Monday, 20 September 2010

Cheile Turzii - Turda Gorge








 Location: central Transylvania, close to the town of Campia Turzii. Just follow the indicator located on a field, pointing to the vest. A gravel road leads to a normal-looking forest which has 2 cliffs standing above the trees. Follow the path - there is a small roman ruin over there - and reach a touristic camp located right at the forest's territory line. The 2 rocks grew up in sight, having a remarkable height. You can notice a river flowing from the depths of the forest. Get inside the forest, follow a track and soon you will enter the Gorge and realize it was worth the effort getting here.
             You cross a bridge and have to pay a small amount at a hut guarding the entrance. You may also buy souvenirs from there. The cliffs show off in their full splendor, with a lot of caves and similar things. The track continues at both the cliff sides, switching between them by using more bridges.     There are tracks leading to auxiliary objectives, but the main one continues along the river.      You will see more and more cliffs appearing along the high crests, some with sharp and pointy peaks, and some with long sharpened crests. It's a great place for professional climbing, as I saw many hikers winning the cliffs. At the end of  the track there is a small rest-house with a shop and a small restaurant, in case you got hungry or thirsty. The place is always crowded by people taking a rest before they return on the track.



            Also, from the sides of the forest, a medium track proceeds to climb the first cliff and continue along the crests from the right. We have ventured on that side, encountering alpine vegetation and a viper hidden behind the grass and lisping us to leave his territory. From that place you can nearly see the entire Gorge, along with the river and the touristic camps. We did not venture along the entire track as it was starting to get late.

            Overall, the Turda Gorge is a place worth visiting for more than one day, so you have time to relax and visit some more tracks. It is also a great place for camping (with tents).

Saturday, 18 September 2010

Creasta Cocoşului - Rooster's Crest




Location:Maramures, Romania, close to "Hanul Pintea" from Pasul Gutâi.
It takes 2 hours to get in there, but your time is rewarded well: there are plenty of rocks to climb! The Crest is the principal attraction, but there are also other cliffs, like Secatura, on the opposite side of the elevation. The final point offers a great overlook to "Depresiunea Maramuresului" and to the cities of Baia Sprie and Baia Mare.

But let's get back to the crest: it has many climbing routes, from easy to very hard. But you can walk on the top of the entire cliff- that track is not advised for those who have fear of altitude! - The cliff, Rooster's Crest, is worth of it's name: it's sharp, so getting past some zones is difficult. But the outlook from there is gorgeous: on North the cliff reveals the entire Ocna Sugatag region, and there is a good view of peak Ignis to the west. The region of Cavnic can be seen to the east of the Crest.

Wednesday, 30 December 2009

Bodi Lake - Lacul Bodi






Location: East of Baia Sprie, while entering Pasul Gutâi turn right, and after 2 more kilometers turn right again. Some car-climbing comes ahead, after passing it you will reach a gate with a welcoming inscription.
Bodi Lake is visited especially in summer, when you can have a good time swimming together with the ducks that feed of the fish present in large numbers. If you want to relax without getting wet, bring a few slices of bread to feed the ducks. After 10 minutes of dropping bread-crumbs, more and more ducks will join the fea
st. You can get at least 15 of them, and they may climb on the shore if it is not crowded.
Relaxation can be also gained by sailing on the lake - there are some boats, but for a cost -. You may not bring boats from somewhere else because you risk of getting the owner of the Mogoşa Hut yelling at you :).
The rules invented by him include: no fires, no fishing, no camping (with tents), no cooking.... Nobody agrees with those, though.
There are lots of mushrooms in the forests nearby, and you can fish in 2 of the lakes positioned close to Bodi.
Bodi Lake is a principal touristic attraction in out small town, many swimmers, in summer, and skiers, in winter, are visiting this great place for having fun.
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Sunday, 20 December 2009

Cheile Bicazului - Bicaz Canyon







Location: Neamţ/Harghita county, south of Mountain Fountain lake(which is gorgeous) and close to the Red Lake. If you want to have a close look of the Canyon you must climb on the tracks heading between the gorges, the tracks are well made, having hand rail in some spots, where going up might be dangerous. The Canyon is really impressive, and you may climb on those outstanding rocks if you are brave enough:the tallest cliff has a cross standing on the highest altitude of the entire gorge, touch it if you can :).
It's fauna and vegetation is famous in the country: here you can find the rare lion's foot flower
and the raven, the laughter and the brown bear, which are protected species.
Many tracks start from the Holiday Resort Red Lake and come out inside the Canyon, but they can be traveled in both directions. Parking inside the Canyon is difficult, so it's best to leave the car at the Red Lake and come by foot( 1 km ). There is a souvenir shop at the southern edge, if you want to have some memories from this wonderful place.
The trip at the base of Suhardul Mic is a great
one, though we didn't reach the end of it because it was late. Look at the wooden map situated in the Holiday Resort Red Lake to see all the tracks and their wonderful attractions.
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Friday, 11 December 2009

Grădina Zmeilor - Dragon's Garden



Location: Sălaj, north from Jibou, in the 'town' of Gâlgăul Almaşului, a rusty mark with the name 'Grădina Zmeilor' barely indicates to the left. After some meters of track, some cliffs show off above the surrounding hills.
Those cliffs have forest a
bove and under them, looking like some dragons(it's obvious). There's a lodge somewhere there, and from that lodge a track gets right in the forest. After 20 minutes of climbing, you reach the cliffs altitude and state that it was worth the effort. That high point reveals the surrounding zone, and more 'dragons' appear over there. The cliff's top is wooded and if you are lucky you can find mushrooms in no time. The cliff's content is the limestone, also in some places they are slippery (especially on the sides, boo!) and the track continues along all the rocks, and then climbs down around and brings you back from where you started( includes a nice slalom through the rocks separated of the others).
It makes a nice track to go on, with beautiful surroundings and a very,very slippery moss - don't fall victim to it! :)




Thursday, 10 December 2009

The Blue Lake



Location: In the Old Center of Baia Sprie, look for a street called 23 August(it goes West and it's on a hill). After some walking, climb the low elevation and you reach the small chapel situated on the hill. From there, follow the road that leads in the forest ( look after the red marks). After half an hour of climbing you will reach the Blue Lake - it's almost surrounded by gravel hills. It's a special lake because of the caving-in of an old sulphur mine that transformed the water's color in blue. - - - Up: Photo by rev - - - - - - - - Many tourists head there each year, so there's a wood bench and a touristic map somewhere near. You can swim in the lake, it's not "dangerous". Don't lose this opportunity, it can be quite a nice memory in some times ahead.
In summer, when the sun brightens the lake, it's color transforms in gr
een, making it even more beautiful. There is no fish in the lake because of the sulphur content, neither vegetation.
The uniqueness of this lake makes it famous on the entire continent, except ours( romanians don't tend to know about what wonders they've got).


Saturday, 5 December 2009

The Whistler



Location
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e to the end of Pasul Gutâi , at right ( from south) you will spot a small track leading upside, and, if it is autumn, you can already spot the rock from the road.
It's a crest that comes in outside from a single cliff, but the effect created is large. You can get near the vertical position if you are brave enough to cross the not-so-safe looking track. From that spot, you can survey the entire region, including Rooster's Crest, the surrounding mountains, the town of Baia Sprie and, of course, the entire Gutin road. It's difficult to reach it: you have a mountain track to climb, luckily the sides are protected by ropes or, in some places, by wooden planks.
Near the start of the track to the Whistler there sits a wooden table made for those who want to cook and eat something right there, in the heart of the wilderness.
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Monday, 30 November 2009

Cheile Tătarului - Tătar Gorge


Location: near a village called Mara, Maramures, coming right after Pasul Gutâi. After you enter the village, look for a road that heads left(if you come from south). After 2-4 km you will get to Runcu barrage, and after more 4 km you will reach the Mara river. Stop by the bridge and drop by the elevation that leads to the conifer forest( at this moment you will notice some cliffs right behind the trees) and get on the road that goes right near the river(in some times of the year, you will encounter a marsh there). Some steps ahead, more and more cliffs will appear above the forest. If you see a huge rock covered by yellow moss, you will know you reached the half of the trip. There are some points in which you can take great photos of the Gorge, if you want a great trip you can head down on a small track that leads right to the river. In that point of the river you can cross it(with some effort), but the stones which constitute the natural bridge are slippery, so again watch out.[I don't want to be blamed for a leg fracture :)].
That track is very hard to spot, to locate it look for a rusty pipe(ignore the natural effect) and then turn right from it.
If you reach the river you will see it deserved the effort to climb down: it forms little waterfalls and it's really clear - you can see the colorful stones through it - , sadly I didn't spot any fish when i was there, but I saw some men who were fishing near the bridge, so grab your fishing poles if you can!
It is planned for future that Cheile Tătarului will be covered by water gathered by the Runcu barrage, so if you plan to visit this wonderful spot of nature, don't delay it!

Sunday, 29 November 2009


-Lacul Rosu-The Red Lake

Location: Cheile Bicazului - Neamt, Romania
It's a natural barrage lake, it has hundreds of stumps popping from the water.
You can take a boat to see the stumps from a centimeter, and there are some touristic paths around the lake, they are worth to be done.
The lake is in the shadow of a huge cliff that can be seen permanently - it's called Suhardul Mic - ,and there are ducks on the lake. It makes a great time to feed the ducks, they come in massive numbers to the shore and they are nice to be seen.
On the shore there were built like 10 hotels and restaurants, the zone's tourism's level is high in each season. The road goes close to the edge of the lake, so it's easy to hop there from the car.
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This is my first post to the blog, I hope to make some nice things over here!