Between the Apuseni mountains and the Meses range, in the north-west of Transylvania, the Romanian landscape folds into low, wooded hills and farming valleys, and the village of Starciu sits among them in Salaj county. The nearest places are Cizer, a small village a few kilometres away, and Starciu itself, each of about a thousand or two people.
The hills have a long history. This was the northern edge of Roman Dacia, and the pass at Meses, a few kilometres to the north, was guarded by the fort and town of Porolissum, a border garrison with an amphitheatre, a customs post and watchtowers along the ridge. Long before the Romans, people mined gold in the Apuseni mountains to the south, and the Roman mine workings at Rosia Montana, in the same highlands, were so extensive that the whole area was inscribed on the World Heritage list in 2021 as the Rosia Montana Mining Landscape. Tunnels dug by Roman miners can still be walked, and wax tablets recording their contracts were found there.
For riders, this is a quiet corner. The roads in Salaj county wind between woods and meadows, passing villages of low houses with fruit trees, and the surfaces vary from decent to rough. Traffic is light and the pace is slow, with horse carts and the occasional herd of cows on the road. The area is at its best in May, when the hills are green and the orchards are in bloom, and in early October, with the beech woods in colour. Summer thunderstorms can be fierce, and winter brings snow.
For fuel, shops and a meal, head to a bigger town, such as Zalau or Jibou, since the villages offer little more than a corner shop. Local cooking is hearty, with sour soups, smoked sausages, and plum jam, and there is a tradition of home-distilled plum brandy. Make sure you bring a map, since signs are sparse and phone coverage can be patchy in the valleys.