A șa, in the language of the Carpathians, is a saddle, a low point between two summits that allows a road or a path to cross a ridge. Șaua Dealul Arsurei, the saddle of the burnt hill, lies near Gâlgău, a village of fewer than nine hundred people in the hills of Sălaj, and the name is a good example of how such crossings are remembered. Arsură means a burn or a scorched place. It might refer to a fire in the forest, or to the old practice of clearing woodland for pasture by burning it, which left a hillside bare and blackened.
Saddles matter to a rider. They are where the road lifts out of one valley and drops into the next, and the sudden change of view, from a green hollow into an open sweep of hills, can be one of the quiet pleasures of a day. Here the saddle gives you a long look over a landscape of hay meadows, scattered farms and low ridges that fold away to the horizon, with the Meseș range behind. On a clear day the light picks out every field boundary and haystack.
The roads are lively. Climbs to the saddle are short but can be steep, with a few tight bends where the surface is patchy. In wet weather the clay on the descent can be treacherous, and in winter ice may linger on the shaded side long after the sun has melted it elsewhere. Livestock graze near the road, and dogs from nearby farms may bark and chase. A gentle throttle and a steady line will keep everyone calm.
Gâlgău lies in the valley of a small river and has a shop or two. Fuel, however, is not available in the village, so plan to fill up in a larger town before you start. Keep a few small notes and some water in your pocket, and you will manage.
Come in early summer, when the meadows are in flower and the air is warm and still.