Petróczi school – Mindszent town (AK-04)

If we have already stamped with the blue trail stamp at the restaurant or the pub operating in the former Petróczi school, we set out on our hike towards Mindszent railway station. We walk out of the area in front of the building to the point where we arrived at the end of the previous section on the wide, slightly sinking sandy road to main road 55. We cross the busy asphalt strip and continue on the other side, starting on sand very similar to the previous one. In a few minutes, the noise of the main road traffic disappears behind us as we head between farms.

We walk a long time alongside the road lined with properties, then after about a kilometer, the fields are replaced by a forest on the left. After approximately 20-25 minutes, we reach the turnoff point where an electric pole on the right edge of the road displays an arrowed K sign pointing left towards the forest. Although no path is visible looking towards the trees, we trust the direction: starting towards the forest on a roughly 30-step wide grassy strip, we only spot a scarcely used path leading in between the trees. We enter the Upper Ásotthalom Forest and do not leave its shady paths for the next hours. After about two hundred steps, the path leads into sandy wheel ruts.

We head left on these, but after 70-80 steps, the blue signs turn us right onto another very similar road. We walk on this longer: only after approximately a thousand steps do we take a right turn off it. Here we switch onto sandy roads running through forest clearings where we will hike for several hours, turning sharply along the edges of the groves. We start on the clearing heading southeast for 500 steps, then turn left towards northeast. On this section, we go only about three hundred steps, then again head southeast. On this clearing, we walk for a longer stretch; about a third of the way, we reach the forest house’s woodland farm marked on our map. We pass in front of it, then at the end of the road turn right heading southwest, proceeding on the sandy clearing road for a short stretch.

Then we turn southeast again and after a few hundred steps begin the next detour. After changing to northeast, we turn southeast again and after about two-thirds of the roughly one-kilometer section, reach a short detour leading to the Back Chapel. It is worth taking the few hundred steps detour to the small chapel because there is a cozy forest resting spot next to the little church.

On the edge of main road 55, on a fenced plot, stands a chapel built in 1937 by Bernát Begavári Back, a businessman from Szeged, and his wife in memory of their son, Dr. Ottó Begavári Back, who died young. Unfortunately, the building is generally closed, with mass held only on the Assumption of Mary and the Feast of Our Lady of Hungary. Bernát Back was the first president of the Szeged Rotary Club. The newly formed club recently took part in the chapel’s renovation and surrounding landscaping.

Continuing from the forest resting place, we return to the Alföld Blue Trail route and continue weaving between clearings in the Upper Ásotthalom Forest groves. After turning southwest, we take a left curve and again turn southeast. From here, the detours stop. We trot about five kilometers on the sandy road southeast through the forest. We leave it on a left turn, walk a thousand steps northeast, then turn right, heading southeast on a crossroad. A few steps later, our path bends left towards northeast, then joins a narrow forest asphalt road.

From here, take a short detour on the road to the Rózsa Sándor Tree, an old grey poplar. On the direction post beside it is the blue trail stamp, so we can’t avoid the tree, under which the famous outlaw is said to have often rested according to legends. The next settlement affected, Ruzsa, received this name in 1957; before that, it was called Csorva. The area is known because Rózsa Sándor was captured there in 1857 at the Paplógó farm. Naturally, his portrait adorns the blue trail stamp at Ruzsa as well. The famous outlaw’s memory is also preserved by several old trees and a tavern in the vicinity, located at the eastern boundary of Zsombó, which can be reached in about half an hour’s walk from the blue trail.

Heading back to the asphalt road, we reach main road 55 within minutes, parallel to the forest clearings walked so far. We cross the busy road and continue on the familiar, guest-friendly sand starting on the other side. We walk among fields, smaller forest patches, and farms, then cross the reed- and rush-filled ditch of the Bogárzó Canal via a culvert. New farms follow, and about one and a half kilometers after the canal bridge, we enter the forest again.

The Csorva Forest is not as dense as the Upper Ásotthalom; it is slightly more park-like with trees standing more sparsely. On the other side, we again reach fields and farms, then after a right turn, get out onto the narrow, battered asphalt road leading to Ruzsa. We walk into the village along it, reaching the center in about half an hour. The blue trail stamp is found on the information board at the corner of Szegedi Street and Alkotmány Square.

After administration and rest, we head towards Alkotmány Street, crossing the park, then taking a left on Szent István Street, then right turning to Tölgyes Street, reaching the village boundary. At the village edge, we walk 200 steps left along a sandy road, then after a right turn cross the new forest plantation to reach the Kállai Forest. We walk along straight wheel ruts following one clearing, passing through alternating groves of acacias, oaks, and coniferous forest groves. After about one and a half kilometers, we turn right onto a new sandy road. Walking on this, we reach the narrow asphalt road between Ruzsa and Üllés, turning onto it, but after a little over 100 steps, we leave it again, finding sandy wheel ruts underfoot.

After a somewhat more forested section, arable fields appear along with scattered farms. After about three kilometers of walking, we see the asphalt road between Ruzsa and Zákányszék - but we do not go all the way; the signs turn us left a couple of hundred steps before, onto wheel ruts running in front of farms. We walk past the buildings, then turn right at the corner of a larger farm at the junction, reaching the previously seen asphalt road. We turn left along its edge and reach the Vágói Junction after a few hundred steps. There is a small combined pub, grocery store, and tobacco shop on the corner. It is worth stopping here to rest and replenish our depleted supplies.

Continuing on the narrow, worn asphalt road starting before the "shopping center," we go another one and a half kilometers to its end at a smaller farm center. We leave the former farm school building and continue on the usual sandy terrain. We trot a kilometer here along the road between farms and fields, then turn left at a junction heading east. The path's nature remains unchanged: we pass smaller forest patches, fields, and long rows of farms. After more than three quarters of an hour’s walk, we reach the 5432 road leading to Zákányszék. Here we leave the sandy roads behind us for a while and then walk a good stretch on the asphalt roads between villages. Walking on the left shoulder of the low-traffic main road, we reach the center of Zákányszék in half an hour. The blue trail stamp is found on the information board in front of the bus station.

After the village's last bus stop, we turn right onto Vasút Street and follow it for a long time. As the asphalt ends, we continue left, initially through scattered plots then mainly through fields with some smaller forest patches, reaching Bordány. We enter the settlement via Építő Street and then turn right onto the main road. We can catch our breath in Bordány center; the blue trail stamping point is found on the information board at the bus stop.

We leave Bordány on asphalt as well; almost unnoticed, we leave the built-up area and arrive among farms. After twenty minutes, we spot the turnoff: a sandy road turning left. We cross fields and scattered farms following the wheel ruts. Apart from a few small detours, we keep a northeast direction. After about an hour, we reach the 5405 road leading into Zsombó, where following it, we reach the center in twenty minutes. Stamping can be done at the OKK information board opposite the church on Andrássy Street. The Alföld Blue Trail turns left a few steps before onto Béké Street starting beside the church. The restaurant is open from 11am to 9pm.

We leave Zsombó along Béké Street and its continuation, Alkotmány Street. The asphalt continues for a good one and a half kilometers on the edge of the village and ends after crossing a roughly 100-meter-wide forest strip. It's worth stopping here for a few minutes because here is one of the small remnants of the Zsombó primeval swamp. Looking from the road among the trunks, we can see that the trees stand in water, and the ground is covered with sedge, rushes, and reeds.

The landscape of the Great Plain changed completely after the regulation of the Tisza and draining of the marshes. The former flora and fauna can only be found in traces. One such area is the Zsombó primeval swamp, which we cross here. The approximately 35-hectare primeval swamp remnant was declared protected in 1974. The area consists of a forest part and an adjacent marsh meadow. There are 43 regularly nesting and 31 feeding bird species recorded here, and 6 bird species appear as winter guests. The marshy area may dry out in longer dry periods but is generally flooded in spring and early summer. Incidentally, the village of Zsombó nearby took its name from this marshy swamp in its territory.

On the opposite side of the forest strip, we turn right at the "T" junction and head southeast on sandy roads running along the edge of the primeval swamp, bordering cultivated fields. After 750 meters, we turn left, then at the end of the dirt road, right, keeping this direction for over two kilometers, crossing Szatymaz road. The long straight section ends at the crossing of the M5 highway. After crossing the bridge over the highway, we soon reach the border of Szatymaz. Among the houses, we turn onto Kossuth Lajos Street, the main street of the settlement, crossing the village. Near the end, we notice the railway crossing from afar. Before it, we turn left onto Vasút Street and reach the railway station building after a few hundred steps. The blue trail stamp box waits for us next to the ticket office on the waiting room wall. We pass by the beautiful church, then immediately turn left, leaving the main road. The asphalt is replaced by a dirt road on which we turn right to cross the Fehértó-Majsai main canal. Our path leads among farms, sometimes forested or park-like surroundings but mostly along fields. We reach Sándorfalva at a cemetery, where turning right onto the outermost street, we return to the main road, then walk on the sidewalk towards the center. In the village center, at the corner of Dózsa György Street and Alkotmány Boulevard, we can stamp at an information board with the blue trail stamp. If time permits, take a walk to the Pallavicini castle, just a minute away!

The village has an interesting history: after the great 1879 flood of the Tisza, Count Sándor Pallavicini offered 300 cadastral acres with a total of 597 free house plots to the flood-affected residents of Algyő. Only part of the flood victims used this opportunity; the remaining plots were likely given to several hundred poor peasants from the surroundings. This is how the village, which still bears the founder's name, was established. In its center, the recently renovated castle stands in a cozy park, housing permanent and temporary exhibitions; a café is located on the ground floor.

After stamping, we continue on the main road leading through the village. Leaving the center behind, we reach a more spacious, park-like area in about ten minutes. Here we turn left onto Sport Street. Along it, we reach the last houses of Sándorfalva. We walk 150 steps right on the edge street, then turn left and enter the forest on a sandy road. Crossing the forest section, we reach the outskirts of a holiday home area in 7-8 minutes; here, turning left, we walk along the edge street, sometimes almost sinking ankle-deep in powdery fine sand. Fortunately, we reach the end of the houses in a few minutes; in the forest, the condition of the dirt road significantly improves. At the next junction, turning left, we soon reach the gate of the Nádastó Leisure Park.

Inside the gate, there is a beach and buffets, but we can also sit down outside to rest for a few minutes. The Alföld Blue Trail leads along the fenced area, then turns right at the junction and, crossing another holiday home area, escorts us to the road between Sándorfalva and Ópusztaszer in a few minutes. We cross it and enter the clearings of the Vöröscsárdai Forest on sandy wheel ruts. This wooded area extends long alongside the main road about a kilometer wide. We walk its clearings for the next two hours, generally heading north, sometimes taking short detours east and west among the groves. The painted blue signs reliably guide our way.

The forest wander ends at the worn asphalt road leading to Dóc, where we return to the nearby main road and continue the hike along its edge towards Ópusztaszer. We have to walk along the edge for about three quarters of an hour until we reach the left turn. Now we take a detour into the forest on the left side of the road. After a short section heading southwest, we turn northwest and continue in this direction for three quarters of an hour. Our forest walk ends at a narrow asphalt road led by the K sign. With a few minutes’ walk, we would reach the main road again, but first we turn onto a parallel safer dirt road. We walk a few hundred steps right on it, then turn left towards the Ópusztaszer Historical Memorial Park. Passing by the Szeri Csárda and the campsite gate, we reach the main entrance of the memorial park in about fifteen minutes.

In our current hike, the historical memorial park is the trump card, the must-see! You don’t even have to detour from the Alföld Blue Trail route because it leads right in front of the main entrance - and we stamp at the Tourinform office on the side wall. Anonymus writes in the Gesta Hungarorum, immortalizing the deeds of the Hungarians: "At that place, the leader and his nobles arranged all the customary laws and all rights of the country, how they should serve the leader and mainmen or administer justice for any committed offenses. The place where all this was arranged was called Szeri in their language because there they made the 'szer' (assembly) for the whole country." The memorial park settled around the ruins of the Szer monastery, which once stood here. Next to the ruins of the 12th-century monastery building, we find among others the Árpád monument built for the Millennium, the Rotunda hosting the Feszty Panorama and other exhibitions, the Csete yurts, the Skansen, the Nomad park, and the recently inaugurated Visitor Center.

From the main gate, we continue along the park fence. A narrow concrete road leads to the farm gate only a few minutes away, where the blue trail stamp is found. The stamp must be asked from the gatekeeper; it has no separate box. The concrete road does not end at the gate but continues for about a thousand steps underfoot and only there turns into the fenced area of the waterworks. We walk straight ahead on a dirt road running between bushes, surprisingly not sandy any more - at most pothole-ridden, but this is already more bearable. After about three quarters of an hour’s walk, we reach Levele, a farm center among cultivated fields.

Turning left for a few steps, we reach its access road, cross a duckweed-covered canal, then turn right and continue the hike through the fields. In a bit more than half an hour, we reach the Tisza dam on this dirt road. We climb to the grassy slope and get onto the concrete cycle tracks running at the top, heading north on them. In twenty to twenty-five minutes, we reach the narrow asphalt road climbing to the dam, from which in a few minutes we descend to the ferry dock. According to our information, the Mindszent ferry does not have a timetable, running on demand between the two banks. We cross the Tisza here to reach the Tiszántúl from the Danube-Tisza interfluve.

During the few-minute boat ride, after handling the stamping – the stamp must be requested from the ferry staff – we still have time to enjoy the river view. Doing a little accounting, we can say that we have covered a total of 243 kilometers from Szekszárd to this point, but the larger part of more than 600 kilometers is still ahead!

Arriving on the eastern side of the river, we climb the high bank. From here, we already see the fisherman’s tavern (where we also find a blue trail stamp on the building’s fence). The path starting from the ferry descends from the top of the dam to the outermost houses of Mindszent. We walk into the town along the lengthy Kossuth Lajos Street. Along the way, we can admire the Roman Catholic church and pass in front of the atmospheric Gyümi restaurant. Crossing the center and continuing along Kossuth Lajos Street on Csokonai Street, we arrive at the intersection beside the railway station. The Alföld Blue Trail turns left here towards north, but we deviate from the route to stamp at the station. We find the stamp in a box mounted on the wall next to the ticket window.