his love because she already had a lover who fought against the Turks.

Kanta became a robber leader after he and his brother were kidnapped from their mother as children. A gold chain with a picture of his mother was everything reminding him of his origins. One day, an unknown young warrior asked for overnight shelter in the castle. He said he came from a Hungarian castle and wanted to visit his fiancée. This is how Kanta learned that this was the man to whom his prisoner did not want to be unfaithful. He hired a trusted man who murdered the young man hurrying through the Mecsek forest the next day. The unfortunate young man's ring and necklace were taken by the killer as proof. From the necklace and the picture on it, Kanta knew that he had had his own brother murdered. He had the body buried at the foot of the castle. The young man's fiancée soon followed him to death, and Kanta changed too. He did not rob or bully anymore, distributed his riches among the poor, and lived as a lonely hermit caring for the graves of the two lovers until he followed them to the eternal rest. However, his name has remained until today in the ruins of Kanta Castle.

Climbing a longer ascent to Kis-rét, we arrive at a favorite hiking place of the people of Pécs, where benches, a rain shelter, and a fire pit await tired tourists. From here, our marking leaves the meadow to the left and leads us to the Hideg-kút spring bubbling up on the valley slope. Continuing on foot, we pass alongside the ski slope and then climb up the toboggan run. Hiking trails leading to Misina intersect our path before we soon reach the Mecsek narrow-gauge railway stop and the adjacent Szaniszló resting place by the road leading to Misina peak.

The Mecsek narrow-gauge railway (Muki) is the shortest narrow-gauge forest railway in our country in length. The railway running between Dömörkapu and the Zoo was built in 1962 and is 570 meters long.

Crossing the country road, we continue again in a forest environment, then emerging from the forest, we go down to the left to Hotel Kikelet. Opposite the hotel, we turn onto a park forest path that quickly leads us to the arcaded, bastioned Mecsek gate. The symbolic entrance of the Mecsek was built in 1936. From here, we only need to walk down to the Pálos church (in the company of the S▲ marking), where our adventurous route ends, and we can take a bus back to the city center of the county seat.