Szekszárd – Baja crossing (AK-01)

The southern endpoint of the Alföldi Kéktúra can be found in Szekszárd, in a small park surrounded by the platforms of the bus station, at the memorial post set up in memory of Pál Rockenbauer. Hikers arrive here following the Southern Transdanubian Blue Trail route from the west; from this point onward, they can continue following the painted blue stripe signs of the Alföldi Kéktúra. You can stamp your booklet at the box mounted on the wall facing the platforms of the neighboring railway station building, but if you don't find it there, they kindly provide a dated stamp in the waiting room at the ticket office.

Exiting the railway station building, we cross Pollack Mihály Street to the bus platforms, and following the K stripe signs, we walk north along the bus stops. After Terecske, we stay on the left sidewalk of the road. For a while, we walk along the busy road edge, opposite which lies the bare loading area of the railway station. Then the main road turns right, but we remain on the narrow sidewalk, arriving at the quiet residential part of Pollack Mihály Street. We walk among the garden houses for a few minutes, then turn right at the intersecting Mátyás király Street and return to the main road after a few steps. At the intersection, we cross at the zebra crossing, then cross the railway tracks on a paved pedestrian path.

Mátyás király Street continues here: we pass the last family houses, then enter areas with workshops and sites. This is certainly not the prettier side of Szekszárd: while people walk along the pedestrian streets and parks of the downtown area on the Rockenbauer Pál Southern Transdanubian Blue Trail route, we only get this industrial zone. After some time, we reach the busy road 5113 that bypasses downtown. We cross this asphalt strip as well, walk along the last row of roadsides of the workshops, and finally leave the city behind. At a fork, the wide asphalt road turns right, but we continue straight on a much narrower, worn asphalt strip, and after a few minutes we arrive at the Nyámpuszta agricultural base.

We pass in front of the silo and buildings of the feed mixing plant, then immediately turn left off the asphalt road. We continue along an agricultural road on the canal embankment toward the dams of the Sió. We trudge along a pothole-ridden road for a long time. Behind us are Szekszárd's drinking water wells on a closed plot. Far ahead, the grassy side of the high Sió dam appears, which we reach after about half an hour's walk. We climb onto its crest and continue southeast along the grassy tracks running on top. Thus begins our long dam walk, which depending on our pace will end in about one and a half to two hours at Bárányfok. It's worth taking a look around here as we have reached the highest point of the area! Behind us, the houses climbing the hills of Szekszárd are clearly visible; they look so near as if we just set off from there, although we've already been on the road for two good hours. Next to us flows the Sió in a long, straight, artificial channel, and ahead we see the section of the M6 motorway running on an embankment even higher than ours.

After about twenty minutes' walk, we reach the motorway overpass. Walking on the road alongside the Sió, we crawl under it and continue on the dam. After a few minutes, the fence of the Danube-Drava National Park appears ahead. Where it crosses the dam, we step through a wild game trap built from pipes, then enter the park area through a gate that can be opened. Don't forget to close it with the bolt after passing through! We remain on the dam, but our previously straight path becomes more varied, as bends occasionally break the monotony. After a while, the Sió turns away from the dam. From now on, a floodplain forest will accompany us on the left side of the dam, while fields hold on to our right side; looking forward and to the right through them, we can glimpse the rooftops of the still distant Bárányfok buildings.

After the long dam, reaching the fenced yards of houses, we descend from the embankment onto a footpath branching off from there and enter the hiking center through a gate. Previously, after passing the stone buildings, we had to walk back through the park trees behind the Freizeit Park wooden houses to the pavilion of Archduke Friedrich if we wanted to stamp in our booklet; however, since the demolition and relocation of the building in March 2019, the stamping place can be found on an information board next to the out-of-service forest narrow-gauge railway terminus on the Pörböly-Gemenc-Bárányfok route. If, during summer, we find the restaurant next to the entrance of the hiking center open, it's worth taking a longer rest there.

After Bárányfok, we briefly return to the bike tracks running on the dam crest, but after about two hundred steps, we leave them for good by descending left onto a footpath into the floodplain forest. One of the most beautiful sections of our route begins here on a winding path. Along a small unnamed backwater, we circle the terminus of the Gemenc State Forest Railway and reach the shore of the Szilágy-fok backwater.

The tracks of the narrow-gauge railway stretch for more than 32 km through the Gemenc forest between the Pörböly railway station visitor center and Bárányfok. The railway was built in several sections between 1955 and 1982, primarily for transporting timber harvested from the floodplain forest. Passenger traffic started only in 1966 between Pörböly railway station and Keselyűs, and in 1982 extended to Bárányfok. Since the Danube floods regularly destroy the dirt roads of the floodplain forest, only the narrow-gauge railway provides permanent transport and shipping opportunities in the area. The route of the Alföldi Kéktúra runs alongside the railway track for several kilometers; however, according to the signage, the Alföldi Kéktúra is only to be completed on foot, not by narrow-gauge railway!

We would like to draw attention to a few things related to the Gemenc forest. Be sure to check before our hike to avoid unexpected surprises upon arrival! On the one hand, due to forest and wildlife management work, the forestry may temporarily impose visitation restrictions; on the other, the entry to the forest can also be limited because of the Danube’s water level. Entry bans generally take effect above 500 cm water level at Baja, as tourist paths become submerged. However, it is not advisable to hike the trail at very low water levels either, since some of the main sights, the backwaters, dry out then. If possible, come during water levels around 350-450 cm at Baja: at these times, the smaller and larger water surfaces and backwaters are the most beautiful.

We walk windingly along the hiking trail on the shore of Szilágy-fok, then the path merges into forest bike tracks, which we no longer leave. With a few sharp turns, we cross through forest glades, then the narrow-gauge railway tracks appear on the right side of the path. We walk a long stretch on the potholed forest management dirt road. From time to time, the water of Szilágy-fok comes into view between the trees, and later we arrive at another backwater, the Borrév Lake. About half an hour later, together with the narrow-gauge railway tracks, we turn right, then after another half-hour’s walk we cross the railway line and, cutting through a narrow forest strip, climb back up onto the main flood protection embankment of Gemenc. Our forest hike now breaks for a longer stretch, as we must continue again on the dam for a few kilometers.

After a good quarter of an hour, we arrive at Keselyűs, spotting from afar the inn building closed for years alongside the dam. Opposite, behind the bus stop, we find the stamp on an information board. It is worth descending from the dam to the narrow-gauge railway station. The visitor center runs a buffet, and in front of the building, a long row of benches and tables awaits hikers. Behind the station building is the Holt-Sió with a boat dock and fishing spots. It is worthwhile to rest here!

After Keselyűs, we return to the flood protection dam. We continue on the asphalt strip running on the crest, walking for a long time. Here, forest is on both sides of the embankment: on the left, the floodplain world continues to accompany our path, while on the right a much narrower wooded area is followed by fields. The long straight sections are only broken up by the dam's curves. Cyclists enjoy this part of the hike the most; for hikers, the long, monotonous walking on asphalt is much more tiring. At the end of an almost six-kilometer walk, we glimpse the Szomfova forester's houses in a clearing to the right of the road. Opposite them, benches and tables in the meadow invite a little relaxation. A small memorial nearby commemorates Asszonyfalva, which once stood here.

Returning to the dam, another long asphalt strip awaits us: a nearly five-kilometer section leads to the Lankóci dam keeper's house and the Water Management Museum! At some point, the forest disappears from the right side of the embankment; beyond the national park fence, fields appear, and in clear weather, you can even glimpse the peaks of the Mecsek. These are the last hills you'll see until the end of the Alföldi Kéktúra. If we occasionally see sparkling water among the floodplain trees on the left, that is the meandering Backflow-Danube among the edge trees, which begins at the pumping station next to the Lankóci dam keeper's house and pumps water from the protected side of the dam back into the Danube through the Gemenc forest.

After a while, we see the building of the Lankóci dam keeper's house on the protected side of the embankment ahead. The box with the Kéktúra stamp is found on the fence. If we are here and stop for the stamp, it is worth viewing the more than century-old monument water pumping station’s beautifully renovated huge diesel engines and the old water management tools and equipment collected in the museum. Visits must be booked in advance by calling +36 20 541 4977.

After the dam keeper's house, we walk approximately two more kilometers on the dam, then turn left toward the floodplain forest. We walk again on a dirt road. After about five hundred steps, we see the narrow-gauge railway tracks ahead. We turn onto the dirt road running parallel to the tracks and find the Fishing Museum set up in the former Lassi forestry trails along with the railway station. In the meadow, there is a forest rest area, and behind the tracks appears the water surface of Lassi Lake. This museum can only be visited with prior appointment. From here, we follow the narrow-gauge railway tracks again, reaching the Nyárilegelő meadow and its railway stop in about half an hour. Alongside the Nyárilegelő, the much wider Rezéti-Holt-Danube meanders beside our path. It is worth sitting down on the bank for a few minutes of rest.

At the meadow's railway stop, we turn right, leaving the dirt road—the blue cross signs continue onward there—cross the railway tracks, and enter the forest on rarely used bike tracks. At an intersection, we turn left and again reach the narrow-gauge railway track. We walk a few steps beside it, then cross it and continue on its left side. A comfortable cart path leads on the Nyári embankment. After some time, we move away from the railway; the tracks turn away from us, but the forest surrounds us throughout. After about an hour’s comfortable forest walk, we cross the Kerülő-Danube backwater on a bridge, step out from among the trees, and arrive at the Narrow-gauge railway Pörböly terminus, where it connects with the railway line 154. Ahead of us appear the buildings of the Ecotourism Visitor Center and the Water Management and Hunting Exhibition, but we turn left and remain on the forest edge dam, walking along the southern embankment of the backwater. At the barrier closing the road on the dam is a stamp on an information board. Here we turn left and are swallowed again by the forest.

We walk westwards on a wide, well-trodden dirt road, reaching the Cserta-Danube backwater in about half an hour. Our route continues along the southern shore of the backwater, at times offering nice views of the water surface. After roughly another half-hour's walk, we reach a bridge over the backwater. For a few steps, we go onto the gravel road running over it but turn off before the bridge and continue our Cserta-side hike. After about a quarter of an hour's walk, we reach the mouth of Cserta at the Old Danube. We notice another bridge here, where the K+ sign joins, which branched from our route at the narrow-gauge railway Nyárilegelő stop and reached here by a short cut. Until spring 2015, this was the route of the Alföldi Kéktúra.

We join a wide, well-trodden forest management main road running along the Old Danube shore, next to an outdoor resting place with tables, benches, and a rain shelter. In about half an hour, we reach the outskirts of Baja, the Dunafürdő holiday resort. We proceed with a slightly right turn on the narrow asphalt strip of Bárka Street through the resort. Turning left here, we can descend a few steps to the boat dock, from where the place where the Old Danube flows into the Great Danube is well visible. It is also worth sitting here for a few minutes by the shore, enjoying the river view.

Continuing on Bárka Street, we cross the resort, then at the "U"-shaped curve of a wider asphalt road where Bárka Street joins, we turn right into the western leg of the "U." A sidewalk begins on the left side of the road behind a guardrail; from here, we climb for a long time onto the northern sidewalk of the Türr István bridge, which crosses the Danube. Be careful because this is also a bike path; do not obstruct cyclists who may be coming down quickly! On the right, a few stairs lead up to the Baja-Dunafürdő railway station, where one of the Baja stamps can be found. Soon we reach the Danube. Looking down from it, the mouth of the Old Danube, where we were a few minutes earlier, and the green wall of the Gemenc forest accompanying the wide river can be clearly seen.

Crossing the steel structure bridge’s sidewalk we arrive on the other side of the Danube in a few minutes, thus leaving Transdanubia behind and arriving at the Danube-Tisza interfluve. At the end of the bridge railing, a narrow concrete staircase lets us descend from the embankment to the narrow asphalt road under it. Going left here, we crawl under the bridge, pass by the timber yard, and can reach the Gemenc Vándorpont in a few minutes. Here we find one of the other Baja Kéktúra stamps on the river-facing post of the covered bike rack next to the building. Cyclists arriving on two wheels can find a bike repair workshop here; the restroom and showers can be used by anyone for a small fee. It is worth sitting out on the building’s upper terrace: the view of the river is nice from there. There is also a small grassy area with a tent site, but since it is open to the west, that is, towards the Danube, it can be quite windy in stronger winds.

At this point, we reach the end of our hike through the Gemenc forest and prepare to start the much longer section crossing through the Danube-Tisza interfluve. Baja city center is quite far from here: following the Vándorpont and then along the Sugovica shore on the bike path, we reach the center in about an hour’s walk, where the railway station and bus terminal are also found.

It is not worth rushing past Baja either, because at the Halászpart restaurants on the Sugovica, we can taste the famous Baja fish soup, then it is only a few minutes' walk to Trinity Square, where we find the statue of the namesake Holy Trinity and the Town Hall, the former Baroque Grassalkovich Palace. Other sights in the downtown include the St. Peter and St. Paul parish church, the Franciscan Abbey Church of St. Anthony of Padua, as well as the world traveler pilgrim statue of András Jelky, accessible with a few minutes’ walk from downtown at the intersection of main roads 51 and 55. It is also worth visiting the Türr István memorial at the Sugovica’s Danube outlet. Climbing its rooftop terrace offers a nice view of the Danube and the opposite Gemenc forest.