From the architecture office of Robert Gutowski, an expert in modern sacral architecture, we recently presented a plan for a chapel designed on top of a hospital. Many similarities can be discovered with the Lake Naplás lookout tower, which they also handed over this year: they also offer a high-altitude perspective and are dominated by exciting, yet simple, wooden structures. And although the forest observation towers cannot be considered specifically sacred places, they carry a kind of sublime atmosphere, and visiting them can also be interpreted as a pilgrimage in nature.
The twenty-two-meter-high wooden lookout tower was built next to Lake Naplás in the 16th district. In recent decades, the area has been transformed from an industrial zone into a residential-recreational area, thanks in part to the Pilisi Parkerdő Zrt. One of their key objectives is to develop the ecological and tourist value of urban forests, with a special focus on the forest areas on the Pest side of the capital. The 150-hectare area is currently the second largest nature reserve in the capital, and Lake Naplás, established in 1978 by damming the Szilas Stream, is the largest standing water in Budapest.
The construction of the tower was also an important element of the urban forest development program in the Pilisi Parkerdő. The shape was created by rotating isosceles triangles and joining them inbetween. Another important aspect was that the lookout tower rose above the trees to open a 360-degree panorama from the top to the surrounding area: Lake Naplás, the nature trail, the Cinkota Small Forest and the Gödöllő Hills. Perfect destination for autumn roaming!
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