The Cerna is a mountain river in south-western Romania, flowing through a long, deep valley between the Mehedinți and Cerna mountains before reaching the old spa town of Băile Herculane. The Domogled-Valea Cernei National Park protects this valley and the mountains around it, a landscape of limestone cliffs, gorges, caves and some of the largest old-growth beech forests in Europe, part of the UNESCO site for the ancient and primeval beech forests of the Carpathians and other regions of Europe.
The beech forests here have been growing undisturbed for centuries, and their trees are huge. The park is also known for its karst landscape, with caves, sinkholes and underground rivers, and its flora includes Mediterranean species that survive thanks to the mild climate of the southern valleys. Bears, wolves and lynx live in the forests, and the black pine of Banat, a local variety, grows on the cliffs.
Băile Herculane, at the southern end of the valley, has been a spa since Roman times, when soldiers bathed in its thermal springs, which were dedicated to Hercules. In the nineteenth century, under the Habsburgs, it became a fashionable resort, with grand hotels and baths, many of which are now in a sad state of decay, which gives the town a melancholy charm.
The road up the Cerna valley from Băile Herculane is a beautiful ride, following the river through gorges and forest, with the cliffs rising on both sides. It becomes narrower and rougher as it goes, and the upper sections may be unpaved. The roads over the mountains toward Cornereva and Isverna are remote and often in poor condition, with gravel and potholes. This is not a place for a heavy road bike on a tight schedule. Weather in the mountains can change quickly.
Fuel is scarce in the mountains; Băile Herculane, Orșova and Padeș, about twenty-four kilometres away, are the nearest options. Local food includes mountain cheeses, smoked meats and trout. Late spring and early autumn are the best times to visit.