The treasures of Nagy-Szénás

Itinerary:

• We hike from the center of Nagykovácsi on the Z trail up to the saddle between Zsíros Hill and Nagy-Szénás.
• On the National Blue Trail K trail, we climb from the east to the Nagy-Szénás summit.
• From Nagy-Szénás, we descend along the P trail to the edge of Pilisszentiván, then climb up to Vörös Hill.
• From Vörös Hill, we return along the S trail to Pilisvörösvár, arriving at the Szabadságliget railway station.

Details about the hike:

On the way to Nagy-Szénás along the edge of Nagykovácsi

We start from the main street of Nagykovácsi heading north on the Z trail, halfway between Tisza István Square and the Teleki-Tisza Castle. The character of the town center is defined by the orderly arrangement of houses built by Swabian settlers. Archaeological finds during constructions reveal that Roman villas already stood at the site of the present settlement, and a paved road ran along Devil’s Ditch, connecting Aquincum to Roman territories beyond the hills. During the Árpád period, it was the area of royal smiths, which is the origin of the settlement’s name. Legend holds that they forged the equipment for the black army and the royal hunters here. The place became depopulated during the Turkish era, then was revived by German settlers after the occupation. The farming, animal husbandry, and woodland work-based population was largely deported after World War II, replaced by new inhabitants from the Great Plain and Upper Hungary, who sought work in the strengthening metropolitan industry.

We bypass the town cemetery along Bánya Street and climb with Zsíroshegyi Road to the boundary of the inhabited area, reaching the low point of the ridge, where we join the National Blue Trail route. Turning west on the K trail, we take a dozer road leading past the last houses of Nagykovácsi at the forest edge. Leaving the built environment, the rocky surface becomes steeper as we climb higher in the pine forest. We circle the ridge from the north on a nearly level side path that leads to a memorial in a protected cut. This notable site preserves the remains and memory of the Nagyszénás tourist house: a key mountain hut of the Budapest hiking community in the mid-20th century. The building was fully constructed by human effort a few years after World War I, all materials carried up the hillside on backs by enthusiastic tourists. Due to its popularity, it was soon expanded with a restaurant and terrace, and ski races were held on the steep, bare slopes around it. Unfortunately, after World War II nationalization, its fate was sealed: neglected and lacking necessary renovations, its condition worsened until it was demolished in the late 1970s.

At the summit of Nagy-Szénás

We switch to climbing in the small valley where the house once stood. With a short detour, we climb up to the grassy summit of Nagy-Szénás, but the continuation of our hike leads through the steep forest below. Following the K trail further, we pass through increasingly sparse groups of trees and bushes to a wide ridge. Immediately, a bench awaits beside the path, overlooking the view unfolding above the treetops; here we can rest before the gentle ascent of a few hundred meters to the summit. In the grassy area, watch your step, as the surrounding dolomite grassland hides valuable plants. Although only conspicuous from the second half of April, the Pilis flax shines modestly with its small yellow flowers among the grass blades. The surrounding grassy hilltops are home to the species, which is found only here in the world. Presumably, as a relic of the warmer climate before the Ice Age, it survived on the southern slopes and rocky sides as a relict species in several isolated patches in the Szénás mountains, highly valued by domestic nature conservation. As a result, the area earned the Europe Diploma, a prestigious recognition for the continent's most important nature conservation values and exemplary conservation efforts. The Hungarian Nature Walkers' Association included the five-petaled treasure of the Szénás in its logo.

Climbing toward the nearby hill marked with a cross, a stunning panoramic view opens from the highest lookout point in the area. We can broadly see the northern part of the Buda Hills, below which the inhabited valley of Devil’s Ditch is surrounded by forested hills. The view toward the capital is quite limited; only along the Devil’s Ditch cut can we glimpse a center filled with houses. Above the houses of Nagykovácsi rises the largest massif of the Buda Hills, the flat, forested back of Nagy-Kopasz, and as a continuation of the Nagy-Szénás ridge, the also forested Kutya Hill with similar height. To the north, the mainly black pine-planted dolomite hills steeply drop off. Deep below, the densely settled Pilisvörösvár Basin crosses the mountain range, and over its patchwork stretches the visually striking, blocky range of the Pilis Mountains. Defining features include the limestone block of Pilis Peak with its geometric form and the waves of Kevélyek, while beyond the Pilis Mountains the broken mountainous landscape of Gerecse enriches the western horizon.

Descent on the northern side, at the edge of Pilisszentiván

Returning east along the ridge, now following the P trail, we continue to the ruins of the shelter and beyond into the valley continuation. With a steep descent, we go deeper into the forest dominated by old beech trees. After a saddle, we turn right following the Long Ditch cut where the slope softens. The quiet forest path leads us calmly deep into the strictly protected area. The strongly rugged, winding terrain is home to many wild animals; walk quietly in the forest and watch for traces around us. With some luck, we may see roe deer, wild boar, or deer.

In the increasingly widening valley basin, on a sandy alluvial area, the surface features soften around us. On the cart road leading out of the ditch, we turn north to the foot of the hills. At an exit equipped with a revolving door and game-proof gate, we reach the boundary of the protected area, beyond which we follow the fence, traversing along the houses spreading below us in Pilisszentiván. Forest clearings in the sandy path often open views; above us, the dolomite obelisk of the Szentiván Tower rises above the tree canopy. This elegant geological formation is quite interesting, preserved from decay by silica material precipitated from thermal waters in its cracks. Around it, the dolomite surface has already deeply eroded due to persistent abrasion by the sea that once waved here millions of years ago. Only the hard cemented tower protrudes nearly 20 meters above its surroundings.

Under the tower, we turn away from the hills and reach a small valley leading to the village, whose brook is dammed by a wide wall to form a lake with turbid water. Originally, the lake was dammed for fish farming, but the karst water level lowered due to mining; springs dried up, and without fresh water, the lake area was abandoned, reclaimed by nature with marshy terrain.

At the edge of the pine forest, we reach the edge of Pilisszentiván, briefly turning into the houses beside the sports field. This is the easiest place to leave the hike; buses run on the nearby main road returning to the capital. We leave the settlement heading west along rows of terraced houses and weekend gardens, with the buildings and landscape scars of the mineral mine visible. In the valley stretching south below us, a Celtic settlement was excavated, which flourished between the 1st century BC and the 2nd century AD, roughly at the same time the area became part of the Roman Empire. Stone foundation timber-framed houses, Roman pottery shards, coins, and metal objects were found in the Hársas forest.

Crossing the pine-planted nook of Kakukk Hill, we arrive at the border of the Buda Hills and Pilis, the lowest point of the watershed where Road 10 connects Budapest's catchment area with Esztergom and the settlements of the Dorog Basin. The Kopár Pass is a busy traffic route; fortunately, the railway runs underground here for almost a kilometer, directly beneath the Kopár Csárda parking lot. This rail tunnel, 780 meters long, is the longest in our country, built at the end of the 19th century to transport Dorog coal to the capital.

The hiking trail cuts across Road 10 via a short detour and returns to the forest behind Kopár Csárda. The restaurant, operating since the mid-20th century, offers a great opportunity to recharge and rest. The original wooden building burned down in the 1980s but was rebuilt as a popular inn at the busy road summit. The hike can be easily interrupted here, as the Kopár Pass bus stop stands directly in front of the restaurant, from where we can return to the capital.

The resin-scented Zajnát Hills

The last section of our hike is dominated by pine forest planted on barren rocks. The name of the pass refers to mountain pastures cleared of forests, where until the mid-last century, the inhabitants of surrounding villages grazed their animals. However, the dolomite hills with a thin soil cover have been worn down to bare rock along roads and paths cutting steep slopes due to trampling by animals. The infertile, crumbly rocky surfaces were planted with resistant and undemanding black pine to prevent soil erosion. Thus, the surrounding hills became forested evergreen, especially on the steeper, eroded terrain.

We climb up to the winding, resin-smelling mountains, called the Zajnát Hills, along a winding path. Reaching the ridge, we sometimes get views between pine groups to the long limestone ridge of the Pilis Mountains and the settled Pilisvörösvár Basin. On a gentler part of the ridge, at the Gyula resting place below Vörös Hill, a long clearing stretches along the hillside in both directions. An underground gas pipeline crosses the hills, and we can descend most efficiently to Pilisvörösvár along its straight service road following the S trail. Along the route, runoff from rainfall visibly deepens the cut. To counteract this erosion type, the area was afforested. The clearing guides us tower-direction into the valley, beyond which rise the indicator mountains, the double peaks of Kevélyek.

We arrive at the village among pine groups, past weekend gardens and orchards, following Áfonya, Margita, and Szikla streets. Szikla Street stylistically ends in a small dolomite rock where we see for the last time the sharply contoured dolomite rock forming the mountains we hiked. Just below the rock, we find the Szabadságliget railway stop, to which the S trail also leads as the endpoint of our hike. We can reach the village center via streets parallel to the railway if we want to wait for public transport connection in a restaurant or café.