The treasure of Nagykőrös – the extraordinary world of the Pálfája Forest

• We begin exploring the Pálfája Forest located on the border of Nagykőrös from the clearing arranged at the entrance to the recreational forest.
• Follow the acorn-marked 1800-meter walking path throughout.

Detailed description of the tour

Time capsule of the disappearing forest-steppes of the Great Hungarian Plain

The Pálfája Forest on the border of Nagykőrös is both a botanical rarity and a living historical monument. The protected Natura 2000 oak forests of the plains are the last natural remnants of the former forest-steppes of the Great Hungarian Plain – mosaic habitats where the dry sandy grasslands and the lusher oak woods merge in a single forest.

The landscape was once shaped by oak woodlands, grassy plains, and unregulated rivers, but centuries of deforestation and changes in water flow have nearly erased this realm. However, the Pálfája Forest has survived and still preserves the ancient character of the Great Plain. Several hundred-year-old sessile oaks shade the paths, including veterans like the Rákóczi or Széchenyi trees, and the legendary Pál tree, up to 500 years old, from which the whole forest takes its name.

Saving the area was not self-evident. Between 2006 and 2011 during the LIFE project, experts removed aggressively spreading acacia and black locust trees, planted native oaks and birches, and set up protective systems so the young forest could regenerate. Thanks to this, we can still experience the sunny oak forest atmosphere that once characterized the Great Plain.

The degraded but still beautiful remnant of the plain oak forests

The Pálfája Forest offers three educational trails: two walking routes and one cycling loop.

• The 10-station, 1800-meter walking trail can be done in about an hour and a half and thoroughly presents the microclimate of the lily-of-the-valley oak forests and the sandy grasslands of dry oak woods.
• The 1200-meter Plain Oak Tour is shorter but provides insights into the diversity of sandy habitats.
• The 2700-meter cycling trail with five stations can be completed leisurely and is ideal for those who want to explore the subtle transitions between habitats while on the move.

Among the old giants

We recommend taking the longer walking path, following the acorn markings. At Station 1, on the edge of an opening, you can read that forest-steppes – mosaics of woods and grassy plains – had their westernmost occurrence in the Carpathian Basin. Then the trail forks; the right branch leads over small grass patches to Station 2, which introduces these ancient trees. The pedunculate oak specimens can live for several hundred years if left undisturbed. The oldest oaks in Nagykőrös are named after the city’s former leaders and other famous persons, but the origin of the name of the more than 400-year-old Pál tree next to the station is unknown.

Old residents and their visitors

The third station by the fence talks about wildlife damage, the fourth just before the bend explains sandy soils, highlighting how trees grow sparsely in water-scarce environments which causes the forest cover to open, creating wooded clearings that are also protected here. The following station describes the lily-of-the-valley oak forests on sandy but moister soil, where grey poplars and birches start appearing among the oaks. The next two stations remain in this association, dealing with its flora and birdlife. The forest is rich in wildlife: the sandy grasslands display persistent catchfly, feather grass, and pasqueflowers; deadwood hosts stag beetles and great capricorn beetles. Rollers, hoopoes, and several woodpecker species are common in the clearings, while deer and martens may appear among the shrubs.

The circle closes

The path here sharply turns left, leading back to the starting point. There you can read about alien tree species and the role of deadwood. The last station is a board game, but before that you pass the visitor center and finally reach the most beautiful part of the trail, the wooded clearing.

The Pálfája Forest is not just a recreational area: it is a living curriculum about how nature and humans shaped the Great Plain and how we can preserve this disappearing world for the future.