East Cserháti Protected Landscape Area

The area of the East Cserháti Protected Landscape Area is 6,916 hectares, of which 493 hectares are strictly protected. The protected landscape area falls under the administration of the Bükk National Park Directorate.

Location

Cserháti lies in Nógrád County, between the Börzsöny and the Mátra, bounded to the north by the Ipoly River valley and to the south by the Great Plain. The protected landscape area extends west of Pásztó, roughly within the area bounded by the municipalities of Hollókő, Márkháza, Ecseg and Bokor.

Characteristics

East Cserháti is the most devastated and most varied mountainous region in our country. The mountain consists of four pyroxene-andesite varieties, mainly their agglomerates and tuffs. The geological significance of the area is that it contains the most fully developed Miocene stratigraphic sequence in the country, making it the most favorable terrain for studying tertiary formations.

Based on the proposal of the Bükk National Park Directorate, Natura 2000 sites have also been designated in East Cserháti, with the following areas selected: Szentkúti Meszes-tető, Tepke, Bézma, Buja’s Csirke Hill and Kántor Meadow, and Vár Hill in Szanda.

Flora and Fauna

The distinctive flora of East Cserháti developed as a result of the combined influence of natural factors and human activity. In the cool valley slopes one finds beech woods, on the warm sides oak forests, on the dry rocky ridges shrub forests, and along the streams alder woods. The zonal plant association of the protected landscape area—referenced by the name Cserháti—is the mid-mountain oak-beech forest. The fauna of the protected landscape area is similar to that of the nearby Mátra. In addition to the large game of the forested areas, rare protected mammals, reptiles, amphibians and birds find a home here, not to mention the numerous families of invertebrates.

Cultural Values

The most significant cultural-historical monuments of the protected landscape area are fortified prehistoric settlements (Bronze Age hillforts) and the remains of medieval castles, such as the circular Bükk sandcastle, the Ilona Castle of Ecseg, or the Fejérkő Castle near Sámsonháza. Within the protected landscape area, the geological sights can be explored with a nature trail and informational board at the Sámsonháza Buda Hill and quarry, at the Pogányvári quarry on the border of Kozárd, at the Függő stone in Mátraszőlős, at the stone quarries of Cserhátszentiván, and at the smaller quarry on Kecske Hill in Felsőtold.

Buda Hill geological, botanical trail (Sámsonháza)

The trail, established in 1989 in the East Cserháti Protected Landscape Area, which now covers 6 915.5 ha, presents the geological formations of the middle Miocene stage. During the walk, the rich flora of the Cserkő side of Buda Hill also unfolds before the visitor.

Szanda – Vár Hill geological trail (Szandaváralja)

The dominant volcanic rock of Central Cserháti – and of the 529 m high, double-peaked Szanda Hill – is pyroxenite. The 3 km long, circular tour-like trail surrounds the 20‑hectare Szanda Vár Hill, which was declared protected in 1976.