Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2 and Spermezeu - Lazuri

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2

   Above the valley of the Someș Mare in Bistrița-Năsăud county, the hill called Dealul Podului carries the faint remains of a Roman watch post, one of a string of small installations that kept an eye on the northern edge of the province of Dacia. Like many points on this frontier, inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2024, it is less a monument than a viewpoint with a story, a place where soldiers once scanned the horizon for movement in the free lands to the north. Today the horizon holds forested ridges, orchards and villages strung along the river.

   Read the complete Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2 is where the day begins. Next is Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal.

2. 2. Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal

   A Roman cavalry regiment kept its horses near the village of Ilișua, in the hills of northern Transylvania, for most of the time the province of Dacia existed. The fort, which modern archaeologists link with the ancient name Arcobara, was a large stone camp on the northern frontier, and its remains have been excavated over the years. It is part of the frontier of Roman Dacia listed by UNESCO in 2024. Today the site is a field with low walls and grassy mounds, and the neighbouring villages of Uriu, Cristeștii Ciceului and Braniștea go about their business around it.

   Read the complete Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal comes up about 19 km into the recorded legs. Next is Spermezeu - Lazuri.

3. 3. Spermezeu - Lazuri

   Spermezeu is a village in the hilly country of western Bistriţa-Năsăud county, in northern Transylvania, where low ridges covered with orchards, hayfields and beech woods roll between the Someş valley and the Ţibleş mountains. The site called Spermezeu - Lazuri belongs to the series of places along the northern edge of the Roman province of Dacia, part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire listed in Romania in 2024. Here the Romans watched the border with watchtowers and small fortifications on hilltops, and though little remains above ground, the commanding views explain why these spots were chosen.

   Read the complete Spermezeu - Lazuri write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   about 38 km into the recorded legs you reach Spermezeu - Lazuri. Next is back through Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal.

4. 4. back through Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through Ilișua - Arcobara / Vicinal, late in the day. Next is Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2.

5. 5. Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Dumbrăveni - Dealul Podului 2. That is the ride.