The Apuseni are part of the Western Carpathians and comprise a variety of geographical forms, beautiful landscapes and traditional livelihoods. They can be included among some well-known attractions of Romania – The Danube Delta, Bucovina, Maramureº or Prahova Valley.
What makes them special are the unique limestone phenomena, the local people who inhabit them and their lifestyle, as well as the extraordinary mixture between these two: human beings and nature. Together, they give birth to unexpected sights and when you have understood enough of its spirit, will stir new emotions in you.
We like to believe that exploring the Apuseni is a spiritual experience that uncovers gradually and probably never reaches an end. Most of the people who chose to have a taste of this experience came back as often as they could, like children craving to return to their favourite playground. If you are open enough to enter this magical world, its deep and significant simplicity will leave important marks in your mind and soul.
Although the highest peak is only 1848m (Cucurbata Peak) the attraction consists in a unique combination of wildness and rural civilisation, the Apuseni Mountains beeing characterized by picturesque landscapes with houses and hay piles scaterred on the most often karstic plateaus, many of them split by wild gorges.

Getting There

Located in the Western part of Romania (as their name suggests – “apus” in Romanian means “sunset”), within a small distance from Oradea, the Apuseni Mountains can be reached by car on European roads (E60 and E70), and then by following several county roads that will take you even closer. They are also accessible by train, on the railroad linking Oradea to Cluj-Napoca, Cluj Napoca-Alba Iulia, Alba Iulia-Deva-Arad.

Red Tape

The climate, influenced by the geographical position and relief features (similar to a westwards amphitheatre) is mild temperate-continental. The air temperature presents high radiations from west to east (10-11 0C the average annual temperature in the plain areas and 2-7 0C the average annual temperature in the mountain regions). The rainfalls are influenced by the same factors, the quantity is more abundant at high altitudes.

Camping

Chalets in the Apuseni Mountains:

Cetatile Ponorului Chalet(1079m):
Is located near the entrance in the Fortress of Ponor Circuit, the Gorges of Galbena Circuit, the karstic plateau the LostWorld, the Ponor Glade and the Caput Cave.
The chalet has 40 accommodation places, in room of 2-4 beds (3 rooms) and 5-10 beds (2 rooms), which costs 10 EUR/day/person. The Fortress of Ponor Chalet has electricity, cold and warm water (2 bathrooms with wash-hand basin, shower and water closet), a restaurant, a place for barbecue and camp fire.
Tel: +040740-104838 / +040788-343775

Camping and Padis chalet(1000m):
The camping is located on the forest road Huedin-Rachitele-Doda Pilii-Ic Ponor- Padis. It has 50 accommodation places, in the chalet and bungalows with rooms of 2-4 beds, which costs 350.000lei/day (room and board). The camping has electricity, cold and warm water (2 bathrooms with wash-hand basin, shower and water closet), a place for barbecue and camp fire.

Vladeasa chalet(1430m):
The chalet has 30 accommodation places and a restaurant.
Tel: +040743-062378

External Links

www.alpinet.org
Definetely the best site about Romanian Mountains - Carpathians United !

Routes

1. Vârtop Pass - Piatra Graitoare Peak - Curcubata Mare or Biharea-1849m) - Gaina Peak
The red band from Vartop Pass starts together with red triangle for about 1km on forestry road. Then the red band turns left going up till Piatra Graitoare Peak (1658m). Large view from Graitoarea Peak in every directions. The route Curcubata Peak - Gaina peak is marked partially.

2. Arieseni Village - Cornul Berbecului Peak - Piatra Graitoare Peak (1658m) - Curcubata Mare (1849m)

3. Arieseni Village - Cepelor Valley - Curcubata Mare (1849m)
Marked with blue band; 12 km distance, forestry road.

4. Cristiorul de Jos Village - Taul Mare Lake- Curcubata Mare (1849m)
Marked with blue band; 18km distance.
From Cristiorul de Jos you can reach also Gaina Peak, following a forestry road (29km).

5. Bucinis Valley - Snide Hamlet - Iarba Rea Hamlet - Curcubata Mica Peak - Bihor (Curcubata Mare or Biharea-1849m) Peak
No touristic marking. A yellow circle appear between Snide and Iarba Rea

Flora and Fauna

The flora and fauna reflect the climatical variations conditioned by the vertical display of the relief. Starting from the highest altitudes towards the plain, one can find: coniferous forests (spruce and fir trees) together with bilberry bushes, then dedidous forests (beech, hornbeam, elm, ever green oak and oak). In the plain areas, the evergreen oak and common oak forests alternate with the agricultural fields and secondary grasslands.
In the regions with mountains or plains, the charm of the forests is enhanced by some rare species (in the dendrological parks from Bale, Cadea, Valea lui Mihai) or by the picturesque of the glades with hay or pasture lands (wild daffodils glade - narcissus stellaris).
Species important for hunting live in the plain, hill and mountain forests: pheasant, capercaillie, hare, deer, wild boar, marten, stag, bear, lynx etc. In the rivers and lakes situated in Bihor County, various fish can be encountered: trout (in the mountains areas), chub, carp and pike (in the hill and plain regions).

Hydrographic Network

The main rivers in Bihor County belong to the hydrographic basins of Crisul Repede, Crisul Negru, Barcau and Jer Rivers. Crisul Negru (144 km in length) springs from the Bihorului Mountains and crosses the Beius Depression and the Western Plain. Crisul Repede (148 km in length) has its springs in the Cluj County and, once it enters the Bihor County, crosses part of a narrow path culminating between Suncuius and Vadul Crisului; the same river crosses the Borodului Depression and the Western Plain. The Collecting Channel (55 km in length) connects the two Cris Rivers between Tamasda and Tarian. The Barcau River (118 km in length) reaches Bihor in the depression from Suplacu de Barcau and goes towards the Western Plain and the Hungarian frontier. The Jer River (107 km in length) is the most important tributary of the Barcau; the Jer crosses the Western Plain and it required many damming works.
The number of the natural lakes decreased after the drainage of the Western Plain. It is also a result of the regularization, damming, draining and channeling works (Snakes Lake and Sulphur Lake near Salonta). Here can be added the antrophic lakes created for the regularization of some watercourses (Curtuiuseni, Vasad, Simian, Galospetreu, Valea lui Mihai, Cadea, lanca, Gepiu) or the dam lakes from Lesu (on the ladei Valley), Tileagd (Crisul Repede) on the Vida Valley with an excellent touristic and leisure potential. The lakes from Cefa, Madaras, Homorog or Tamasda have pisci-cultural potential.
The Peta Lake (thermal water) is situated near the Baile Felix and 1 Mai spas. This lake hosts the lotus (Nymphaea lotus var. thermalis), a protected species.

Tourist attractions

The Fortress of Ponor Karst Complex

Scărişoara Glacier Cave

Is found at 1165 m altitude, at the edge of the Scărişoara karst plateau. The total length of the cave is 720 m, with a 105 m depth. Access is done through a 48 m deep and 60 m wide pothole. At its base is the actual entrance of the cave, giving access to a huge hall, called the Big Hall, with a 47 m diameter and continuing towards NW with two other halls one after the other: the Small Hall and the Church. In the Southern part of the Big Hall is the 15 m wide and 7 m high entrance of the Maxim Pop Gallery, descending 68 m and continuing with the Large Reserve of the cave. From here, one can climb to the Cathedral, with beautiful deposits and no ice. From here, through a small window, the Coman Gallery can be reached, which is the warmest sector of the cave (+5oC) and also without ice, but rich in calcite concretions. Also from the Big Hall one can access the Small Reserve of the cave, by descending a 14 m tall ice front. In the NE sector of the Small Reserve is the Sânziana Palace, with concretions. The ice block in the cave has a volume of 75.000 m3 and an average thickness of 16 m, and is located mostly in the Big Hall. It forms the ground of the Hall, from where it flows into the Large Reserve, the Church and the Small Reserve. In these three halls, at a certain distance from the ice block, ice stalagmites are developing, with variable sizes, from several cm to over 10 m high (in the Church Hall). By contrast to the ice block, which is 3.500 years old (Pop, Ciobanu, 1950), these stalagmites can melt from one year to the other, or even disappear in some periods.

The Fortress of Ponor Karst Complex

The Fortress of Ponor represents without doubt the greatest karst phenomena in Romania, known and appreciated all over the world.
The Fortress of Ponor are made up of three large stone circles, situated in a huge 300 m deep forested depression, its upper diameter surpassing 1 km. The surrounding slopes that encircle the depression are cut only in a single spot, by the Cetăţi valley canyon.
The access trail departs from the forestry road and gradually descends through the forest on rugged terrain, parallel to the Cetăţi valley, until it reaches the so-called Doline I.
The 150 m lateral stone wall in the West is perforated by an over 70 m cave portal, in which the Cetăţi valley flows.
The giant portal of the Fortress of Ponor suggests a gothical ogive that became a sort of symbol for the Apuseni Mountains karst. The spruce trees that are hanging in the stone walls are the only comparison term for the great size of the portal and of the wall into which it is carved. To the left, the upper part of an even higher stone wall is seen, surrounding Doline III, with the two wooden balconies hanging over the precipice.
In the right side of the portal, a spit of scree ascends through under an arcade into Doline II. This is actually a 200 m deep circular pothole, having two windows at its base: one represents the access to the Doline I under the portal, while the other opens to the underground tunnel of the cave system.
Also under the portal, to the left, the flooded tunnel brings to the light only for a short while the waters originating in the Lost World plateau which flow underground in Căput cave.
Doline III is reachable through Doline I, after climbing the metal stairs from the left side of the portal and surpassing the stone edge that separates the two dolines. Doline III has a triangle shape with a 300 m long margin, in the middle of which scree slopes descend towards another cave portal. To its left side, above the access gallery into the subterranean sector, there is a vertical stone wall over 200 m high, with small vegetated edges. In the Southern part, the tourist trail climbs on the steep slope of a torrential valley towards the balconies.
The four wooden balconies (two above Doline III, and two above Doline II) allow the contemplation of the sizes of the impressive karst system of the Fortress of Ponor.

The Living Fire ice cave

The Living Fire ice cave contains the third largest permanent underground fossil ice block in the country (after the Scărişoara ice cave and Borţig pothole, also situated in the Apuseni Nature Park), having a volume of approximately 25.000 m3. It is a small cave, comprised of two halls, of which the first is larger and shelters the ice block. Its ceiling is pierced by a large window through which logs, leaves and snow from the outside fell into the cave in large quantities and accumulated in the center of the hall. Enough light penetrates through the window to reveal the groups of ice stalagmites that formed on the opposite side of the cave entrance.
Around noon, the sunlight enters directly through the ceiling window creating an amazing setting. One of the ice block margins leads into a steep crevasse near the stone wall. The explanation for the existence of the ice block inside the cave is given that the broken ceiling favors the accumulation of the cold air which is maintained captive by the lack of ventilation.
The visiting of the site is permitted until the wooden balcony at the entrance, allowing the observer to see all the above described phenomena.

Mountain & Cave Rescue Info

The Bihor County Mountain and Cave Rescue Public Service
Headquarters: Sovata street no. 34/A, 410290 Oradea, Bihor County
Contact: tel/fax +40-359-436022; cell +0724-212588, +0744-185081
Website: http://salvamontbihor.lx.ro
E-mail: salvamontbihor@yahoo.com

The territory of action: comprises part of the Western Carpathians (the Apuseni Mountains), situated in Bihor county, including a contact area of 10 km between counties (Pădurea Craiului mountains, Bihor-Vlădeasa mountains, Muntele Şes massif, Codru Moma mountains). On the Apuseni Nature Park territory, the Mountain and Cave Rescue team of Bihor county maintains throughout the summer a permanent point of assistance in the Glăvoi camping area (also called "La Grajduri"). This is also a tourist information point. During winter, a permanent point of assistance is located at the base of the ski slope in Vârtop holiday village, near Arieşeni.
Area of work: summer and winter mountain rescues at the surface and from the underground, rescue and recovery operations from aquatic environments by the scuba divers team, safety installations along the tourist trails, assistance on ski slopes and for tourist and sport camps and programs taking place in mountain enviroments, assistance and intervention in disaster and calamity situations, especially aquatic ones, or catastrophes, major accidents etc.
Coordination: The Bihor County Mountain and Cave Rescue Public Service is a structure reestablished in 1995, being included in 1997 as a department of the Bihor County Council. Starting with 1.04.2005, the Bihor County Mountain and Cave Rescue Public Service is coordinated by the Association of Mountain Rescuers of Bihor.