Matrafüred - Kékestető (red path via Peresberc in Negyeshatar)

Access to the starting point:
From Budapest, head east on the motorway towards Nyiregyhaza. After about 90 kilometres, leave the motorway at the Gyöngyös/Matrafüred exit. Continue into Gyöngyös, then at a marked junction continue north towards Matrafűred. When you arrive in Matrafraførd, turn left into the first street (Beke ut) and park.

Path description:
The route starts at the main crossroads in Matrafuered, where there is also a sports and mountaineering base (Hegyes sportok bazisa) and a bus stop (Palyaudvar). Go downhill and you will see the first markings at the electricity pylon. The path that will lead us to our destination is marked with a red line.
The trail goes into the forest and after a few metres go right over a small bridge over the Somor stream (in a straight direction the blue cross and blue triangle trails continue). Our path returns a little to the south and then, after a resting place, starts to climb steeply on rocky ground through thinned forest. When you reach the entrance to the forest, the path flattens out and transitions into a wider cart track, which leads to a wider forest road, which you initially just cross, then walk along for a while, or until you reach the Csepegő spring. Here the green path will continue, and we will cross the Csurgo stream and then climb quickly and steeply to the high Peresberc plateau (we will also cross the forest cart track as we climb).
Once you reach Peresberc, the trail lays down and turns north. Typical of this high plateau is the very sparse forest, and we will be rewarded with an exceptional view along the way. After a while we will reach the entrance to a low and very dense forest where we will be for some time. The path will turn eastwards and become steeper, and this will lead us to the Vadfőld meadow (hunting field). Here we will enter the forest again.
Through the forest we will climb up a slightly steep path. There are a few well-marked forks, and we will also cross one wider forest road. After this crossing, the path will become steeper, but only until the next wider road. There is an unofficial steep shortcut ahead, and we will walk parallel to the road for a while. Then cross it and go back into the forest.
After crossing, the path will be steep for a while, but then there is a single crossroads, which is not well marked. It is necessary to go right through the forest, but logically it seems to be straight up steeply. The path ahead is level for a while then climbs again a little steeper and leads to the vicinity of the Negyeshatar peak, where there is a small shelter and a crossroads. An unofficial trail from the village of Markaz joins us on the right, and a trail on the left leads to the Valyus kut spring, while we continue straight on.
Now the road will start to climb quite steeply. On this slope, the unofficial shortcut will rejoin us. After a while, or at an interesting tree, the slope will ease slightly. We will also cross a forest road turnoff. Here we are now on the top slope of the Matra, and to the right of us is the lane of the spruce forest. A little further on, the slope will end and the path will lay down.
Continue west along the sloping path, which quickly becomes cart track. We will also pass the unmarked rock of Pezső kő, Hungary's second highest peak, on the left. We reach a crossroads where the yellow circle trail branches off from our route (a trail which will take us to the Diszno kut (Pig Spring) in a minute), which is the highest natural spring in Hungary. After the crossroads, there is a fork where we join the green path (the path that branched off at the Csepegö spring). After the fork, our path will leave the wider cart track and go left onto a narrower path (we will see the guesthouse on our right). The narrower path will lead us into the lane of the spruce forest and finally onto the asphalt path by the fence of the sanatorium.
When you reach the crossroads, cross the road and go through the forest to get back on it. At the next crossroads go in the direction of the sanatorium, but only for a minute and then left on the stairs that lead up to the TV tower fence. Here the blue trail from Matrafüred joins us. Another minute's walk and we are at the sculpture on the highest peak in Hungary.

We recommend: trips from the same starting point, similar trips