The Romans did not build their frontier in Dacia as a single wall. They built it as a chain of forts, watchtowers and signal posts along the crest of the Meseș mountains in what is now north-western Romania, and Moigrad is where the chain had its main fortress. The ancient town was called Porolissum, and it controlled the Meseș Gate, a natural pass through the ridge, where merchants paid customs and soldiers watched for raiders from the north. Walk the site today and you find an amphitheatre, a forum, a temple, stretches of the fort wall and long grassy slopes, all overlooking the green valley below.
The towers were built of stone and timber, a short walk apart, so that a fire or smoke signal could carry word along the ridge within minutes. Together they form the Roman frontier in Dacia, which is part of the wider UNESCO recognition of Roman limes across Europe.
The country around is soft, hilly farmland, with orchards, hayfields, beech woods and villages where horse carts are still in use. Zalău, a town of about sixty-three thousand, is the main centre, with fuel, supermarkets and a good museum of local archaeology, and small places like Treznea have little more than a shop. Fill up in Zalău before you head into the hills.
The riding is gentle, rolling and quiet, with moderate bends, long views and little traffic outside the main roads. Surfaces vary a lot, from smooth new asphalt to cracked, patched stretches with potholes and gravel on the edge, and in spring, when the snow melts, frost heave is a hazard. Farm animals and slow tractors are the main obstacles, and the occasional horse and cart without lights at dusk. Spring and autumn are lovely, with blossom or colour, and summers are warm without being extreme. Eat a plate of sarmale, cabbage rolls with polenta, or a bowl of hearty bean soup in a village inn, and ask about the local plum brandy, which is strong and honest.