Towering and imposing like a citadel, the Ciucas entwines harmoniously the rough rocks chiseled by wind and weather with colorful meadows and rich beech and spruce forests. With crests wrapped by clouds and covered by snow until late April or May, the massif gives you that feeling of freedom that springs from the calm and tranquility of heights. This world of stone colossus with bizarre shapes hides irresistible beauties, the Ciucas alluring you with that certain charm of massifs that keep mysteries.  

Although it is not very massive and it stretches on a relatively limited area, the mountain is always a different one, changing its appearance each season. In spring, the rich blueberry bushes wait for their tasters, and in summer everything is in peony’s pink, purple and cherry-colored nuances; then the fire leaves of autumn adorn the forest until the first shiny snow cover lays down. In Ciucas, nature has kept its wild side; you will not find many accommodation units on the mountain, but the plateau has some spots perfect for camping. A mountain hike at the end of which you admire a delightful sunset near a campfire might be the perfect choice for your holiday.

In the Ciucas mountains area the locals have kept an old legend that they share with tourists even nowadays. They say that a shepherd only saw his wife when he came down from the mountains with the sheep. In order to calm her longing, the woman went after him, but the weather was averse. On the road, she met with an old man who told her to go back, but she didn’t listen to him. When the storm began, the same old man told her to go back, but she continued walking. Eventually, there was thunder and lightning, and the woman was turned to stone. When the storm stopped, the shepherd recognized his wife in the rock and began singing from his pipe to ease his sorrow. Then, from the eyes of the woman turned to stone, tears started falling. The legend says that from that place springs Tarlungul, the Western limit of the Ciucas Mountains.

 

The stoned beauties of Ciucas

Ciucas is a web of delightful landscapes through which, along time, mountain lovers have pounded the trails. Above these, in the heart of the massif, imposing cliffs rise with different shapes, true geo-botanic natural reservations. These shelter a large variety of plant species (edelweiss, juniper, sweet William-carnation, mountain irises) and animals (black goat, wildcat, golden eagle.)

Viewed from a distance, The Big and The Small Pans, The Devil’s Hand, The Crones In Counsel, Goliath’s Tower or The Red Mountain seem citadel crenels which, as you get closer to them, look more and more like huge stone towers and mushrooms, surrounded at their feet by scree. The traveler may perceive different creatures in these shapes, among which doves, a hawk’s head or a lizard. Formed due to the action of external agents, Goliath’s Tower constitutes one of the most known natural attractions from Ciucas and represents an extremely picturesque landscape.

From the height of peak Ciucas (1954 m), the view to Tara Barsei is grand, revealing the Mountains Bucegi, Buzaului and Vrancei, which display their rocky steep. The look goes down to the mild valleys with winding paths that reach Cheia resort, a place where you can regain your strength for another mountain hike.

 

 

Relaxing in massif Ciucas area

If you plan a longer holiday in the Ciucas Mountains area, you may stay at the bottom of the mountain, in Cheia resort, and in the chalets on the massif. Situated on Teleajenului Valley, in Maneciu village, Cheia is a resort founded around an old place of worship. Warded by mountainous ridges and combining the quiet and fresh air of the heights, it offers the favorable setting for a relaxing stay; also, the resort enables the practice of winter sports, being a point of departure for different mountain routes. Nearby there are Cheia Monastery, a testimony of traditional mountainous architectural style, and The Museum of Mine Flowers, where there are exhibited different species of quartz extracted from the depth of the Earth.

In order to enjoy the unique landscapes, we recommend the chalets on the massif. In the Red Mountain Touristic Complex you fill find a welcoming space for accommodation made from chalets and a camping area, where the hosts will greet you with happiness and traditional dishes. Being an outlook point sought by tourists, the chalet reveals amazing landscapes, and offers various opportunities for entertainment. At the intersection of numerous paths that cross Ciucas, facilitating hikes on the highest part of the mountain, awaits Ciucas chalet, at 1595m altitude. Having the aspect of a complex unit of accommodation, resembling a hotel, the chalet awaits tourists eager to have a relaxing holiday or a holiday full of the adrenaline of covering the paths of the mountain.

 

 

Explore the Ciucas Mountains

The picturesque landscapes from Ciucas, dominated by imposing rocks, give you a feeling of liberty that you can only know by conquering the heights. Even though it doesn’t have high altitudes or clear lakes to reflect the crests, Ciucas compensates through charming landscapes and the forests’ peace, whose quiet is only shattered by the bird songs. To benefit from these, we recommend several routes during which you can admire all the mountain’s beauties.

The route Cheia resort - The Valley of the Beer - Ciucas Chalet (3h- 3½h, medium difficulty). Special equipment is not mandatory; the route goes through the vicinity of the fountain Nicolae Ioan, and with this occasion you can quench your thirst and it  leads right past a sheepfold, where you will find a place to rest and you will enjoy  shepherd stories.

The route Ciucas Chalet - Ciucas Peak – The Pans’ Saddle - Ciucas Chalet (2½h– 3h, low difficulty). The difference of level of 350 m is traveled through rocks until the base of the Pans, from which you have a wonderful bird’s-eye view of the Chirusca Valley. From the Ciucas Peak, the landscape opens even more on The Philanderer’s Stone, Tarcau and Nemira.

The route Ciucas Chalet – Gropsoarele Saddle – The Sheepfold’s Saddleback – The Thief’s Spring – Ciucas Chalet (3h- 3½h, low difficulty). The trail unfolds relatively easy, with steeper slopes in some parts, on the crest and paths, until Gropsoarele Saddle. From here, you may observe, on a distant plane, Vrancei and Penteleul Mountains. You may go down a bit to a clear mountainous spring, until Sheepfold’s Valley, a place with natural surprising views. Then you may climb through meadows and clusters of forest until under the crest The Milk’s Rock, from which you may observe the peaks Ciucas and the Big Pans.

The route Ciucas Chalet – The Pans’ Saddle – Babarnuca Valley – Babarnuca Chalet (3½h - 4h, medium difficulty). Babarnuca’s Valley constitutes an inviting place for rest, the chalets from this ares offering you a lovely stay in the heart of the mountain.

The route Cheia resort – The Crest of the Buzaian - Zaganul – Gropsoarele - The Rocky Crest - Ciucas Chalet (6-8h, medium difficulty), bumpy here and there, but very varied; it requires a sense of orientation on the mountain and a proper physical condition.

 

 

Also, from Cheia you may go to Tabla Butii, a border point between Transylvania and Muntenia. Here there is a medieval citadel from the 13th century, mentioned in documents under the name of “Cruceberg” or “Buzau’s Citadel”. Damaged by the Tartar’s invasions, the citadel was reconstructed by the order of the Austrian General Heissler in 1689. Afterwards, along with moving the Transylvanian customs to Buzau’s Customs, the place lost its military and economic significance. Nearby there is also a cemetery of the heroes who fell during the First World War.

Framed by valleys and depression corridors, sheltering small terraces, grasslands and meadows, the Ciucas massif distinguishes itself through the mild crests ruled by the stone colossuses. Along the routes, the mountain lets you discover its mysteries, fall in love with its quiet and with the freedom you come to know by following its paths. Always different, but constant in its greatness, the Ciucas allures you without any doubt every time you seek inner peace.

[An article written by Andreea Bertea]