The Fagaras Mountains

Romania is a mountainous country. The first glance at the physical map of Europe already leaves no doubt - the mountain trekking, mountain biking, skiing and other outdoor activity lovers will not get bored here. Also the countryside recreation enthusiasts will find what they are looking for - mountain villages where time has stood still... 

Carpathians, the largest mountains in this part of Europe, occupy a considerable part of the country and are split into over forty smaller massifs. Among the dozens of mountain ranges in Romania, those that are most conspicuous are the Fagaras Mountains. They are located in the center of the country. The highest peaks exceed 2,500 meters above sea level and one of them - Moldoveanu (2544 m) is the highest peak of Romania.

Most frequently visited attraction of Fagaras Mountains is the Transfagarasan Road - a beautiful scenic route crossing the massif along the north-south line. During a trip by car or by bike you can enjoy beautiful mountain views, waterfalls, lakes as well as kilometer long drive through tunnel under the main ridge of the Fagaras Mountains.

A dense network of hiking trails allows visitors to truly get to know these beautiful mountains during one day trips. If you prefer longer trekkings – mountain huts and other shelters do allow for multi-day hiking through ridges and valleys of the Fagaras Mountains. During the trips you will often meet shepherds who produce delicious cheese in the traditional way. 

 *NOTICE: Flocks of sheep are guarded by herding dogs that can be aggressive towards strangers. A good idea is to bring an ultrasonic dog chaser with you.

A good starting points for day tours are tourist destinations located at the previously mentioned Transfagarasan Road: Balea Cascada, Balea Lac and Cascada Capra.

1.) From the mountain hotel Balea Cascada we can go for an easy, but very exciting trekking route. It follows the signs of the red cross on a white background in the Doamnei Valley, passes picturesquely situated hut (yummy cheese!) and leads to two glacial lakes. Further the route gets a bit steeper and leads to the pass Saua Doamnei which offers a beautiful view of the valley Doamnei. On the other side of the pass we can see the lake Balea Lac. We get there coming down from the pass after about half an hour. Then we go back to Balea Cascada following the signs of blue triangle. The whole route takes about 6 hours.

2.) Balea Lac is a glacial lake located near the Transfagarasan Road at an altitude of 2034 m above sea level. From the tourist facilities located at the lake you can quickly reach the main ridge of Fagaras Mountains and then ascend Buteanu peak (over 2500 m). From Balea Lac you follow the signs of blue triangle leading to the pass Saua Caprei (great view of Lake Caprei). Then you travers the grassy slopes of Buteanu ascending the top of it. The last five minutes you climb on the rocks - in dry conditions the route has medium difficulty. Panorama from the summit is extremely broad. Return to Balea Lac is the same way - the whole route takes about 5 hours.

3.) Cascada Capra (1550 m) is a small tourist complex on the south side of the main ridge of Fagaras Mountains. It is a good base for 2-days trip, which goal is to climb the highest peak of the Fagaras Mountains - Moldoveanu. Following the signs of the yellow triangle we go from Cascada Capra in the direction of the main ridge up to Portitia Arpasului pass (2175 m). Then following the signs of the red bar you go near the main ridge up to the pass Saua Podragului. From the pass, you come directly to the mountain hut Cabana Podragu. After about 8-9 hours of walking you can spend a night there. On the second day, at dawn, you go back to the pass and heading east after the signs of a red bar come to Moldoveanu (it takes approximately 2-3 hours). In good weather, the views are splendid! You can see many mountain ridges surrounding the Fagaras. From Moldoveanu you go further east reaching the vicinity of the pass with the shelter Portitia Vistei. Then, following the signs of the red triangle, you come down to the village of Victoria. Walking time on the second day is 9-10 hours.  

The two-day trip to Moldoveanu requires good condition and favorable weather.

It is good to take a map of the Fagaras Mountains, because in addition to these trips you can make many other interesting hikes ther. Maps can be purchased in all those tourist facilities I mentioned above.

Fagaras Mountains are the most visited mountains in Romania but also here you will find peace and tranquility on less frequented paths. In the area there are many other mountain ranges with beautiful views, wildlife, shepherds and sheep... Bucegi, Piatra Craiului, Retezat and many others are waiting for visiting them :)

Text by Andrzej Śliwiński

 

Red cross on a white background trail in Doamnei Valley

The last meters below Buteanu summit

The Portitia Vistei shelter

Podragu mountain hut

The Merry Cemetery in Sapanta

...in Romanian called Cimitirul Vesel. It is an unusual place in the small village of Săpânţa in Maramureş county in Romania. The cemetery enchants by its colors, subtle lacy carvings, multiplicity of similar (but different!) wooden tombstones with detailed paintings.

It hypnotizes. You enter it and you come into another world...

The Merry Cemetery, photo by Andrzej Śliwiński

...the world of those who passed away.

Each tombstone is covered by a painting and a short description showing the life of buried person. From the other side the painting reveals a reason of a person’s death. Going farther and farther you are more and more familiar with the life-stories and at the same time you feel more and more close-knit with those people. 

 

The gardener's story, photo by Andrzej Śliwiński

You meet lawyers, mothers, doctors, peasants, gardeners, housewives, children, musicians, craftsmen...and many others. Those were people like you and me, with their own lives, habits, hobbies. The painter is often cruelly honest - he shows virtues and happiness as well as weaknesses, sorrow and problems. If someone was a drunker - he tells about it, if there was a girl tempting men - it is also not left unsaid. You can see who was cheerful, who liked to smoke, who died in an accident or on a war. It is a kind of local society chronicle.

The Merry Cemetery, photo by Andrzej Śliwiński

The cemetery is mainly a work of one man named Stan Ioan Pătraş. After his death in 1977 the idea is continued by other sculptor. Pătraş was a local artist who sculpted the first tombstone crosses. He started his work in 1935 creating the first tombstone - because the locals liked it, he decided to continue. The artist's work consists of approximatly 700 tombstones.

The Merry Cemetery, photo by Andrzej Śliwiński

Cimitirul Vesel invites us to consider our thinking about death, provokes the reflections. You leave it with a feeling that those buried people, not anonymous anymore, are still somehow alive. Alive not only in our memories, but in another world. You are accompanied by a thought that death is something tamable, a part of our life, its stage. 

I recommend to visit the Merry Cemetery in the evening before dusk, when there is few people, calm and quiet and the light favors photographers.