Caput Bubali, the head of the buffalo, is a wonderfully odd Roman name, and it belongs to a station on the road that carried troops and supplies north from the Danube into the heart of Dacia after Trajan's conquest. The hill known as Cetățuie, near the villages of Brebu and Cornuțel in the Banat, holds the earthworks of a fort that guarded this route as it threaded through the hills towards Tibiscum, the important Roman centre near Caransebeș. It is part of the Dacian frontier group listed by UNESCO in 2024, and like much of it, it needs a little imagination and a good eye for ditches and banks.
The landscape is the gentle edge of the Banat mountains, where the Timiș river and its tributaries flow out of the high ground towards the plain. To the east rise the Țarcu and Godeanu ranges, often snow-capped into late spring, and to the west the Semenic mountains, with their beech forests and the high plateau above Reșița. The Banat was a frontier for centuries after the Romans too, between the Ottoman and Habsburg empires, and it remains one of the most ethnically mixed regions of Romania, with Romanian, Serbian, German and Hungarian heritage visible in its villages.
For riders, the area offers a fine variety. The main road from Caransebeș to Reșița crosses rolling hills with good curves, and from there routes climb into the Semenic mountains with steep hairpins and forest roads. The Timiș valley road south towards Orșova and the Danube, through the Teregova pass, is a lovely run. Surfaces vary from good to bumpy, and traffic is moderate. Late spring and early autumn are the best seasons.
Caransebeș, ten kilometres away, is a small town with fuel, mechanics and restaurants, and a good place to stop. Try the local specialities: grilled meats, polenta, and the sausages of the Banat, which are famous. The fort itself is on private land, so be respectful and ask permission if you want to explore.