National Blue Trail

The National Blue Trail (in Hungarian: Országos Kéktúra, Kéktúra or simply OKT) is a national trail in Hungary incorporated into the European Long Distance Walking Route E4. The route starts atop the Irottkő Mountain (884 m) on the Austrian-Hungarian border then cuts across Hungary eventually ending 1,128 km later at the village of Hollóháza by the Hungarian-Slovakian border. (Interactive map). The name of the Kéktúra (Blue Trail) is a reference to the marking of the path itself: it is a horizontal blue stripe between two white stripes. All segments of the trail are freely accessible to the public; no fees have to be paid or permits obtained.

During its course the Blue Trail visits arguably the most beautiful natural and man-made sights of Hungary, e.g. more than a dozen forts and castles, lookout towers, three World Heritage Sites of Hungary (the panorama of Budapest from the hills, the old village of Hollókő and the Stalactite Cave of Aggtelek), Lake Balaton, the Danube Bend, and the spent volcanoes of the Basin of Tapolca, etc.

According to the latest GPS survey conducted in 2007, its total length was measured to be 1128.2 km and the total elevation change (climb) was found to be 30,213 metres in a Western-Eastern direction over the whole route.

The National Blue Trail (simply Blue Trail, or Tour) was the first long distance walking route not only in Hungary but in the whole of Europe. Its path was first signed in 1938; its length was 910 km in that time. A lot of Hungarian hikers began the completion of the Trail after World War II, so the Nature Rambler Section of the Lokomotív Sport Club of Budapest announced the National walk on the "blue" hiking path in 1952.

The Nature Rambler Section's Committee of Railway Employee's Union developed this issue on the national level in 1953, and published the first brochure, which showed the whole route in map sketches.

Later, organisation and control of the National Blue Trail movement was taken over by the Hungarian Rambler's Association "Friends of Nature" (MTSZ) in 1961.

But the Blue Trail was known only among hikers until the beginning of the 1980s, when Hungarian TV broadcast a series about the route of the Trail. The organiser and editor of this series was Pál Rockenbauer, who at that time worked in the editorial office named “Natura” of the Hungarian TV. Pál Rockenbauer organised a small team and they completed the National Blue Trail during 76 days in an east-west direction. They carried everything (cameras, films and other equipment) in their backpacks and undertook the whole project without any external help.

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Wikipedia