Bâlea Lake sits at 2,042 metres in the heart of the Făgăraș mountains, a small, cold glacial lake in a bowl of bare rock, and it is the high point of the Transfăgărășan, the road that Romanians say is the best in the world. It was built between 1970 and 1974 on the orders of Nicolae Ceaușescu, who wanted a military route across the Carpathians after the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Thousands of soldiers and labourers blasted it out of the rock, and the cost in lives is said to have been high, so every hairpin has a story attached.
The road itself is magnificent. From the north, it climbs from the forest through a succession of bends and switchbacks, sweeping up beside waterfalls and cliffs until it reaches the long Bâlea tunnel, which opens onto the lake at the highest point. From the south, it follows the huge Vidraru Dam and then climbs in tight hairpins through a green valley. The surface is mostly good but can be patched, and cold rain and thick fog are common even in July. Be cautious on the descent, as cars stop suddenly for photos. It is a road that wants a slow pace and a long day.
The pass is open only in summer, usually from early July to late October, depending on the snow, and the rest of the year it is shut by drifts and avalanches. In the winter, an ice hotel is built beside the lake, and a cable car runs from the waterfall below. Around the lake in summer you will find small stalls selling grilled sausages, cheese, honey and hot drinks, along with a few chalets. Prices are high, and the quality varies, but the view is hard to beat.
Chamois and marmots live on the slopes, and bears are in the forests below. Go early, before the traffic builds, and carry on in the evening, when the crowd has gone and the peaks turn pink.