On the ancient volcano’s caldera rim - Crossing Börzsöny on a rarely visited terrain

Itinerary

• From Diósjenő railway station follow the K markings to the Arany János Street junction.
• From Arany János Street follow the S markings all the way to Kemence.

Detailed description of the route

Our journey begins with a long village walk through the rather monotonous Diósjenő. We follow the S marking that crosses the village, starting to the right from the station, then turning left on the main street, from where it leads straight without curves to the forest edge. We turn onto a dirt road, and soon a forest environment that becomes beautiful surrounds us. We pass by steep ascents in places, deep paths in others, and small quarries in others, as we climb up the slope of Závoz. The word Závoz is of Slavic origin and accurately describes where we are: it means a steep mountain path, as well as a mountain pass. Indeed: the small saddle sits among the high points of the eastern range of Börzsöny, from which there is a nice view of the nearly flat hills of Cserhát.

We stay on the S marking and walk level for a while, then after reaching the bottom of a wide clearing, we start to ascend. At the end of Kun-meadow, a peculiar structure, a covered hunting lookout, greets us, which is large enough to accommodate a small group. From there, we get a panorama again facing east. We make a sharp left turn (slightly back), and climb up a narrow, atmospheric path now nearly to 600 meters altitude. We pass the mountain top and then descend to the saddle bordering Kámor from the south, where we then cover more than 100 meters of elevation difference in the next half kilometer towards Kámor.

Kámor is an asymmetrical mountain: its western side is a gentle forested slope, while the eastern side is bordered by massive rock formations that tower and fall off. From its top, we can observe the eastern foothills of Börzsöny and the rolling landscape of Nógrád behind Borsosberény. Besides the view, the mossy rock fields and the atmosphere dominated by crooked trees are also captivating. It's an ideal rest spot, and we need the refreshment because a tiring rollercoaster awaits us further.

The path descends steeply in places to the Oroszi-závoz saddle meadow, where we continue straight to climb a mountain slope that seems steep at first but soon softens. From here, we follow the caldera rim, much lowered now, of the ancient volcano of the Old Börzsöny towards the west. This volcanic structure is built upon, or crudely put, "rejuvenated," by the volcano known today as High Börzsöny, which was created later. While walking on easy terrain, thanks to the forest clearings, we get views of the ridges of Csóványos and Magosfa, which seem especially high from here, although we still perceive them as distant. At about 600 meters altitude, we meander and successively touch the side of Csurgó-fejezet (whose flat top was once the landing strip of the nearby count's Wenckheim hunting lodge), Oszlopó-fő, and at Bugyihó, we reach the second highest peak of our route (634 m). We do not ascend its top, but since it is forested, it is not worthwhile. Directly below, however, there remains a lasting sight: huge mossy rock blocks form the ‘skirt’ of a dark andesite wall emerging behind the trees.

After Bugyihó, the S marking briefly leaves the ridge, but just before that, a clearing offers a great view towards High Börzsöny. Probably the next 2 km is the most beautiful section of the path: we meander along a very narrow ridge to Cicőke summit. At the top of Hegyhát, the bulldozer path barely fits at times, and the rock blocks bordering the path running through the beech forest are not rare either. Before Cicőke, there is a junction: the S▲ leads to the rocky peak where the Lokomotív TE Cicőke group placed a memorial pole to their deceased members. Do not expect a view at the peak, but it is worth choosing this route for the forest atmosphere.

The section called the Path of the Tatars is less scenic. From here, the character of the landscape softens somewhat, with andesite formations disappearing from the surface for example. We also descend a bit: we arrive at the road junction of Varjas resting place below 500 meters altitude. In the saddle, a barely visible ditch runs: the remains of the prehistoric fortress of Lapos. From beside the rain house, two markings start to the Great Valley: S+ leads to the Great Valley bordering Hegyhát from the north, while a much steeper slope to the south can be reached via the S● marking, so that we join the asphalt of Kemencei-Nagy-völgy (not recommended).

For the next 2 kilometers we walk on a simple forest road, finally at a poorly marked crossroads we see a clearing ahead to the right, and turning left a clearing appears beyond the trees on the valley slope. Let's continue a bit on the hiking trail, and a few meters later turn left, seeking the panoramic hillside hidden by the forest. From the shallow soil and rocky protrusion meadow on the side of Dorottya-bérc, there is a magnificent view eastwards to the Kemencei-Nagy-völgy and the long depression that borders our route almost invisibly. Opposite, the mountain slope dissected by forestry exploration roads and ‘spotted’ with clearings is already the foot of High Börzsöny, to which we are so close that it hides the peaks of Magosfa and Csóványos.

From here on, we descend on an increasingly rocky and steep path, finally arriving at the foot of Hegyhát atop a narrowing ridge whose last meters turn into rock steps, on the bank of the Kemence creek. We do not cross it yet but continue parallel until we reach the asphalt road. We cover roughly 3.5 kilometers on this road until we arrive at one of Kemence’s bus stops – following the S marking we can reach one directly, while at the small railway terminal we can take the Z marking to walk to another, slightly nearer stop.