Câmpulung, often called Câmpulung Muscel to tell it apart from its namesake in Bukovina, has a claim that most Romanians learn in school: it was the first capital of Wallachia. In the early fourteenth century, the first princes of the new state ruled from here before moving to Curtea de Argeș and later to Târgoviște and Bucharest. The town sits at the foot of the Carpathians on the Râul Târgului, at the southern end of the corridor that leads up to the Bran pass, and it has a long history as a market town and trading post between Wallachia and Transylvania.
The heart of the old town is the Negru Vodă monastery, founded by the early rulers of Wallachia and rebuilt several times over the centuries. It is a peaceful place, with a tall bell tower and a courtyard surrounded by old buildings. Saxon merchants from Transylvania also settled here in the Middle Ages, and a Catholic church and some old houses remind you of their presence. On the road north toward Rucăr, the Mateiaș mausoleum stands on a hill, commemorating the soldiers who fought and died there in the First World War, when Romanian troops held back the German advance in 1916.
For riders, Câmpulung is a good starting point for the ride north toward Bran. The road climbs gently through the hills, past Mateiaș and through Dragoslavele, a village known for its wooden church and trout farms, and then into the Dâmbovița valley at Rucăr. It is a well-surfaced, curvy road with views, though weekend traffic from Bucharest can clog it. To the south, the road leads toward Pitești and the plains, while to the east, smaller roads wind through the hills toward Târgoviște.
Fuel, supermarkets and restaurants are easy to find, which makes Câmpulung a sensible last stop before the climb north or a first one after it. The town has a few pleasant streets and parks, and the views of the mountains to the north are lovely on a clear day. Summers are warm, but the mountains bring cooler air, especially in the evenings. Look for local specialities like smoked cheeses and plum brandy, known as țuică, which is produced throughout the region. As anywhere in Romania, the drink-drive limit is zero, so save it for the evening.