Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii and Cormeniș - Râpa Malului 1

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii

   North of Dej, the Someș river winds through a land of soft hills, orchards and scattered villages, and on the ridges above it the Romans once kept watch over the northern frontier of their province of Dacia. Chiuiești, a commune of small villages spread across the hills, is one of the places where archaeologists have identified the remains of watchtowers on high points along the frontier, including one on the hill known as Dealul Crucii, the Hill of the Cross. Little survives above ground beyond low mounds and traces in the grass, but the sites are included in the World Heritage inscription of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire in Dacia, added in 2024.

   Read the complete Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii is where the day begins. Next is Bârsău Mare - Cetate.

2. 2. Bârsău Mare - Cetate

   In the north of Transylvania, the Someș river winds through a valley of green hills, woods and villages with wooden churches and haystacks, and on a hilltop near the village of Bârsău Mare, the faint remains of a Roman fortification overlook the valley. This was part of the northern frontier of Roman Dacia, the province created after Trajan's conquest in the early second century, and it is one of the sites included in the Frontiers of the Roman Empire, Dacia, listed by UNESCO in 2024.

   Read the complete Bârsău Mare - Cetate write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Bârsău Mare - Cetate comes up about 29 km into the recorded legs. Next is Cormeniș - Râpa Malului 1.

3. 3. Cormeniș - Râpa Malului 1

   The Someș river cuts through the low hills of north-western Transylvania in a series of wide loops, and at Cormeniș, a small village in Sălaj county, it passes below a bank where the Romans placed one of their watchtowers. This was the northern edge of the province of Dacia Porolissensis, the frontier facing the free Dacian tribes beyond, and a line of towers and small forts ran along the hills, linked by signals and patrols. The site at Râpa Malului, the riverbank cliff, is one of the many components of the Dacian frontier listed by UNESCO in 2024. As so often on the Dacian limes, there is little to see apart from a slight rise in a field, but standing up there with the river below, you can easily imagine a small garrison watching the valley.

   Read the complete Cormeniș - Râpa Malului 1 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 56 km into the recorded legs you reach Cormeniș - Râpa Malului 1. Next is back through Bârsău Mare - Cetate.

4. 4. back through Bârsău Mare - Cetate

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Bârsău Mare - Cetate write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Bârsău Mare - Cetate, late in the day. Next is Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii.

5. 5. Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Chiuiești - Dealul Crucii. That is the ride.