Verepce-bérc educational trail

Itinerary

• Follow the educational trail marked with the green bastion clockwise, that is, from the starting point facing the Bán Valley turn left and start uphill.

Detailed description of the route  

At the border of the Northern Bükk and Uppony Mountains a deep valley starts heading south-southeast along the Bán Creek towards the central part of the mountain range. The creek originates on the northern side of Bálvány, the second highest mountain of Bükk at 956 m (tied with Kőrös-bérc), reaching the foothills through an almost straight valley, then continues through the Lázbérc Reservoir to the Sajó River. At the confluence of the Szilvás Creek coming from Szalajka Valley, Bán Creek takes a sharp turn – this is the starting point of our hike where there is a rest area, a buffet open even on weekdays, and an improvised "vehicle museum”. Here is also the entrance to an adventure camp where you can even book accommodation in one of the wooden houses.

We start the Verepce-bérc educational trail on the path marked with the green bastion sign, heading left towards the ridge – we will return on the asphalt road in the valley later. The first part of the route goes through not particularly interesting forest, which as the altitude increases turns into a more and more wild hornbeam-oak forest – and at the highest parts of the route we will even walk in beech woods. Near the Gedeon cut, we encounter ancient remains for the first time: if we pay attention, we can notice uncovered Scythian burial mounds from the Iron Age.

Verebecvár

As we proceed, we quietly enter the area of the former Verebecvár. Experienced eyes and those who know what to look for may spot the ramparts stretching from Dédési Castle Hill to the Verebec saddle. Verebecvár, located on a 4 km long ridge bordered by the Bán and Baróc creeks, is Hungary's largest ancient earthwork fortress covering 130 hectares, with significant elevation difference: the height difference between the highest and lowest points may be as much as 180 m. The fortification was inhabited already in the Bronze Age – numerous Iron and Bronze Age finds discovered here make it an important archaeological site. The builders moved more than 1.5 million m³ of earth to create not only ramparts but also terraces, from which up to ten “steps” could have stood one above the other. The geological features of the ridge, with limestone rock blocks and clay shales, likely aided the construction by providing good soil structure.

The hill and the surrounding area appear under three names in the nature geographic nomenclature: Verebec, Verebce, and Verepce. The Slavic-origin dialect words related to "verőce" mean “lattice, grating made of wood” or possibly “small latticed door”, which likely refers to the fortress that once stood here.

The Dédési Castle(s)

Among the slopes of the Verebecvár area, two rock outcrops rise. On the larger cone top at 597 meters above sea level stands the ruin of the impressive Dédési Castle, where the green bastion tourist trail also makes a detour. Do not miss this short climb, rewarded by an incredible panorama at the end! From the summit there is a unique view of the Northern Bükk, the Baróc Creek valley system, and on clear days even the ridges of the Carpathians are visible. The neighboring rocky peak of Kisvár, also an ancient fortress site, is a strictly protected area but can be thoroughly examined from here.

The castle, mentioned already in the 13th century, belonged to the Ákos clan, later among others to the Druget family and the Perényis, before becoming part of the Diósgyőr estate. Its loss came with the Turkish siege of 1567: the defenders, seeing the hopeless situation, sneaked away and blew up the fortress against the incoming Turks. What the explosion couldn't destroy, the enraged Hassan Pasha razed in revenge, leaving barely anything of the castle for posterity. Among the remnants today you can find tower and wall sections and a collapsed cistern.

The castle hill is also geologically special: on the 300 million-year-old sedimentary rocks of Bükk, resistant 250 million-year-old limestone layers formed, lending the hill its characteristic conical shape. The strategic significance of Dédési Castle was owed to the natural protection of these rock formations.

After Dédési Castle we continue toward the cone of Dédési Kisvár. The rock, peaking at 594 meters, is a strictly protected area, and for the sake of the undisturbed plants and animals living here, it may only be visited with permission and for climbing purposes. Please respect this! Below Kisvár, the K mark of the National Blue Trail joins from the left, and we proceed together for a section.

Vásárhely marsh and Vásárhely Stone

Continuing on the Verebec ridge, we reach a small “plateau” where the ridge widens considerably. Larger events, such as markets, could only be held here in Verebecvár, which is why this area was called Vásárhely marsh. The marsh means partly a soil depression and partly a valley bottom – it is no coincidence that the ditch descending into the Bán Creek valley later in the route is called Verebec Marsh. Similar to the rocks of the Dédési castles, Vásárhely marsh is a limestone lens wedged into the clay shale making up the ridge, but unlike the others, here the sedimentary layer has not worn away and so it does not stand out from the surroundings. A steep limestone cliff facing west formed here: the Vásárhely Stone, from which another excellent view opens. Although we only have a one-third panorama, we can scan the increasingly higher mountains across the Bán Creek valley from north to south: Alsó-Taró Hill, Felső-Taró Hill, Zobó Hill, and then at Sinkó-bérc we visually climb to Taró-fő, marking the boundary of the Bükk plateau, and further to one of the highest peaks of Bükk, Bálvány. The viewpoint also functions as a rest spot, where we can enjoy the panorama and the warming sun – in warm weather, a crooked-crowned pair of pubescent oaks provide shade.

After Vásárhely Stone, we continue on the path to reach the highest part of Verebecvár, the Verepce-bérc at 646 meters. Here we find more information boards which allow us to estimate what was where about two millennia ago. The ridge ends in a spectacular rockfall, below which lies the Verebec saddle. The trail turns sharply right here and we start descending on the Verebec marsh toward the valley of Bán Creek.

Adventurous descent

The beginning of the path leads through an exposed oak karst scrub forest where the crumbly, gravelly soil can be slippery at times! Shortly after, we enter a denser forest and continue along an almost straight, steep path. Apparently, clear-cutting occurred here, after which vigorous sprouting vegetation took up residence. It stings, bites, scratches and clings with its tendrils to the hiker – not a pleasant section. During rainy weather, a small watercourse joins our trail, making the mud thicker and requiring careful attention to slipperiness. Taking it as an adventure, this part can be a very enjoyable part of our hike, at the end of which we arrive at the Bán Creek.

In the Bán Valley

The Bán Valley is interesting both geologically and historically, revealing Carboniferous shale-hosted limestone layers interspersed with albite-quartz-chlorite quartz veins. On the steep slopes of the valley head, Permian sandstone reaches the surface, in which uranium minerals and associated silver-bearing ores were found in the 20th century. In the Middle Ages, the Bükk area was one of the country's most significant iron industry centers, as evidenced by nearby finds, iron ore mines, and remnants of iron smelting furnaces. Although iron ore mining ceased by the 13th century, Henrik Fazola revived iron ore prospecting and the emerging industry in the second half of the 18th century. Iron forges operating mainly in Dédés and Tapolcsány produced for nearly a hundred years along Bán Creek. Later, a quarry operated in the valley where shale was mined.

The educational trail follows Bán Creek back to the starting point. The upper part of the valley is more atmospheric, it is worth glancing at the winding creek beside us, which becomes gentler downstream. The route’s end is marked by increasing small gardens and camps, and intermittently open hospitality units along the road.