If you are looking for the highest point of Zalaegerszeg, your journey should definitely lead to Botfa. In the local forest you will find Karácsony Hill, which at 304.9 meters is even higher than Kandikó, the best-known peak point of the Göcsej region. The viewpoint can also be reached along the Path of the Ferns hiking route.

37 percent of Botfa’s area is covered by forests, making it the most forested district of Zalaegerszeg. It is hard to imagine today, but in the past the Danube once flowed through this north-south valley. Botfa is also worth exploring from a botanical perspective. Out of the roughly fifty wild orchid species found in Hungary, about a dozen have already been discovered in this area including the highly protected bee orchid. Moreover, the fauna also offers surprises: approximately a thousand of birds have been ringed in the region, bats live in the castle garden (“Ánglis”), four protected fish species inhabit the Válicka stream, and three protected mushroom species have also been discovered here.

In the photos by Dr. Zoltán Illyés you can see the bee orchid, the corncrake, the alder bolete, the stone loach and the gudgeon.