Panorama hike from Nagymaros

Itinerary

• We start from Nagymaros railway station heading southwest on the S trail, which soon turns right.
• After Rigó Hill, we turn off onto the side of Ördög Hill, then follow the ridge on the SΩ trail.
• From the Hermit Cave we go uphill on the KΩ trail to the less steep S+ trail.
• We follow the S+ trail to the top of Szent Mihály Hill to the S trail.
• On the S trail, we head north-northeast toward Hegyes Peak.
• After the Julianus barát Tower and Világos Square, we continue on the K trail to the Köves Meadow.
• From here, heading southeast on the K+ trail, we reach the Nagymaros-Visegrád railway stop.

Detailed description of the hike

Up to Szent Mihály Hill

Starting from Nagymaros railway station, we head southwest on the S trail, which soon turns right and leads us on an atmospheric but steep forest path. We come out of the forest through dense blackthorn onto a meadow along the upper line of holiday homes, which looks best in autumn when our plant named golden cluster with its clustered inflorescences is in bloom. From here, the Visegrád Mountain range is clearly visible. Turning southeast, the wide path enters the forest at a barrier. The first truly beautiful lookout point awaits us at Rigó Hill, at the peak named after Tibor Gánti, who created the Kemoton theory. We need to take an approximately 200-meter detour (a sign also informs us of the correct direction) to reach the chemist professor's favorite resting and contemplating spot, but the view fully compensates: a beautiful view opens up to the Danube Bend. The professor established the theory of the artificial production of life with his research. His work was recognized with the Herman Otto Award in 1982, the MTESZ Award in 1986, the Pro Natura award in 1989, and the Pest County Scientific Award in 2006.

Returning to the route and continuing, the SΩ trail branches off to the left, running along very steep slopes and then the ridge of Ördög Hill. We reach our next viewpoint on the Ördög ridge, at the Kuntner Gábor resting place, created by the Carpathian Association of the Pest region in 2017 in memory of their unexpectedly deceased member. Emerging among the trees, the Dömös ferry station on the opposite shore of the Danube and the Malom Valley hiding the entrance to the Rám gorge are clearly visible. Soon we reach the Hermit Valley, at its upper end the hollow of the former andesite quarry. The stones extracted here in the past were transported to the Danube bank on a cableway, then further by carts and barges. The ruins of the upper station of the cableway are still visible today. Below this, we continue towards the cave boasting the most beautiful view of the Danube Bend.

The Hermit Cave

The beautiful panorama is partly due to the position of Szent Mihály Hill, home to the Hermit Cave. In the Miocene era, the area was characterized by intense volcanism. Its eruption center was the Keserűs Hill volcano (today its highest point is Prédikálószék), which showed primarily explosive activity, likely an amphibole andesite lava dome group. Due to the collapse of its northern part, a U-shaped caldera formed. After the volcanic activity calmed down, the mountain started rapid erosion under the prevailing subtropical climate. Later, the Danube cut into this destroyed caldera, successfully attacking the lower parts of the worn structure, while its incision kept pace with the area's slow uplift. The river created its characteristic bend by circling around the resistant andesite breccia of today's Szent Mihály Hill.

At an altitude of 220-230 meters, there is a cave group consisting of 10 chambers on the hill. Among them, the Hermit Cave is linked to a 19th-century legend, according to which a hermit heard the angels’ harp playing in the wind during a vision. Because of this vision, he retired to the cave on Szent Mihály Hill. Villagers often visited him with their religious and worldly questions. He never left the cave far and always returned to the shout of his donkey, which signaled visitors. Every day, the animal walked down to the Danube with bucket containers tied to its back for water, then returned to its owner. Meanwhile, villagers threw gifts meant for the hermit. Once during a flood, the donkey drowned, and grief-stricken by the loss of his helper, the hermit took his own life. Another version of the legend says village boys filled the poor donkey’s buckets with stones, preventing it from climbing out of the Danube and causing it to drown. The hermit waited in vain for water and supplies from the village and eventually died of thirst.

The hollows carved into the rock wall represent a transition between natural and artificial, human-dug caves. The strategic smaller cave developments may have begun as early as the Roman era. At that time, a stone fortress was also built in front of the cavities. From the 12th century to the Turkish occupation, monks lived on the site.

Around Hegyes Peak

From the cave, the KΩ trail leads steeply uphill over butcher’s broom shrubs on a crumbly path. This section demands extra caution especially on slippery ground. A sharp right turn from the trail brings us to the less steep S+ trail. From here, it’s only about a 100-meter detour southwest (i.e., opposite the direction of travel) on the S+ trail to the Dobozi Peak viewpoint, whose solitary Turkey oak provides shade even in the highest heat of the extremely dry and warm habitat. After resting, we can return to continue our ascent to the top of Szent Mihály Hill on the S trail, then north-northeast to Hegyes Peak.

On the soon-to-be steeper continuation, we can rest at the aptly named “Blood Bench”: a curved stone bench made by the “Encián Hikers 1914” Association in memory of their young member Miklós Lili. About 50 meters from here we meet the first fenced research shaft. The cavities resembling a mighty well ring were deepened by the Geophysical Research Institute in the 1950s to use micro-blast measurements on their bottoms to infer the quality of the ore deposits underground. Soon we reach Hermit Saddle and continue straight through Ürmös Meadow to the nearly 15-meter-high two-story Julianus barát tower reminiscent of medieval bastions. It was also built by the Encián Hikers with support from the Hungarian Tourist Association in 1939, on the 25th anniversary of their founding. The lookout was renovated in 2011 by Ipoly Erdo Ltd. It’s definitely worth climbing the narrow stairs for the 270-degree panorama it offers. The leading motif of the panorama is the Danube ribbon following the foot of the Visegrád Mountains. On a clear day, you can spot the High Börzsöny with its highest point, the Csóványos lookout, to the north. Looking east, the Naszály near Visegrád and Vác is visible, to the south Dömös and the Visegrád Mountains, and Slovakia can be outlined in the west. On the building’s middle floor, a covered room protected from wind and rain offers shelter in bad weather.

Back to Nagymaros

On the way down, after Világos Square, we continue on the K trail to Köves Meadow, where sedimentary limestone from the Late Miocene marine transgression lies on the surface, contrasting with the previously volcanic rocks. Here too, there is a viewpoint overlooking the Visegrád Castle equipped with benches and tables. Heading southeast further on the K+ trail, we pass another resting place, then the trail leads down a deep path filled with construction debris to Nagymaros. We pass the decorated building of the Kittenberger Kálmán Elementary School in Nagymaros and finally arrive at the Nagymaros-Visegrád railway stop.