The mysteries of Morgó and Csömöle

Itinerary

• We start from the Kismaros station on the Z trail.
• We climb steeply, then on the Z▲ trail we reach the Nagy-kőszikla viewpoint.
• We return to the Z trail and follow it to the game fence gate where we turn onto the connecting P+ trail.
• On the P+ trail, after about 1 km, we reach the P trail.
• On the P trail towards the west, with a short detour, we can reach Pusztatorony via the PL trail.
• On the P trail, we continue northeast towards the S trail.
• On the S trail, we head east towards the Kismaros-Morgó bus stop.

Detailed description of the hike

From the terminus of the Királyrét State Forest Railway in Kismaros, we set out on the Z trail along Szokolyai Street, where at Fácán Street, by the waterworks fence, we turn northwest. At Dézmás dűlő, we leave the houses along a small path and climb upward past electric poles. This is the steepest section of the hike; it is worth taking occasional breaks at the upper part of the climb to look back and enjoy views of Naszály and the stone quarry hollowed into its side. Along the Nagy-Morgó ridge, a wide gravel path (Viewpoint Road) leads again past houses. A little over 1 km later, the Z▲ trail branches off to the southeast to the Nagy-kőszikla viewpoint, where we can admire the Danube Bend from a less known perspective.

Returning to the long, straight Z trail, we reach the highest point of the hike at Gál Hill. At the Száraz-fák meadow junction, we continue following the Z trail, while enjoying nice views of Boglya-kő and the hills around Kóspallag. On the neighboring Nagy-Kelemen Hill, you can find the famous observation tower of the Africa researcher and hunter Kálmán Kittenberger, which the residents of the Kisinóc hunting camp renovated in 2007. A plaque placed here preserves Kittenberger's memory.

Leaving the meadow, we continue again through oak woodlands without hornbeam. From the Z trail, at the game fence gate, we turn onto the P+ trail leading to the Toronyaljai fishing pond. Here the path joins the P trail, where we first head west. On the top of a small forested hill after the road cut stands the ruins of the former Pusztatorony, also known as Bibervár, accessible via the PL trail. We turn back and on the P trail go around the fishing pond and follow it across meadows to Boglya-kő.

On the Boglya-kő hill is a uniquely shaped formation resembling a haystack, composed of a strong cemented andesite bedrock, formed from coarse-grained agglomerate. This is sediment cemented from incandescent clouds, blocks, and ash flows resulting from the collapse of Miocene volcano lava domes. Towards the end of volcanism, high silica-content thermal waters soaked the rock, making it even harder and more resistant. The rock formation was mainly shaped by frost weathering during the Pleistocene ice ages among the softer surrounding layers. The formation of frost weathering was helped by the stream valley at the foot of the hill, which quickly carried away the debris created.

Here we turn onto the S trail eastwards. Emerging from the forest, at the edge of the meadow, we find low-growing, protective wild rose thickets covering several square meters. On the narrow path, we first return to the Száraz-fák meadow, which also offers a nice view from this part, then descend through the Csömöle valley. We pass by the Riezner and Testvér springs. The former was claimed by members of the Nature Friends Hiking Association Budai Branch with the help of the hiking fund and inaugurated on September 5, 1920, in memory of their member János Riezner who died in tragic circumstances. The association rebuilt the spring sixteen years later, and in 1959 the Local Industry Nature Friends League restored it. The Testvér spring, a few hundred meters away, with non-potable water, was claimed in 1941. Both springs' surroundings were refurbished in 1980 by the municipality of Verőcemaros, formed by the merger of Kismaros and Verőce on December 31, 1974. From the Testvér spring, after more than 1.5 km, we reach the Kismaros-Morgó bus stop.