DESCRIPTION

Trail: Bratca – Bratcuței Valley – VALEA MARE – Runcușorului Valley – DJ 7560 – Prislop – Zece Hotare – Fățoaia – Şuncuiuș – Bratca

From the center of Bratca village follow the signs to Tabăra Bratca (Bratca Camp), enter Valea Brătcuței (Brătcuței Valley), pass the camp and continue upstream for over 10 km. Along the way you will cross several secondary roads descending from the right or from the left, but our route continues climbing straight ahead on Valea Brătcuței, which later changes into Valea Mare, following the most visible road. The road disappears upstream, at the high end of the valley, and is replaced by a dirt road bathed by a creek. Soon the road will climb the steep hillside to your left, into the glade above. From here on, the road mostly follows the contour line, makes a right and enters a glade in a col (saddle) where a house is located. Go slightly to the left in front of the house and follow the dirt road to the forest line. We don’t recommend taking this dirt road through the forest (the one that follows the contour line), as it quickly exits into a deforested area. Instead, turn right at the entrance to the forest onto the very faint, barely visible dirt road that drops down into Valea Runcșorului (Runcșorului Valley).

From here, follow the road that runs along the river, exiting into DJ 7640 and descending to the intersection towards Zece Hotare. Follow the winding gravel road in a smooth uphill segment and turn right at the first crossroads at the top of the hill, towards Zece Hotare. Go left at the next intersection (the road to the right goes into Mișid Valley) and after a short climb you can see the first houses of Zece Hotare hamlet. Make a right at the next intersection, climb a short slope and follow the road to the right; a steep descent follows. Turn left past the first house, through a small grove. The descent is sharp and at the bottom it meets the main road of the village, where you need to turn right. It’s not until you begin a continuous climb towards Fățoaia. Follow the road to the hamlet ignoring the secondary roads on the left and on the right and descend sharply into Valea Făgetului (Făgetului Valley), where you need to make a final effort climbing a few more hundred meters, followed by the final long descent to Șuncuiuș. In Șuncuiuș you can either take a Regio or InterRegio train to Bratca, or follow the road uphill through Bălnaca then down to Bratca.

Challenges:

DETAILS

Length: 40 km
Duration: 7 hours
Difficulty: difficult
Trail type: cycling tourism
Total elevation gain: 800 m
Surface: asphalt, gravel road, dirt road, concrete road

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