On Markaz green trails at the rim of the Kékes caldera

Itinerary:

• From the center of Markaz, we follow the ZL trail to reach the castle.
• Continuing from the castle, we stay on the ZL trail until the Mária picture tree.
• From the ridge, we descend back to the village on the Z trail.

Detailed description of the route:

Up to the castle

We start from the center of Markaz on the ZL trail northwards along Dobó Street, then turning onto Kálvária Street which leads out of the village. From the basin, we climb through a mixed acacia forest to the ridge above the settlement, where we continue on open, grassy terrain. Trail markers are hard to find in this treeless area, and the green trail markers of the village’s educational nature trail might cause confusion as well. A useful landmark is the wooded ridge towering above us that we must climb onto, so slowly ascending along the ridge, we turn gently right onto Várebérc.

After the shrubbery and wooded meadow, we enter the oak forest on the ridge where the path steepens as it climbs towards the Markaz castle. On a left turn onto the ridge, at the edge of a charming shrubby forest intersected by clearings, we find the former entrance to the fortress, now only visible as uneven ground. Continuing southwest on the trail, we reach the inner area of the castle where we can see remains of walls a few meters high.

The castle was probably built after the Tatar invasion by the Kompolti family, claimed to descend from the Aba clan who ruled the region. It thrived from the late 13th century to the early 15th century. The fortress, surrounded by moats, was accessible by a drawbridge. Inside the walls was a residential tower for local lords, who hunted in surrounding forests or retreated there for solitude.

Water supply was provided by a dammed pond on the nearby Vár Stream. Water located 200 meters away and 100 meters lower was drawn up to the fortress on a sliding vessel system moved by rope along a track. The remains of the dam and sliding path are still visible below the castle.

The Visontai branch of the Kompolti family died out, sealing the building’s fate. The area was inherited by relatives who also held Nanát, governing their estates from the castles of Oroszlánkő and Sirok, pushing Markaz castle into the background. It is unknown when the building was destroyed, but presumably during the Turkish invasion in the 16th century, as by 1570 it is only mentioned as a ruined palace.

Further along the caldera rim

From Markaz castle, we continue along the steep mountain ridge forming the caldera rim. We ascend the elevation gain in three stages. The first 100-meter stage was in the forest above the village, the second 150 meters in elevation difference was on the side of Vár-bérc. The third, more demanding section is on the side of Hegyes Hill, where we fight to reach the summit’s remaining nearly 150 meters. The ascent passes through a pleasant oak forest, with a long section covered by a sea of stones covered with moss at the forest floor.

We bypass the summit of Hegyes-tető from the southeast and proceed largely level along the stony mountainside. Unfortunately, the hiking path bypasses the mountain meadows for its longest stretch and runs through dense forest below the ridge. In the final section, in the forested pine area behind Rókalyuk-tető, we turn up to the ridge to a glade dotted with old trees. Here we cross to the western side of the ridge, where the caldera’s steep, rocky upper region is cut across by the trail.

There is a significant drop beneath us, the valley floor disappears into the shadowy density of trees. Occasionally we get views through the forest and continuously sense the proximity of the huge block of Kékes dominating the view. In some places on the upper ridge, the huge building of the broadcasting tower on Kékes can be seen behind the wooded ridge.

Shortly afterwards, we finally turn onto the ridge where, at the edge of the forestry road in the saddle, a shrine equipped with benches welcomes us. The Mária picture tree is the prayer of those working in the forest to the protective Virgin Mary, who, according to their belief, protected them from accidents during dangerous work. Several such picture trees can be found in the mountains above Markaz; similar forest shrines are relatively common in the Northeastern Central Mountains. The original framed Mária picture has been updated with a 21st-century, duplicated holographic picture where Jesus and Virgin Mary look at us simultaneously, you just have to wink with both eyes to them.

Descent back to the village

After the winking Jesus-Mary picture, we change trails: turning right, we follow the Z signs southward on a wide forestry road. The comfortable descent leads to a mountain ridge where we arrive in a beautiful, park-like, grassy old oak forest. On the ridge edge, an andesite terrace stands out with its lace-like rocks from the rounded mountainside. This outstanding rock band is typical of stratovolcanoes, formed by layers of ash, scoria, and lava flows building the volcanic cone — hence the name. Since tuff solidified from ash and the blocky scoria are weaker than the hardest lava flows, the latter protrudes from the eroding surface.

If we were to follow the ridge, it would lead down the mountain towards the Tarjánka Gorge, which is one of the most exciting valleys of the mountain range — but unfortunately, it is not accessible due to its protected status, so we must turn off the ridge with the Z trail into the Harta Stream valley. We cross the wide gravel forestry road multiple times, which is surrounded by larger clear-cuts interrupting the mountainside. Fortunately, we descend gradually and evenly into the valley towards Markaz, which appears intermittently through the clearings created by logging.

Near the Cseresi forester’s house, on the far side of the valley, we emerge from the forest onto the meadow above the village, from where there are excellent views over the settlement and the vast plain of the Great Hungarian Plain. Former pastures preserved from grazing animal husbandry are replaced with extensive vineyards waving at the village’s edge. The south-facing volcanic slopes here create an almost Mediterranean climate on the edge of the Great Plain, providing an excellent growing site for the wine grapes of the Mátra wine region.

The famous Turkish traveler Evlia Çelebi already sang odes about the local wines in the 17th century. Indeed, this ancient wine region currently produces more than one-third of our country’s wine exports, although the phylloxera epidemic ended its heyday in the 18th and 19th centuries. As part of replanting efforts, a significant portion of Hungarian grape varieties grafted onto American rootstocks were produced here.

At the end of our journey, the tower of the Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception shows us the way. The original building was erected by Slovak settlers arriving after the Turkish occupation, and despite continuous repairs thanks to the congregation’s collaboration, it had dangerously weakened after about 150 years and finally collapsed with a huge roar on the morning of June 24, 1906. Therefore, the village population was forced to have the church rebuilt, which was completed with impressive dimensions by professionals within one and a half years. Returning beside the cemetery and the church, we come back to the village and turn right on the Main Street to close our circular route.

The detailed description of the hike can be read under the Directions menu point.