Lost tourist houses in the shadow of the Iron Curtain

Itinerary

From Harka to Muck House, there are hardly any signs on the tourist trail, but since we follow a wide forest road along the border, we don't need to worry about getting lost.

• Leave Harka on the asphalt heading towards the mountain on the Z marked path.
• We march on the highway until the border, where before it (at the information board) we turn right onto a wide cart road.
• Along the border, we follow the worn Z marking to the former border guard tower.
• At the viewing tower we turn right and continue on the Z marked path to the Forest House Ecotourism Visitor Center.
• We walk straight on the K marked path, down the asphalt to the wide, open pasture of the technical border fence.
• Turn right on the technical border fence clearing on the Z marking.
• At a clearcut fork, turn right onto the K marking, which we follow to the forest edge parking lot.
• At the parking lot turn left, and still staying on the K marked path arrive via the forest promenade at the Lövér Hotel bus turnaround.

Detailed Description of the Tour

Vineyards of Harka

Our hike starts near the center of Harka, from the bus turnaround (with a shop opposite) - but the Sopron Hills forest area is still far away. We descend along a peaceful street, following the Z marking, already walking on the "Iron Curtain tourist path." The majority of the village's population of German origin (with a small group excepted) was relocated after World War II and replaced by Hungarians. Although the name Harka indicated a judicial role among tribes during the conquest of Hungary, the freshly arrived inhabitants were unaware of this and changed the German-sounding name to a suddenly invented "Magyarfalva" (Hungarian Village). The village regained its original name in 1990.

The concrete road leads between the vines, to the left wind turbines wave densely from Austria. Viticulture has long been present on the sunny slopes around Sopron. According to 19th-century country describer Elek Fényes, Harka's "vineyard produces ordinary wine, but they also have vineyards on the Sopron border, which pay with much better wine." We leave a restaurant, then with a left turn head toward the border. However, we do not go all the way to the guardhouse; instead, by circumventing a yard we turn right and begin a long climb on a wide cart road.

Workers on the Throne of God

On the hillside stand weekend houses and orchards on the border; looking back, the view of the plain is beautiful. Before 1989, the owners of the neighboring Austrian plots often saw Hungarian soldiers here, but talking to them was forbidden. Now there is complete peace in the forest, which slowly closes around us as we ascend the Throne of God (or Heavenly Throne) side.

On the small hilltop, remnants of trenches can be found, whose history is much more interesting than it may seem at first glance: in the 1930s, the Sopron workers, on their own initiative (without support from the city of Sopron), built a tourist house here hoping for income. The location was not chosen by chance: the secluded spot lay outside or at the edge of the city police and gendarmerie’s jurisdiction, and was close to the border, making it ideal for May 1 celebrations and illegal gatherings. The 15-bed, two-story (with a livable attic) building was viewed with suspicion by the public and authorities: according to an anecdote, once a group of college students visited the Throne of God on May 1 provocatively, but upon seeing the prepared pork they took off. Due to later political changes, the owners had to give up the building, and although the World War damages were restored, the shelter had to be permanently closed in 1949.

We have to overcome a mild but never-ending climb: the eastern part of the Sopron Hills consists of metamorphic rocks whose hardness and small watershed area result in gently sloping, carpet-like terrain without deeply incised stream valleys. The directions of these valleys were determined by northwest-southeast fracture lines cutting the block mountains - since our hiking route follows this direction, we hardly notice the shallow, parallel ditches.

At the Border of Worlds - Along the Iron Curtain

We cannot see the traces of the Iron Curtain (the name comes from Churchill), but the mixed forest reminiscent of the former wide, cleared grassy strip. The slender, white-gray trunk birch is characteristic along the border. This relatively undemanding species acted as a pioneer in the cleared, formerly raked strip because it thrives on the nutrient-poor soil. Its appearance was favored by the acidic soil formed on silica-rich metamorphic rocks and the rainy climate. However, it will not last long here: it poorly tolerates shade from taller neighbors, so it will soon give way. (Forestry probably accelerates this process, as several birch trunks are propped up along the tourist path.)

The forest of the border strip is in a "changing era": nature is reclaiming what was once its own as best it can. Less demanding species fall, enriching and rebuilding the soil for their native companions in the hills - ultimately, the latter push out the guests from afar.

Rarely used (and poorly marked) tourist paths have few visitors, and some decades ago those who made it here found themselves in serious trouble and surrounded by soldiers. By the late 1940s, the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union hardened into a war threat, and Hungary's relationship with Yugoslavia also worsened (because Tito’s independent southern neighbor clashed with Moscow). The Soviet leadership feared an attack from the south into Hungary that would separate Soviet troops stationed in Austria from the homeland. Thus, in 1948, an order was issued to build up the southern and western border strips and develop the defense line. Within two years, a double-row wire fence was erected, a minefield was activated, and monitoring was carried out by the "green guard" working under the State Protection Authority (ÁVH).

Until then, daily connections and lively minor border traffic characterized the Sopron area despite administrative obstacles. However, from 1948 with the installation of the "Iron Curtain", the permeability ceased and life in the area gradually became impossible. Farmers had to hand over or exchange their border-close lands, grazing was banned, and only low-growing plants were allowed. In the early 1950s, a 15 km deep border zone was designated: staying within it required a permit, and entering within 500 meters of the border required special documents and tight supervision. Families labeled "class enemies" were deported overnight in military operations and sent to newly established camps in Hortobágy and Nagykunság. The large presence of military bodies in the border zone and continuous hunts targeting suspected spies made everyday life grim.

However, Stalin’s death changed the situation: the system was declared complete, and in October 1955 mines and wire fences were removed. The last mine was removed just days before the 1956 revolution - crowds crossed the green border. Following these events, the Iron Curtain was immediately rebuilt, and within months was closed again (the work resulted in deaths and around 50 injured).

In the Cradle of Sopron Hills Tourism

The only artifact recalling this dark era of the past during the long forest hike is the observation tower at the curve of Szarvas Hill. The terrifying steel height is climbed by three ladders - be careful, especially on the observation platform! The narrow plank does not close toward the depth, so a wrong move can be fatal. The view is not very detailed: gentle ridges of the Sopron Hills wave before us; a prominent element of the unfolding scenery is the mixed forest dotted with pines and the border strip - which still hasn't fully turned green.

At this point, we go right, with a slight climb, following the Z marks. Mighty pines mix with deciduous species before we arrive at the clearing of the former Muck border guard station. The asphalt road leading left goes under the natural stone walls of a former forest guesthouse. This was once the István shelter, inaugurated in 1937, named after a Sopron lawyer. Naturally, it could not operate during the socialism years: it was closed and later operated as a resting house of the border guard. Nearby once stood an interestingly designed viewing tower: the Sopron citizen’s tourist association, (which also built the mentioned shelter) the Transdanubian Tourist Association erected an ornate lookout in 1906, with a room inside its stone structure. Its tower was made from oak donated by Sopron, partly financed by locals’ donations. Over the following decades, the wooden structure deteriorated, and a storm ended the far-sighted view. Today it is only ruins, barely resembling its original form. In 2023, the Muck tourist house opened beside it, which can be used to make the hike two days long; its garden offers benches, tables, and a covered fire pit.

By the way, here is one of the highest points of the Hungarian part of the hills (507 meters). In place of the demolished barracks, the Forest House Ecotourism Visitor Center was built in 2021, where we can learn about the forest through an interactive, visual exhibition - and even encounter hidden life animals among the trees by walking on outdoor ramps. The hill called Nyírjes was already a popular destination for Sopron tourists at the turn of the century, and lively nature tourism developed in the hills. Organized interest formed in the early 20th century. Two somewhat rival tourist associations were founded – and within a short time they inaugurated three tourist houses in the forests around Sopron.

Dr. Gusztáv Thirring (honorary president of the Transdanubian Tourist Association) soon wrote a comprehensive guide about the region. The surrounding forest landscape is also connected to the namesake Muck Endre: the forester born in the Czech-German area (Sudetenland) in the second half of the 19th century became the chief forester of Sopron. He laid the foundation for planned forestry in the area, planted pine forests on the degraded landscape, built hundreds of kilometers of walking paths, and prepared signs and maps.

In the Signaling System Zone

We continue our hike on the K marked path from the clearing, and although we turn our back on the border, we soon encounter the remains of the Iron Curtain again. A little lower, the tourist path’s Z marking turns right, leading onto a wide clearing. In the 1960s, the border zone was narrowed to 2 kilometers, and by the mid-decade the (millions of pieces) minefield was cleared again to make way for a different solution.

The Electric Signaling System imported from the Soviet Union was built closer to the border, right here along today’s tourist path (interestingly, the special wire was a West German product). The low-current signaling fence alerted the nearest guard on contact (1500-4000 times a year), from where a team was dispatched to the problem point. Since the marks left in the fence’s zone helped decide whether a more thorough search of the area was necessary (remember that the border was pulled back and it was guarded too), escapees had to pay attention to marks left behind.

Their inventiveness is shown by slippers decorated with roe deer kept in one thematic museum – captured escapees were nicknamed "bush jumpers." Despite the game fences, many false alarms happened (more than two-thirds in total), it was also expensive to maintain, and as the political climate changed, the Iron Curtain was finally dismantled in 1989. Its last victim was on the Hungarian border: in August ’89, an East German couple tried to cross with their children to the Austrian side but was caught, and the man was shot by a border guard during the struggle (it is possible the weapon accidentally discharged). The border officially opened 20 days after this incident.

Mixed Forests, Pine Scent

We leave the technical border fence line quickly, turning left and then with a right bend begin descending into the valley. (From here, a half-hour detour leads to the Várhely viewing tower.) For the first time on the hike, water appears, and pines shade the cool slopes in places. Further down, we find the Ferenc spring's enclosure - it supplied water to the Muck border guard station for decades; its trace is the crumbling pump house. In the northeastern part of the Sopron Hills, relatively many springs concentrate in a small area – the rainy conditions compared to other Hungarian areas are balanced by the compact altered rocks’ water absorption capacity and the small supply area.

We bypass a clearcut where the K marking joins, which we follow to the right from the next clearing. Mixed stands with various species of pines form especially beautiful forest patches; these are actually the most memorable parts of the Sopron forests. Along the Iker trench wash, we descend in a fresh and aromatic pine forest - where the conifers mix with beech trees, creating an almost alpine atmosphere. We cross the creek, here and there mountain bike tracks intersect our path. We climb in a fairytale beautiful old forest with grassy ground, then after a fenced clearcut patch descend again.

On the Paths of the City Forest

The character of the landscape noticeably changes: we are in the urban city forest area. According to one information board, this is the country’s second most popular city forest, visited by more than 1 million people annually. We arrive at a forest playground with a parking lot – on the left, our path still follows the K marking on the Ojtoz Avenue promenade. The wide gravel road is illuminated at night, and alongside are forest gym facilities. And a larger memorial: in August 1917, the Austro-Hungarian-German troops of the Monarchy tried to break through the Ojtoz creek valley (in the Eastern Carpathians) to the Moldavian Plateau to push back the Romanian army. The battle went badly, and the huge losses decimated the Sopron 18th infantry regiment involved. They were posthumously awarded the title "Hero of Ojtoz," and in memory of the bloody events, a soldier’s relief was carved into the gorge wall. Knowing the historical events, it is not surprising that it was not allowed to remain there long: it was first removed, then the rock was blown up. For this reason, in 1934 the Sopron Gleichenberg avenue inaugurated the still-visible memorial, whose inscription states it is the original replica – and the promenade’s name was also changed to Ojtoz Avenue at that time.

A few meters ahead, we reach the parking lot, where we find a restaurant, or we can head home by bus. On the site of today’s Hotel Lövér once stood the third tourist house of the hills: in the 1920s, the Transdanubian Tourist Association built a sledding slope and warming hut here on the city outskirts. Within a few years, partly funded by donations, the Hatvan Ferenc tourist house (named for the association president) was established here, later expanded several times. Its history lasted until 1965, when today’s hotel predecessor was built on its place.