Mookie and I braved the weather and took a trip to the house in Aggtelek. By the time we hit Edeleny we were both very hungry. On Lennard and Jeroen's recommendation, we stopped off at the Templomikert Vendeglo. All these years I mistook it for the palinka manufacturer next door. We skipped the outdoor seating in the garden because of the weather, but will try that next time. Both Mookie and I had the fried Camembert cheese with blueberry sauce, and I had some fried potatoes with herbs as a side dish. The food was very good, service was friendly, and prices were quite reasonable. A pint of Soproni was only 300 huf (ahhh, the countryside!), and the fried cheese 900 plus 350 for the side dish.

The next morning, after a massive breakfast of strawberry pancakes a'la Mookie, we set off on a big hike. The red trail between Varboc and Szalonna was not the most well-blazed. At times, we thought we must be the first in a decade to walk along the red trail in those parts. However, it was a very pleasant walk with moss covered dolomites, babbling brooks, intermittent rain storms and sunshine, sinkholes and depressions reminding us we were in the Aggtelek karst, and even a cave entrance door hidden in a gully near Telekes Valley that I guess must be part of the Ördög (Devil) Cave system.

A particularly heavy downpour caught us about 10km into the 20km hike, but on the way home. The map clearly showed that the trail led through the bared gates of the Égervölgye International Youth Camp (Égervölgye Nemzetközi Ifjúsági Tábor és Központ). We were ready to admit our mistake and seek the trail elsewhere, but just then someone came out and opened the gate and invited us to take shelter until the storm blew over. The entire camp is under renovation. Chatting to some of the workers, Mookie asked if he could fill his water bottle somewhere. While there was running water, the foreman suggested he take us on a 2 minute walk to the nearby Dragon Spring. The path through the camp is a bit confusing, involving having to climb through a couple corrals where a number of hucul horses are kept for riding. Aggtelek National Park actually keeps semi-wild herd of 70 huculs near Jósvafő, as well as a well-regarded riding centre and stud farm. The annual international hucul races and chariot races will be held August 18-20. If the gates are closed, just ring the bell and they will let you through and show you on your way.

We hiked from Szalonna to Perkupa, looked around the very picturesque village of Varboc, and then swung back to Szalonna coming out through the limestone grinding factory.

Back at the house, we put the turkey-burgers on the grill and popped open a couple of cold and well-deserved beers.