It was looking to be a beautiful day and because it was Saturday we figured the area might be busy and we wanted to beat the crowds.
The gorge was located only 15 kms (9 miles) from the guesthouse.
On the way there. Good thing there's not much traffic!
We ended up hiking to the top of the mountain on the right of the gorge.
The first part was steep uphill.
One foot in front of the other!
Kevin, near the top!
Ruth at the top.
Taking a break.
What a great day!
Heading back down the other side.
It was really steep at this point, and quite slippery because the snows from two weeks ago were melting. Had to be very careful not to slip!
Trying to come down through the snow.
Once we got down, the next part of the hike took us through the gorge itself.
Some parts were on a narrow rock ledge, and the rocks were slippery! I took a short video for you...
This bridge has seen better days!
Ha! Somebody has a sense of humor. Too funny...
It was 1:00pm by the time we finished the hike. We had only done 5.6 kms (3.5 miles) but it took us three hours. It was pretty slow going at times because the elevation gain and drop was 556 meters (1,800 ft) in a short period of time.
We sat and had some lunch, and then got back on the road. We were heading for a guest house in Apuseni National Park, but we didn't quite make it.
Part of the drive was on the highway. Speed limit 130 km/h (81 mph).
But the rest of the drive was on a narrow twisty mountain road that was partly snow covered at times. Really nice scenery, but not many opportunities to stop for photos.
Near Marisel, Romania.
It was getting close to 4:00pm when we made the decision not to try to get to our destination. I hadn't made firm reservations, so it wasn't a big deal. And this area is a popular summer destination so there are a lot of guest houses.
We spotted one called Hostel Alpina in Marisel. Went in to ask about a room, but the lady didn't speak English so she called her son to translate. Nice enough place, and 100 lei ($33 CAD, $24 USD) per night. He said that his mother would cook dinner for us if we liked.
Sold!
Our room.
Tiny bathroom, but clean.
The place is fairly big..they have 20 rooms and a living room area with a couch and table and big screen tv.
We think we're the only ones here!
We went down to the restaurant for dinner and the lights were all off. Went and knocked on another door, and the lady came out...we made hand gestures that we wanted to eat, and she was happy to lead us through to the restaurant and turn the lights on.
They had a menu available in English, and she pointed out what was not available. We shared a bowl of vegetable soup, then Ruth had a chicken dish with potatoes and I had a meat and cheese platter and a beer. Total including tip was 65 lei ($21.45 CAD, $16 USD).
A perfect day in Romania!
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Perfect dayI. Loved the "sense of humor" - too funny! B&C
ReplyDeleteIt was a perfect day in so many ways! Yep, that was pretty funny when we were just hiking along and saw those boots sticking up like that. :-)
DeleteLooks like a great hike (especially if everything was green)...
ReplyDeleteYes, green would have made it even better but the snow made it pretty too.
DeleteGreat pictures - this area would be fantastic in the spring or summer, although it looks that you are still able to enjoy it in spite of the cold weather and dreary late autumn landscape. Are you going to visit any of the caves in the area?
ReplyDeleteYour blog is seriously addictive... Thank you for taking us along on your journey.
Totally agree with you spring and summer would be a fantastic time to visit but seeing we have to work then we are just happy to be visiting here now. Surprisingly enough we aren't finding the late autumn landscape deary at all. We are constantly oohing and aahing as we are hiking or driving along.
DeleteWow! A great hike followed by a nice home cooked meal. It doesn't get any better. Love the boots picture!
ReplyDeleteYes, it was a wonderful hike and a good dinner.
DeleteLoved the hike through the gorge.
ReplyDeleteSo did we Rita, thanks!
DeleteSo much of the terrain looks like our western united states - not the architecture, though. I admire your determination to get some exercise each day. That's something my husband and I need to improve on when we travel!
ReplyDeleteYes, in some ways it does. The mountains here are quite as high though!
DeleteWe love hiking and try to do as much of it as we can. Also by hiking we are able to see so much more than you can see in a car.
Wow great hike very grave of you both! Looks like your truly enjoying your trip keep posting look forward to reading it everyday!
ReplyDeleteWe love hiking, what can we say. :-)
DeleteYes, we are enjoying this trip and all the new adventures that we are having here in Romania.
Thank you for taking the time to read it every day.
I have enjoyed following along and have some stupid questions. I have big plans to start traveling like you guys but everytime I travel we take way too much STUFF. What is the size of your suitcases? How do you do laundry and how often?
ReplyDeleteWhat do you make for lunch when on the trail/ road? May be a bit silly but this has been a problem for me to date. I always over pack and when I arrive in a location have no idea what to buy for food on the run. End up eating out and that cost $$. Over pack and that's always a problem .
Glad that you have enjoyed following along with us. I don't know the exact size of our bags offhand but I do know that they meet the specs of MOST airlines for carry-on luggage. We hand wash much of our laundry every couple of nights and when we can have use of a washing machine we try to wash everything except what we are wearing. Some of the places we have stayed will wash a load for us for a small fee. We travel with very little clothing, we each take two pairs of pants, 3 lightweight long sleeved tops a couple of t-shirts, 3 pairs of underwear, 3 pairs of socks 2 bras (me only ;-)), a hoodie, a jacket, hat and mitts and that is about it. We try to take things that are darker in colour and are lightweight and easy to handwash and quick to air dry.
DeleteBecause we are gluten free it makes food/meals a little more difficult. We try as much as possible to find accommodation where we have use of the kitchen and then I will make most of our meals. As for lunch either hiking or on the road, we will have some gluten free bread if we can find it otherwise it is usually rice cakes along with sandwich meat that is gluten free and cheese, we will also have some yogurt and some fruit and for snacks generally some peanuts.
Hope that answers some of your questions. Don't hesitate to ask any question, we will try to answer it as best as we can.
What do you get for breakfast in the guest houses?
ReplyDeleteWe have only had one breakfast made at a guesthouse and that was an omelet each. The other mornings I have either been able to make our own breakfast or we just had some milk, cereal and fruit. We have been able to find gluten free cornflakes over here. :-)
Delete