For about a century and a half, the Roman province of Dacia was a wedge of empire pushed north of the Danube, and its eastern edge ran along the curve of the Carpathians through what is now central Romania. In 2024, UNESCO added the frontiers of the Roman Empire in Dacia to its list, a long chain of forts, watchtowers and earthworks. Vătava, in the upper Mureș valley, is one of the sites, with traces of a Roman fortification on a hill called Cetățele, the little fortresses. Not much is visible to the casual eye: earthworks, a few stones, the outline of a position chosen for its view along the valley.
The Mureș flows here from its source in the eastern Carpathians, cutting between the volcanic Călimani and Gurghiu mountains before emerging into the Transylvanian plateau. Vătava is a village of a couple of thousand people in this valley, surrounded by forests of beech and spruce, with meadows where haystacks are still made by hand. Upstream, the Mureș gorge between Toplița and Deda is one of the most beautiful valleys in Romania, with the river, the railway and the road squeezed together between forested slopes.
The riding in the upper Mureș valley is excellent. The main road follows the river with long curves and views of the mountains, and the side roads climb into the forests toward villages that see few visitors. The surface on the main road is generally good, but minor roads can be potholed or unpaved. Watch for horse carts, logging trucks and cows, and for local drivers overtaking in improbable places. Weather in the valley can be misty in the morning, and winters are cold and snowy. Bears live in these forests, and it is wise not to camp carelessly.
Vătava itself has little in the way of services. Reghin, a town of over thirty thousand downstream, is the nearest place for reliable fuel and supplies, and it is known for its violin-making workshops, which have supplied musicians for over a century. Food in the region is Transylvanian: sour soups, sarmale, cabbage rolls, and polenta with cheese. The Roman site is for those who enjoy imagining the past; stand on the hill and look down the valley, and you will see why the Romans chose this spot to watch.