Churches of Moldavia and Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
153 km
Riding-time estimate
3 h 28
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
From Suceviţa it runs 153 km to Suceviţa; allow about 3 h 28 of riding. It goes by way of Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster, Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of and back through Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 850 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. The line favours views over speed.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Churches of Moldavia
Sucevița is the last and the largest of the great painted monasteries of Bucovina, and when you come down into its valley and see it for the first time, a squat fortress of white walls and towers with a church inside painted from eaves to plinth in deep greens, reds and blues, it stops you in your tracks. It was built in the 1580s and 1590s by the Movilă family, princes and churchmen of Moldavia, and its frescoes are among the best preserved of all the painted churches. UNESCO groups it with seven others as the churches of Moldavia.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Churches of Moldavia is where the day begins. Next is Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster.
2. Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster
Moldovița is the monastery that makes people go quiet in the courtyard. It sits in a green pocket of the Bukovina hills, ringed by a stout defensive wall with corner towers, and inside it the Church of the Annunciation is painted from the ground to the eaves with saints, prophets and battle scenes in blues, reds and ochres that have survived some five centuries of Carpathian weather. It was founded in the time of Petru Rareș, in the 1530s, and it belongs to the famous group of painted churches of northern Moldavia that UNESCO lists together.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster comes up about 36 km into the recorded legs. Next is Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of.
3. Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of
The painted monasteries of Bukovina are among the most extraordinary buildings in Europe, and the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin at Humor, just outside Gura Humorului in north-eastern Romania, is one of the finest. Built in 1530 and painted inside and out a few years later, it belongs to the group of churches that were inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1993. The outer walls are covered with frescoes in rich shades of red and brown, telling biblical stories and lives of saints to people who could not read.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 77 km into the recorded legs you reach Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of. Next is back through Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster.
4. back through Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Churches of Moldavia. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Churches of Moldavia to Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster
Churches of Moldavia → Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster is 36 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster to Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of
Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster → Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of to back through Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster
Church of the Assumption of the Virgin of → back through Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster is 41 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster to Churches of Moldavia
back through Church of the Annunciation of the Monaster → Churches of Moldavia is 36 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.