Lake Töröcskei circuit

 Itinerary

• We start from the bus stop heading northeast, then after a few meters turn left following the P sign.
• Reaching the valley floor, we make a short detour of a few steps on the P● sign to visit the Esperanto spring.
• We continue on the P sign.
• From the Vackor Farm, we follow the S sign to the shore of Lake Töröcskei.
• After crossing the Töröcskei creek, we turn right on the P sign, which accompanies us back to the starting point.

About the tour in detail

From the edge of the city to the Zselic forest hiding the miracle berry

Kapos-Zselic is a garden suburb in the southern part of Kaposvár. The former garden area has now become part of the residential zone. From the Kertbarát felső local bus stop, we head northeast, then after a few meters enter the 70-hectare Töröcskei forest park established in 1981, following the steeply descending P trail on the roadside slope. The narrow path winds briskly along the side of the valley. After the first one or two bends, on the left side of the road running under the mixed beech forest, we can see rare, strictly protected plant specimens. Their shining red berries, which appear to grow from the plant's leaves, attract attention from afar. This phenomenon is reflected in the Hungarian name of the genus, the miracle berry, which enriches our flora with two evergreen shrub species: the much more common thorny miracle berry and the lingonberry-like miracle berry seen here. Essentially, each "leaf" is a flattened, photosynthesizing leaf-like modification (phyllocladium), with a true leaf sitting in its center. At its base, we find solitary small flowers from which the red berries develop.

Soon we pass by the Cserkész spring emerging under the road, which was inaugurated with a glass of spring water in 1982 on the occasion of the 17th National Social Forest Service Meeting with financial support from the Kaposvár City Beautification Association, and named the Wanderer spring. The inscription on the spring house’s left side commemorates the founding on March 5, 1912, of the first nature walking organization in Somogy county, the Nature Lovers' Tourist Association Kaposvár local group. The now dry water source is often covered by a thick layer of leaves, making it not always easy to find.

Remnants of disappeared springs

The beautiful shaded gyertya mixed extrazonal beech forest hides several old thick-trunked trees, one of which fell across our path on the steep slope. Bypassing this, we descend further until the valley widens. Here, after a few meters on the left turning P● sign, we reach the Esperanto spring.

The spring’s enclosure was made in 1983 with support from the Somogy County Nature Lovers Association by members of the Kinizsi TE and the METEOR TE. Its name was initiated by Esperanto enthusiasts Péter Vukov and Dezső Szilágyi active in the county's nature walking organization leadership. The now worn concrete enclosure’s green color refers to the background color of the Esperanto flag. The spring has dried up but waters seeping to the surface around it have formed a relatively large reed patch underneath.

We return to the P sign, on which we soon reach the corner of Bükk Street in Körtönye. Here we turn left; our formerly descending path becomes an ascent. Next to a large sessile oak, we join a well-maintained dirt road leading to the fishing lake. We follow this for only a few meters, then at two old Turkey oaks, we turn onto a small path again, crossing through a richly shrubby Turkey oak forest section, cutting off the big bend of the road, arriving steeply down to the shore of Lake Töröcskei. Before the lake, we arrive at the Nature Walkers' monument, inaugurated on April 25, 1982, by the Kaposvár City Beautification Association and the Somogy County Nature Lovers Association on the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Nature Lovers Tourist Association Kaposvár Group led by printer Imre Mojzer, as well as acknowledging that "the 1930s workers’ youth held its meetings in this forest during the years of illegality."

The old sessile oaks towering above the monument, some relatives of which we already met in the forest, are remnants of the former wooded pasture. Beyond the old well stands the Vackor Farm, which can be a good starting point even for several days’ stay here.

Lake tour

From here, following the S sign, we cross a small hill and reach the shore of Lake Töröcskei. This popular, high-standard fishing lake, a reservoir of 11.5 hectares, was created by damming the Töröcskei creek originating in the Sós-kúti forest between 1971 and 1973. Its primary purpose was to reduce flood danger of the Kapos river by preventing an excessive volume of water from entering at once. The lake bed conditions are varied; its average depth is 1.8 m, but there are parts 3-6 m deep. The atmosphere of the lake surrounded by forests is captivating, easily inviting a longer stay – something to consider when planning the trip.

Traveling through the forest rising above the water surface, we quietly leave the lake and continue along the floodplain parallel with the Töröcskei creek flowing south. On the road turning west, we cross the watercourse on a small wooden bridge. On the far side, on the path running through a bush willow thicket, we reach a dirt road and turn right, switching to the P sign. Soon we reach the edge of a meadow, along which we head north to the forest where we return to the reed-dotted shore of Lake Töröcskei. After the fish guard house, we turn right and cross the dam. Turning right again, we return to the Nature Walkers' monument – from here we walk back the already traveled way to the bus stop.