A Hike in Remembrance and Honor

Every February, those who cherish military tradition and honor the memory of fallen soldiers turn their attention to the anniversary of the 1945 Buda Breakout.¹ The memory of that heroic last stand is kept alive each year through two notable hikes in the Buda Hills: the Breakout 60 Commemorative and Endurance Hike, and the event organized by the Military Grave Research and Preservation Association. Our team took part in the latter this past weekend.

The weather cooperated fully for those who had decided to join the commemorative hike. Organizers offered two distances: a family-friendly 3.3-kilometer route and a grueling 50-kilometer course through the hills. Both groups set out on February 21 at 10:00 a.m. from the forest parking lot on Görgényi Road in the Buda Hills. A sizable crowd had already gathered before the appointed hour. Precisely at ten, organizers formed the participants into rows of four. Before departing, lead organizer Alkay Zsolt briefly addressed the group, emphasizing that the event was strictly nonpartisan and purely memorial in character. The column then moved out along a winding trail through hills and valleys.

After about forty-five minutes, we reached the first stop: the grave of Béla Tárnok, an anti-aircraft gunner. After a brief ceremony, participants paid their respects by lighting memorial candles. The route took us past the sunken concrete remains of a wartime bunker before arriving at another grave — its marker bearing only the words: "Unknown Hungarian Soldier."

There, too, we honored the fallen with a moment of silence standing at attention, a wreath-laying, the lighting of candles, and a reading from a wartime document.

Near the grave, participants could examine the remains of a second bunker. The group then completed a wide loop and turned back toward the trailhead parking lot. Before returning, the group split: the more ambitious hikers set off to complete the full 50-kilometer course, while the rest of us completed the route just over two hours after setting out. We felt every mile in our legs, yet a quiet sense of peace filled our hearts — "Where heroes are not forgotten, new ones will always arise."

Those who completed the hike proudly received a certificate and a commemorative pin — keepsakes sure to find a place of honor in many a home. They will serve as a lasting reminder that participants fulfilled their duty of honor to the soldiers who gave their lives.

After the hike, lead organizer Alkay Zsolt — known to many by his nickname "Kalóz" ("Pirate") — shared some background about the event with our publication.

— Who founded this initiative, and how many times has it been held?

— We have been organizing this memorial hike with my comrades since 2000. Over the years, several organizations and groups have hosted the event, and since 2020 it has been organized by the officially registered Military Grave Research and Preservation Association. We are particularly proud that even during the 2021 pandemic, when most comparable events were canceled, we managed to hold the hike — in full compliance with safety regulations, which were reviewed and approved by police at the start.

— What distances were offered this year?

— The hike winds through the Buda Hills, 

and the central goal for participants is to complete the 50-kilometer course. The route changes from year to year, but the finish line is always chosen for its symbolic significance: it marks the area where the German and Hungarian soldiers of the original breakout finally reached their own lines. 

Along the way, the route takes hikers past numerous military graves, wartime bunkers, and tunnel systems; in one year, we paid our respects at the grave of a pastor who was martyred. Alongside the demanding long course, we always offer a shorter option as well. This year that was the 3.3-kilometer route, which took in two military graves and two bunker sites.

— How much interest did this year's event attract, and how many people attempted each distance?

— 161 people completed the short route, including an encouraging number of children. The long hike — which began immediately after the short route ended — drew 47 starters, of whom 26 finished the full course. 

Anyone who has to drop out for any reason can get back to the city by public transit or with one of our own vehicles.

Looking back, it is worth noting that the event was originally driven into the Buda Hills by the authorities' ban on the Day of Honor.² When we started in 2000, just thirty of us set out. After some fluctuations in turnout, attendance has consistently held in the hundreds from 2006 onward. Our all-time record stands at 252 participants.

— A separate Breakout commemorative hike was held the week before. How do the two events compare, and where do they differ most?

— The key difference is that the Breakout 60 is a classic endurance hike in the competitive sense, with checkpoints that verify completion of the course. We operate no such system. Our event is primarily about shared remembrance and paying tribute.

Our event goes back twenty-five years; the Breakout 60 has been running since 2006. We maintain a good working relationship with the organizers of that hike and coordinate our dates so the two events do not overlap. I help out with their event regularly — manning a checkpoint or logging arrivals at the finish. I'll readily acknowledge that theirs is a much larger-scale and more popular sporting event, as this year's figure of 3,548 starters makes clear.

Another meaningful difference: the Breakout 60 charges a registration fee to cover its considerable organizing costs, while our memorial hike is entirely free.

— Are there any requirements to join your hike?

— We simply ask that participants follow the organizers' instructions and stay sober. Since our event is firmly nonpartisan, we also ask that participants leave party flags at home. What matters most to us is a heartfelt connection — to come together and pay dignified tribute to all those who lost their lives during the Siege of Budapest or the breakout attempt, whether as soldiers or civilians.

_{Editorial Notes
¹ The Buda Breakout refers to the desperate attempt on February 11, 1945, when encircled German and Hungarian forces tried to fight their way out of Budapest through Soviet lines.
² Becsület Napja (Day of Honor) is a gathering held each February 11 to commemorate the breakout attempt, which for years was a flashpoint between Hungarian authorities and nationalist groups.}

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