MTB in Romania: The Carpathian Expert Ride

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6 days cross-country & all-mountain expert tour 300km, +11000m/-11800m
64% singletrail | 33% dirt road | 3% paved road
A marathon-like selection of six very demanding trails, accross the main mountain ranges in central Romania: Ciucas, Baiului, Bucegi, Piatra Craiului. Endless singletracks and trails leading through majestic forests, on idyllic meadows and impressive high-altitude pastures, with drop dead gorgeous panoramic views over “The Transylvanian Alps.“ It’s not just about the beauty of the mountains, it’s also about the traditional life-style that still exists in these parts of Europe: the ancient sheepfolds, the old style hay making, the isolated households living a life pretty much unaware of the XXI century technologies, benefits, and problems. The tour is cross-country and all-mountain, designed for expert mountain bikers in a very good physical condition. Each day is stimulating and challenging, aimed at the physical effort and adrenaline junkies. A light-weight full suspension mountain bike would be ideal, but a hardtail would do the job just fine. The routes are normally accessible from July to October. Particularly bad weather at high altitudes (over 2000m) might force changes of itinerary for days 5 and 6. The programme on each day is designed to be “bike-in bike-out”, i.e. we leave one accommodation on bike and we get to the (next) accommodation also on bike. No time lost on endless minibus transfers.

Day 1: Arrival. Arrival at the airport, transportation to Cheia, at the foothills of Ciucas Mountain. Assembling of bikes, getting to know each-other, short warm-up ride in the area, presentation of the next-days programme. Accommodation at a pension in Cheia. Included services: transportation from airport to Cheia, dinner, accommodation.
Day 2: Ciucas Mountain round tour. Up to Bratocea pass in the morning, going through some nice gorges and uphill on a foresty road. After reaching the Bratocea ridge, it’s only singletrail bonanza all the way back to Cheia, around Zaganu mountain, Cirusca Pass, Stana Pass, Boncuta Pass, crossing the Stana Valley and the Buzaianu Ridge. Total distance 40km, +/- 1800m. Included services: breakfast, sandwiches for lunh, dinner, accommodation.
Day 3: Cheia to Azuga. Long journey today. We start by climbing Babes Mountain and then long downhill to Doftana Valley. Another epic climb brings us up to Baiului ridge with the mighty Bucegi dominating the view. The final descent to Azuga will be on everybody’s lips at the dinner table at Rhein Wine Cellar Pension. 70km, +/- 2800m. Included services: breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, dinner, accommodation, transfer of main luggage, visit at the champagne factory at Rhein Wine Cellar.
Day 4: Azuga to Sinaia. Singletrails in the forests along the foothills of Bucegi, this is on the menu for today. From Azuga we cycle up to Susai mountain hut, then descent to Predeal. We cross on the other side of the Prahova Valley and move towards the big climb of the day, at Poiana Izvoarelor. But not before enjoying some thrilling up and down singletrack sections on the Fetifoiu ridge. From Poiana Izvoarelor mountain hut to Busteni we have another feast of singletrails on the foothills of Caraiman, then through lush pine forests to Sinaia. Accommodation in a pension in Sinaia. 55km, +/- 2100m. Included services: breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, dinner, accommodation, transfer of main luggage.
Day 5: Bucegi high plateau. Shorter distance today, but technically and physically demanding. 100% alpine singletrail! In the morning we get the cable car up to 2000m, entering the Bucegi high plateau. Ascent to the highest peak of Bucegi (Omu, 2504m) with stops on the way to visit the geomorphological monuments Babele and the Sfinx. Nice pasture singletrails all the way, with a special mention for the traverse of the Cerdac. After a well deserved break at the Omu mountain hut, we follow an old trail to Padina mountain hut (1500m) on more singletrails, with a final descent of about 500m dis level. Accommodation at a mountain hut. 30km, +1100m/-1500m. Included services: the breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, dinner, accommodation, cable car tickets, transfer of main luggage.
Day 6: West of Bucegi. We leave the Bucegi high plateau through Strunga pass, a nice climb to test our techinical and physical abilities. Break half way through to visit a traditional mountain sheepfold. Long descent from Strunga pass, rocky and technical in the beginning, nice and flowing through pastures and forests later on. Another day on tricky singletrails, with nice views over the hills around Bran Castle near the destination, the village of Poarta. Distance 30km, +1100/-1600m. Included services: breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, dinner, accommodation, transfer of main luggage.
Day 7: Across Bran Country. A perfect way to end a glorious week: 65 kilometres of ascents and descents on pasture or forest singletrails and on old cart roads. In the morning the Balaban ridge will bring smiles on everybody’s faces with gorgeous views and nicely flowing descents. Quick wave in the distance to Bran Castle before starting the climb to Magura. Narrow trail descent for the adrenaline junkies down to Zarnesti gorges, then up towards Piatra Craiului through impressive rock walls. Final singletrail descent to Casa Folea, an old mountain hut in Pestera village. 65km, +/-2200m. Included services: breakfast, sandwiches as lunch, accommodation, transfer of main luggage.
Day 8: Departure. Preparations for the departure (pack the bikes, etc). If the schedule allows it, a visit to Bran Castle on the way to the airport can be included. Included services: breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, tickets for the visit at Bran Castle, transfer to the airport.