Saturday noon. We were already walking towards Botorog Spring. We left Bucharest at 6 am. The train left us in Brasov, where we took a van to Zarnesti.

Here we waited a little in order to complete the group. The break was perfect for a couple of langos and some ice tea (there’s no better time for ice tea than winter).

The hike was organized by the Carpati Mountaineering Association, represented by Florin, Tudor and Mihai. They brought experience, mountain stories and mad singing skills (as we soon discovered).

We needed three and a half hours to get to Curmatura Chalet. We were greeted with a delicious bean soup with smoked ham. After eating, we had to decide who sleeps in what room. We had three rooms, with eleven, four and three beds. We ended up drawing numbers. This whole process lasted (I think) a couple of hours, but it was surprisingly fun.

The evening continued with an out-of-tune guitar (eventually with a broken string), jokes and singing. Everything abruptly ended when the electric generator was turned off, at 11 pm.

The next morning, I hoped for some clear sky and maybe a sunrise over the Piatra Craiului. Instead, the sky was gray and I didn’t get the photos I hoped.

After breakfast, we packed and started our return trip. We trekked through knee deep snow. Well, there was a trail, but it was fun to venture off and struggle a little.

We descended through the woods, on an icy path. The trekking poles were a life saver. Andreea learned the climbing (up and down) technique using an ice ax (courtesy of Mihai).

Our final leg of the trip was crossing Prapastiile Zarnestilor (The Zarnesti Cliffs). The trail is wide and flat,
surrounded by tall walls on both sides. Andreea really wanted to see some chamois. And, since she’s a lucky person, we saw not one, but a couple.

The trip ended with a refuel stop at Gura Raului Chalet and 2 trains that took us back to Bucharest. Hopefully, it won’t be long until we’re back to the mountains again.