Why this ride
From Băiuţ it runs 353 km to Băiuţ; allow about 7 h 49 of riding. The stops in between: Church of the Holy Archangels, Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha, Tihău - Dealul Cucului and Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2. The coast is the point of it.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Strimbu Băiuț and Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 353 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 7 h 49
- 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.
Scenic road chapters
Romania Maramures Wooden Churches Route
For about 49 km this is Romania Maramures Wooden Churches Route, a road with a name of its own and a reason for it — expect company on a summer weekend. Early is better than fast.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 49 km
- Named road
- Romania Maramures Wooden Churches Route
Tihău - Dealul Cucului → Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2
44 km on Tihău - Dealul Cucului → Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 44 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Strimbu Băiuț
Maramureș is a part of Romania where wooden building became an art. The county in the far north, tucked against the Ukrainian border and ringed by forested mountains, has hundreds of timber churches, and eight of them were listed by UNESCO in 1999. The one at Strâmbu, in the Băiuț area, belongs to the Nativity of the Virgin and dates from the eighteenth century, built of oak logs with a steep, double-tiered shingle roof and a tall slender spire. It looks like a church that has learned to float, with a roof that sheds the heavy snow and a tower that reaches for the sky.
Read the complete Strimbu Băiuț write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Strimbu Băiuț is where the day begins. Next is Church of the Holy Archangels.
2. Church of the Holy Archangels
Just outside Baia Mare, where the city gives way to the hills, the countryside of northern Romania begins to show the tradition that made this region famous: churches built entirely of wood, with steep shingled roofs and tall, needle-like spires. Many of them are dedicated to the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel, and this dedication is common across the region, from small village churches to some of the eight Wooden Churches of Maramureș listed by UNESCO in 1999. Surdești and Plopiș, both within a short ride of Baia Mare, are among the finest of those, with spires that seem far too tall for the buildings beneath them.
Read the complete Church of the Holy Archangels write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Church of the Holy Archangels comes up about 49 km into the recorded legs. Next is Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha.
3. Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha
Ileanda is a village in the north of Sălaj county, where the river Someș swings north-west out of the Transylvanian basin through a valley flanked by wooded hills. On the hill called Ciuha, above the village, the Romans had a post on the northern edge of their province of Dacia, one of the watchtowers and forts that guarded the frontier from the second to the third century. The site belongs to the Frontiers of the Roman Empire, Dacia, inscribed by UNESCO in 2024. Do not expect a ruin with walls to wander through: what survives is mostly earthwork and traces in the ground, and the joy lies in the climb and the view rather than the remains.
Read the complete Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 93 km into the recorded legs you reach Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha. Next is Tihău - Dealul Cucului.
4. Tihău - Dealul Cucului
Dealul Cucului means cuckoo hill, and the name fits the place: a low, wooded rise above the village of Tihău, close to the town of Jibou in the Someș valley of Sălaj county, where in spring the cuckoo's call echoes across the meadows. The point belongs to the network of archaeological sites along the Roman frontier of Dacia in the northwest of the province, near the confluence of the Almaș and Someș rivers, a strategic spot where valleys meet and roads cross. As with many of these sites, there may be little to see on the surface, but the location makes sense once you look at the map.
Read the complete Tihău - Dealul Cucului write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Tihău - Dealul Cucului, about halfway. Next is Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2.
5. Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2
Treznea is a small village in the hills of Sălaj county, eleven kilometres east of Zalău, and its name carries a heavy weight in Romanian history. In September 1940, after northern Transylvania was transferred to Hungary by the Second Vienna Award, Hungarian troops entering the region killed scores of villagers here, Romanians and Jews, in one of the worst atrocities of that time. A memorial in the village remembers the victims. It is a sobering reminder that these quiet hills have seen terrible violence, and a short, respectful stop at the memorial is worth more than any viewpoint on the ride.
Read the complete Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2 sits at 155 km, about halfway. Next is back through Tihău - Dealul Cucului.
6. back through Tihău - Dealul Cucului
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Tihău - Dealul Cucului write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Tihău - Dealul Cucului comes up about 220 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha.
7. back through Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 258 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha. Next is back through Church of the Holy Archangels.
8. back through Church of the Holy Archangels
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Church of the Holy Archangels write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Church of the Holy Archangels, late in the day. Next is Strimbu Băiuț.
9. Strimbu Băiuț
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Strimbu Băiuț write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 353 km.
Leg by leg
Strimbu Băiuț to Church of the Holy Archangels
Strimbu Băiuț → Church of the Holy Archangels is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Church of the Holy Archangels to Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha
Church of the Holy Archangels → Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha is 44 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha to Tihău - Dealul Cucului
Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha → Tihău - Dealul Cucului is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Tihău - Dealul Cucului to Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2
Tihău - Dealul Cucului → Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2 is 44 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2 to back through Tihău - Dealul Cucului
Treznea-Coasta Ciungii 2 → back through Tihău - Dealul Cucului is 44 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Tihău - Dealul Cucului to back through Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha
back through Tihău - Dealul Cucului → back through Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha to back through Church of the Holy Archangels
back through Ileanda - Dealul Ciuha → back through Church of the Holy Archangels is 45 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Church of the Holy Archangels to Strimbu Băiuț
back through Church of the Holy Archangels → Strimbu Băiuț is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.