Pauliina FlamI woke up in Visegrad, it was the kind of morning you usually wish for after a busy working week: a lazy wake-up, a leisurely breakfast, and the morning languor in the body until the first coffee. With that thought in mind, I was eagerly pouring coffee into a mug. I wasn’t lucky enough to have my coffee in Hungary. Unfortunately, this one also turned out to be a nasty swill, what a disappointment. Oh well, I found another one in a tobacco store. I can’t say it was very tasty, but at least it tasted like coffee. In a given situation I felt like it was a small win. That day I was going to the mountains, but the path seemed simple and short, so I was in no hurry. I took my moment with the best coffee I found and a river view. Soon, I was on a 20-minute long bus ride to Dömös.
The most famous hiking trail in Hungary begins from here; it goes to a canyon with a small waterfall, which you need to climb up by stairs. Everyone comes here for this scenic part, and you can easily find it by googling Hungarian trails. I also turned towards it: the road goes through a beautiful forest, following a green and sunny trail. The path rises above farms. There, the grazing sheep and long-tailed horses are visible from above. Soon the road leads to a tiny chapel, there is a wooden gazebo with carved faces of saints, tables with benches, and several places for a fire and grill. I don’t know what kind of place this is, all the inscriptions about the temple are in Hungarian, which, for some reason, I still don’t speak. Later I learned a legend about this place. A long time ago, in 1885 two girls rested in this area. Suddenly a bright light emerged over a tree and they saw an image of a Virgin Mary with her baby Jesus. The tree became a sacred place and a chapel serves it a memory.
From here it’s just a few steps to where the trails branch: one goes to the famous canyon with a ladder, and the second one to the mountain. I stopped and thought for a second: a mountain? No one told me about the mountain. The pretty pictures of a canyon, and high-rising ladders above waterfalls started to fade giving space to a beautiful hill overlooking the villages. Let’s not fool around, a mountain it is! -thought I and happily turned that direction, deep into the beautiful forest and towards new heights!
The trail went gently upward and led to a sharp, trailless climb. There are marks on the trees for the hiking route, but the hill in front is quite vertical, and there is no trail as such, you just have to climb up. Sand and small stones made it hard to keep balance. Occasional roots and trees made it possible to linger for a second here and there, clinging to them with a boot to catch a breath. One has to climb long and high. Honestly, this marvelous trail made me realize how the height of the mountain (to some extent considering the pressure drop) does not really tell you much about how hard it is to climb it. One can have a 3 thousand meters high mountain with a walking trail leading up, like Mulhacen of sunny Andalucia, or one can have a stubborn 700-meter hill like this one that decided to stay out of paths.
I thought for a moment why I love to go to the Tatras: there you go through the forest part somehow quickly and imperceptibly before climbing a rocky mountain. Around this height, there are no more trees, only other peaks wherever you stare. You look back at them and think “Wow!” And then the motivation to climb further appears because with every step there is a new “wow”.
Here, my motivation to climb the hill was tiny, there was only forest around and with each step, there was just more of it. But I’m already climbing, sweating, and swearing, about how this is not my ideal route. I also understand that, firstly, I definitely won’t get down this same path, because getting down without a path is harder, and secondly, the idea that I’ll even get down before sunset is unlikely. As soon as I cursed every tree in my surroundings, I came out onto a flat space, from here there is a view of the hills: smooth gentle hillsline reminded of the curves of a velvet fabric. One can notice interesting rock formations, these are Vadálló-stones. Emerging around 12 million years ago from volcanic activity these and surrounding beauties are protected parts of the National Park. Delightful, overall.
But after it, a new hellish ascent begins, although this time it’s rocky, but also long and endless. I already realized that I wouldn’t go back down the same way, luckily, on the map, there was another way back, along the opposite edge of the hill. The mission now is to get to the top. I began to be very indignant as to why there were no chains or ropes, or anything at all that would help with a safe rise. As soon as I thought about this, a rope appeared at the top. Only it is high, and you still need to somehow get to it along the vertical rocky part of the mountain. Moreover, there is no place where you can stand without holding on to anything, put down your walking sticks and free your hands for the rope. Why are ropes and chains in hills so often considered only tall people? We small ones need extra assistance.
I went down a little to a place where I could stand and checked the map. Is it really necessary to climb a rope that you can’t reach? How nice that would be! It turned out that indeed, there is another way up from this point. Right where I stood there was a branching trail through the forest on my left, just aside from the stony ridge. Thank you world.
This path leads through more forest and, in the end, also disappears, but the following part is easy without a rope. At the end of this climb, the summit is finally visible. There are tables, an observation tower, a symbolic cross, and a very beautiful view. From up one can admire a swirling river, green hills, and blue horizon. This is the top of Prédikálószék – a scenic 639 meters peak on the border of Visegrad and Dömös. But, honestly, the panorama of velvety hills on the way here was no less epic. From the lookout tower, one can take another path to the village: a wide easy-to-follow road all the way back. It is so wide, that the horses can ride it. If only I knew it existed… oh well, I wouldn’t have an adventure! The path leads through fields leaving the hills behind until you are back in Dömös. There is a picturesque clearing on the way with a lonely mushy tree. Back then, walking the silent village road, watching the sky becoming redder and the sun sliding slowly but surely behind the hills, I thought: well, that is where my adventure ends for today. How silly of me. How silly!
The Route Description
This route is well shown on this Hungarian site, just follow the link https://turistautak.openstreetmap.hu/mentettutv-1509780873jfr2. On the left side, you can check the trail marks on every part of the trail. Check the map before going back, so that you don’t choose the wrong direction. As you find the rec-crossed trail up north, just follow the left side when it branches. The trail leads you back to the town.
