Transylvania's northern hills look like a landscape painted by someone who liked orchards and haystacks. Purcărete lies in the folds of the country between the Someș valleys and the Bistrița river, a region that was colonised in the Middle Ages by German-speaking Saxons, who built fortified churches and walled towns, and by Hungarians and Romanians who farmed the slopes. The Saxon town of Bistrița, not far away, still has a tall Lutheran church with a spire that can be seen from miles, and a handsome old centre of arcaded houses.
The label here, Fața Carpenului, Face of the Hornbeam, points to a wooded slope, and the pairing with Salva and Zalău ridings suggests a series of hillside sites that may be archaeological in origin.
Negrilești, with about fourteen hundred people, and Breaza, with a little over a thousand, are the nearest villages, with a shop and bar each, but fuel is better sought in Beclean, Năsăud or Bistrița. The roads here are old, narrow and quiet, with surfaces that vary from smooth to broken, and bends tighten as they follow the slopes. Farm traffic, wandering dogs and the occasional sheepdog on watch at the roadside call for patience. After rain the edges become muddy and slick, so stay in the middle of your lane.
The seasons are distinct. In April the plum and cherry blossom turns the valley white, in summer the hay is cut by hand in some places, in autumn the beech woods flare orange and the plums become țuică, the clear brandy, and in winter the snow lies deep and the villages are hushed. A late September ride is hard to beat, with warm days, cool nights and the smell of woodsmoke and fruit. Bring cash for village shops, since cards are rare, and accept an offer of a coffee, because hospitality is part of the road.