Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia and Voislova - Gara CFR
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
357 km
Riding-time estimate
6 h 57
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 Orăştioara de Sus it runs 357 km to Orăştioara de Sus; allow about 6 h 57 of riding. It goes by way of Vețel - Micia / Grădiște, Voislova - Gara CFR and back through Vețel - Micia / Grădiște. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 1,200 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia
Sarmizegetusa Regia was the capital of the Dacian kings, built high in the Orăștie mountains in the first century BC and the first century AD, and it is one of the most atmospheric ruins in Europe. A fortress of stone blocks, a sacred precinct of circular and rectangular temples, and terraces for houses and workshops were laid out on a series of platforms among beech forest, at an altitude of around 1,200 metres. The sanctuary is the star, with rings of stone bases and wooden posts, and a large circular platform of andesite stones that may have worked as a calendar or a place for ritual. Cut stones and finely made tiles show Greek and Roman influence.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia is where the day begins. Next is Vețel - Micia / Grădiște.
2. Vețel - Micia / Grădiște
The Mureș flows west across Transylvania towards Hungary, and near the village of Vețel, just west of Deva, the Romans built one of the most important forts in their province of Dacia. Micia guarded the river and the road along the valley, the main route between Transylvania and the Pannonian plain, and around the fort grew a large civil settlement with baths, temples and an amphitheatre. Excavations have revealed much of it, though part of the site lies under a power station built in the twentieth century.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Vețel - Micia / Grădiște comes up about 76 km into the recorded legs. Next is Voislova - Gara CFR.
3. Voislova - Gara CFR
The Bistra valley is a natural corridor, and armies have known it for millennia. Running east from Caransebeș toward the Iron Gate of Transylvania and the Hațeg basin, it was the route by which Trajan's legions advanced on the Dacian heartland in the wars of AD 101 to 106, and later the road that linked Roman forts and towns along the way. Near the village of Voislova, by the railway station, the remains of a Roman site have been identified as counted within the UNESCO serial site of the Dacian frontier, a reminder of how important this valley was to the Roman presence in the province.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia to Vețel - Micia / Grădiște
Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia → Vețel - Micia / Grădiște is 76 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Vețel - Micia / Grădiște to Voislova - Gara CFR
Vețel - Micia / Grădiște → Voislova - Gara CFR is 103 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Voislova - Gara CFR to back through Vețel - Micia / Grădiște
Voislova - Gara CFR → back through Vețel - Micia / Grădiște is 100 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Vețel - Micia / Grădiște to Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia
back through Vețel - Micia / Grădiște → Grădiștea de Munte - Sarmizegetusa Regia is 79 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.