Kis-Balaton small round tour from Hévíz (blue B)

1. Route details
This 36 km long tour runs on the north-western parts of the Kis-Balaton region.
The tour is not easy not only because of its length but also because of some significant bike challenges at the beginning and at the end of the tour. Although the Kis-Balaton region is flat, the road from Hévíz to there – the valley of Lake Hévíz and the valley of River Zala – is hilly.
The greatest bike challenge of the tour is the uphill section in Alsópáhok, from the crossings of the Fő street and Deák street to the Nemesboldogasszonyfa junction (ca. 1 km). (see point 2)
The route mainly leads through built-up area and mostly low-traffic roads, bike roads and agricultural roads. Most of them are asphalt roads and in a longer part (10 km) there is a gravel road (water embankment).
The tour is not recommended in rainy weather due the gravel, dirt and grassy road surface of Zala embankment. It is the same with the agricultural dirt road leading to the embankment in Szentgyörgyvár.
The tour is signed in two directions: to complete it follow bike sign blue B.
The recommended route to complete the tour follows Hévíz, Alsópáhok, Szentgyörgyvár, Zala-töltés, Zalavár, Sármellék, Alsópáhok and Hévíz.

2. Difficulty factors in the tour
There are some significant bike challenges at the beginning (Hévíz, Alsópáhok) and at the end of the tour (Hévíz).
The section in Alsópáhok, from the crossings of the Fő street and Deák street to the Nemesboldogasszonyfa junction contains a strong uphill (ca. 1 km).
On the Zalavár – Sármellék – Alsópáhok section there may be heavy local traffic in the mornings and close to the end of working hours.

3. Highlights of the tour
This tour is an alternative route of the Kis-Balaton grand round tour (blue A). It is much shorter than the grand tour but it still gives an excellent impression of the atmosphere of the Kis-Balaton. It also includes some of its most important sights.
One of the highlights of the tour is the Zala Valley where we can ride along River Zala on the Zala embankment. Here we can enjoy really peaceful and quiet places as well as the closeness of nature.
The river reaches Lake Hídvég near Zalavár where it first joins the Kis-Balaton and its water protection system. On these parts of the embankment we will have a classical Kis-Balaton landscape together with the atmosphere. Reeds, ducks, egrets, swampy wooded areas, shiny water surface are typical for this countryside. Fishing is allowed on both sides of the road that divides the water surface. So we can always see anglers here wondering whether they would catch carp, catfish, pike or perch.
During the tour it is worth visiting the Small Balaton House. Here we can learn how the water protection system of Kis-Balaton works and how it helps to clean the water of River Zala before it reaches Lake Balaton. Around the building we can have a glimpse into the memories of the former historical town of Mosaburg and the thousand-year old history of county Zala.
During the tour – after Hévíz – the route leads through smaller and larger villages, quiet places close to nature. These villages were once significant settlements, manorial centres and farms. The name of Alsópáhok refers to the occupation of tanners preparing hides and skins using the warm water springs nearby. The area of Sármellék, Zalavár and Szentgyörgyvár is located on a promontory on Kis-Balaton which can still be clearly seen today. This area was also dry at the when Lake Balaton was the largest, so it is a long-inhabited countryside. Local people used to live on arable farming, viticulture and livestock but striping and fishing were also very common. Some of their traces can still be discovered along the way.
From the Kis-Balaton House, along Lake Hídvégi, the largest water surface of Kis-Balaton there is a possibility to make a detour to the Kányavár Island on a 7.5 km long designated and asphalted bike road. It is worth stopping at the small lookout tower and at the ‘Laki István’ floodgate (dam and fish ladder) where we can see a little bit of the operation of the water protection system. There is also a bird watch from where we can observe the well-known birdlife of the region such as ducks, grey herons and different seagulls. The specially curved, wooden-structured bridge leading to the Kányavár island has become a symbol of Small Balaton and is a unique sight in itself. From here we can admire several water plants. On the small island there is the ‘Búbos vöcsök’ study trail, two small lookout towers and a picnic area. It is definitely worth visiting these places since these are special and deservedly popular spots of the region so that you could return home with new experiences.