Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii and Sita - Vârful Sitii

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii

   The Meseș mountains, a low, wooded range in north-western Romania, formed a natural barrier for the Roman province of Dacia, and the Romans fortified it with a line of watchtowers, walls and fortlets. Near the village of Treznea, on a hill known as Dealul Mănăstirii, the Monastery Hill, the remains of one of these defences overlook the valleys. It is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire, Dacia, listed by UNESCO in 2024, and a short distance away lies Porolissum, one of the largest Roman settlements in Dacia, with a reconstructed gate and an amphitheatre.

   Read the complete Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii is where the day begins. Next is Rogna - La Bontauă.

2. 2. Rogna - La Bontauă

   Rogna is a scatter of farms in the hills of northern Sălaj, close to the Someș valley and the border with Maramureș, and La Bontauă is the name the locals give to a piece of high ground where a Roman frontier site has been recorded. The northern edge of Roman Dacia ran through these hills, and the Romans placed watchtowers and small forts on high points to keep an eye on the river valleys and the free Dacians to the north. Today there is little to see apart from the shape of the land, but the view over the rolling hills makes it easy to imagine a sentry looking out across the valley.

   Read the complete Rogna - La Bontauă write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Rogna - La Bontauă comes up about 70 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sita - Vârful Sitii.

3. 3. Sita - Vârful Sitii

   On a hilltop near the village of Spermezeu, in the Someș hills of Bistrița-Năsăud county in northern Romania, a small watchtower once stood guard over the northern edge of the Roman Empire. When the emperor Trajan conquered Dacia in the early second century, the Romans built a frontier around their new province, the Dacian limes, a chain of forts, watchtowers and earthworks running along the Carpathians and through the hills. Vârful Sitii, the summit of Sita, was one of the observation points, chosen because from here soldiers could watch the valleys to the north and send signals to the forts behind them.

   Read the complete Sita - Vârful Sitii write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   about 147 km into the recorded legs you reach Sita - Vârful Sitii. Next is back through Rogna - La Bontauă.

4. 4. back through Rogna - La Bontauă

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Rogna - La Bontauă write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through Rogna - La Bontauă, late in the day. Next is Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii.

5. 5. Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Treznea-Dealul Mănăstirii. That is the ride.