07-18 Transylvania, Romania

[doug]

After the HU meet, Poly & I took off for Romania for a short vacation.
We had planned to go to a bike party in Gheorgheni, about 550km north from here, but her battery died at the border,
so we had to get the bike restarted (ever try to bump start a Tenere?....dont!)
We got a jump from a local bike rider, & he took us to the town & we found a battery.
Buy the time the battery was charged & installed, we had lost a couple of hours, so we decided to go to visit some friends in
Bucharest, & then go play in the Carpathians for a few days.
We stayed with our friends Paul & Felicia, & Bogdan & Dragos came over for a BBQ. Took us forever to get to his house, as bucharest sucks. bad.
the traffic is crazy. My bike got hot, & it finally just stopped. I had to let it cool off for a bit.
The next morning, we headed to Curte de Argus, the south end of the Transfagarasan pass, the highest paved road in the mountains.
We got a room for the night, & headed up in the morning.

the castle over Poly's shoulder was the home of Vlad Tepes, who some people think was the real dracula. I know better, but its still
a cool story.

Id been up to the castle a couple times, but she hadnt. So she went up to see it.






even outside bucharest there is traffic

[doug]

I'd been over this road before, but earlier in the year. As it was a weekend, MANY people who wanted out of the city were camping.
Now there was even traffic here!
But it wasnt as bad.
Up we go!

part way up is a damn big dam, with a big lake








close to the top, theres a waterfall, with vendors selling food & drinks.

This lady assured me the cheese was made fresh with the milk from her tit.
She gave me a sample. it was rather salty.





This lady also was into cheesemaking. I think she was storing some cheese in her shirt to keep it warm?

[doug]

then we went thru a 1km tunnel at the top. the south side was sunny, the north side was a bit cloudy.
it was also full of people & vendors selling stuff.
Poly tried out a new helmet

[doug]

We got to Sibiu, & found a rare delicacy!


then we went to the old town, but didnt stay long. This hurch was where Vlad the Impaler's son was killed, after
only being a ruler for a few years.
His nickname was 'the bad' I wonder how bad you have to be, if your dad was 'the impaler'
he musta been a real sumbitch to be 'the bad' Anyhow, he was killed while attending a service hre, & is buried behind it.




Our friend Alex had told us of a 'shortcut' to Sugac, at the south end of the Transalpina pass. He was on an enduro bike,
but we tried it anyhow.
Very small roads thru the countryside, with many small villages. Not many tourists come thru here, & even less on harleys.
the people were sorta freaked out. ok, the bike WAS a bit loud rumbling thru the narrow streets. Poly rode behind me, & told me
stories of how people reacted. Old ladies covering their ears, windows flying open to see what was going on, animals running amok.
Big Fun!
And the kids kept running up trying to give me a high five as I passed.

[doug]

even the harley didnt help to wake up this drunk guy tho











this town is called polani sibiuiu or something like that. It was strange, a big village, full of big fancy houses, with the windows
all covered up. no stores, restaurants or hotels, & very few people out.
I told Poly it may be fulla vampires.
we left.




the last 12km to Sugoc, the pavement ended, & the road dropped 3000 feet. on dirt. with hairpin turns all the way down.
It was big fun. Im just glad it was dry!

[doug]

We spent the night in Sugoc, & the next morning, headed south over the transalpina pass.
This is the highest road in the mountains, & unpaved.
They are working on paving it tho, so it was on my list of things to do before it got paved.
Im pretty sure I am the only idiot to ride a rigid handshift harley over it.
I had no idea what to expect.

Heading out the pavement was nice for a bit, then just ended. many logging trucks use this road, which can make it a bit 'interesting'
It really wasnt that bad tho. we kept climbing (its about 120km to the other side) and its sort of like russian road building. they dont
start at one end, they sort of pave randomly, dirt, then some pavement, then more dirt.



at one of the dams heading up


the next dam had 2 roads, wasnt sure which one to take, but I chose wisely
the GPS said there was no road up here


the construction zones were the worst parts, the hard packed gravel wasnt so bad





theres a small viiage about a 3rd of the way, we stopped for lunch.
After this, there is a fork. theres a road west to the main road, but thats not the transalpina. The TA had a sign that said 'road closed'
but we went anyhow.

puppies at the junction

[doug]

We met a guy from RO on a transalp, Peter. he decided to ride up with us.
then it got interesting.

this muddy hill was fun. the bike got about 1/2 way, then the tire was spinning, & I was stuck. I had to back down, & go uo along
the road, on the rocks



it was full of muddy uphill hairpins. I didnt stop to take pics much, as it would have been bad to lose momentum







and more construction





and mud

[doug]

we finally got above the tree line, & there was some pavement off & on for a few KM's. nice fresh pavement!
it didnt last long tho, for 15-20km along the ridge, it was gravel again.













this part was a bit hairy. they had just dumped loads of rock for a road base, & sort of smoothed it, but were still working on packing it.
the rocks were golfball to baseball sized. these were uphill hairpins, & not the easiest to navigate.
The bike was sideways a few times, I was just sliding one of my feet & nailing the gas.
I wish I could have filmed it!

[doug]

finally, we reached the top!





then there was pavement, all the way to the bottom. fresh, perfect pavement.
Along the way was a brand new ski resort, many hotels being built. I guess thats why they were paving it.
When this road is finished, it will be the best biking road in europe. I cant wait to try it again



on the way down, my rear brake went out. not fun!
so I went slow til I got to a village, & stopped at a repair shop. I thought I had lost fluid, but it turns out I had just gotten
it too hot.

The people at the shop were amazed that I had ridden this bike over the pass.









It was an uneventful ride back to Bulgaria, but a bit hot!

[browder]

HA--you got those KFC's programed in that GPS er what??

[doug]

hahaha
no, we just got lucky!

[doug]

couple of short videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_naeTaqH3o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXfV89PBfcU

[raketenjupp]

I sell my KTM and buy a Harley to go offroad