Făgărași Ridge in two days

Făgărași Mountains is the most massive and the highest massif of the Romanian Carpathian Mountains. Its ridge trail is probably the most famous mountain hiking route of the Romanian Carpathians. It measures about 90 km, with over 6000 m accumulated elevation gain. The length and the altitude gain do not seem too extreme as a mountain ultra-marathon route, but the rocky trails that include a few rock climbing sections and the fact that around 70% of the route is above 2000 m altitude, makes it more difficult than it looks on paper.

A classical view towards Negoiu Peak (2535m) and Călțun lake from the ascent to Lăițel Peak

Every serious hiker or trail runner in Romania and many from abroad attempt to cover the whole length of the ridge route. The classical route starts at the West end in Turnu Roșu Village, or a bit higher by the Turnu Roșu Monastery where the tarmac road ends. This is the place where we started our speed hike/trail run. The end of the route is at Rudarița, a forest cabin, deep in a valley at the end of a forest road by the eastern end of the ridge.

My first attempt to speed-hike the ridge in 3-4 days with my good friend Nic, was in September 1994... However after a good first day we had to abandon the plan as during the following night the mountains got covered in a thick snow layer...

This time I was luckier with good stable autumn weather. Mihai, my companion planned this route in great detail, calculating the times and carefully pinpointing the locations of the water sources along the ridge. We followed the official ridge route from West to East - the classical direction. The western half of the ridge is more technical, with more rocky sections. The last 20-30km on the eastern side have much more gentle gradients and wide grassy mountain faces.

The plan was to do it in two days, speed-hiking and running around 12 hours every day and we managed to stick to the plan very well. We only had a 40 minutes delay on the last day, of which 20 minutes can be attributed to getting lost in the thick forest on the last descent.

We covered the 35 km of the first day in just a bit over 11 hours. The rocky terrain meant that the progress was quite slow, but we have planned for this.

We did an overnight stop at Bâlea Chalet/Hotel, which is conveniently located around the middle point of the route technically speaking. The Chalet is located just by the Transfăgărășan Road, an alpine road that crosses the mountains. This means that even thought the chalet is located high in the mountains, it offers the full comfort of a 2-3 star hotel. So we had a good warm shower, a good sleep, a plentiful dinner and a good breakfast.

Second day we had a 55km route that we covered in less than 13 hours. The start was slow due to the rocky terrain, but the last half of the day had great "runnable" trails on grassy alpine meadows.

On the grassy gentle slopes of the eastern section of the ridge

We used mountain/trail running equipment, including hiking poles. The running rucksacks weighted just 4-5 kg at start, including the water. The unusually warm and dry weather meant that we did not have to carry heavy and warm clothes. We had some warm clothes - woolen shirt, rain/wind jackets, gloves, long trousers, etc. but we hardly needed them. It is worth noticing that the weather can be very unpredictable up there and that it can snow at any time of the year. However, autumn is the most likely time of the year to have a few sunny stable weather days in a row, as we had.

How do we measure with others? We did not aim to set any record. The target was to complete it safely it in two daytime stages... and we just did that! Under 24 hours (11+13) of hiking, plus a night break is not a bad performance. 

Average hikers do it in 6-7 days, often carrying heavy rucksack with tents and lots of equipment. Good hikers with lighter rucksacks including sleeping bags (for sleeping in mountain refuge huts) do it in 3-4 days. Fastest hikers manage to just do it in two days. Best trail runners, usually with the help of a support team supplying them with water and food in 2-3 places along the ridge can do it in one go.

What is the record? Well, almost twice as fast:

Fastest known time on Făgăraș Ridge:

2020 Sept 5: Mitrică Leonard and Andrei-Gabriel Preda 
12:34:26
https://www.strava.com/activities/4016557859

Previous records:

2019 Oct 19: Robert Hajnal: 

12:41:50 
https://www.strava.com/activities/2801053446

2015 July 13: Silviu Bălan: 

13:18:50
https://www.strava.com/activities/345006193

Previous record attempts are mentioned here:

http://alerg.ro/fkt-hajnal-pe-creasta-fagarasului.html 

Could I do it faster? Maybe in one go? Yes... but not sure I want to do it. Now that we know the route better, we could optimise it, with fewer detours to water sources, no photography stops, better training and physical preparation... 

Here are my two days as recorded by Strava:

• Day 1: https://www.strava.com/activities/4092445466
• Day 2: https://www.strava.com/activities/4097914887

And the consolidated GPS track:

Here are more photos taken during the two days. All taken with an average phone. As I tried to minimise the weight of the gear, I did not take a serious photo camera with me. However the fully automated mode (including auto HDR did a decent job. Only minimal post-processing adjustments were needed)

Out of the Forest on the ascent to the peaks

Avrig Lake

Custura Sărății - the most technical section of the ridge

Looks scarier than it is. On dry weather with good shoes it is quite safe!

Descending on Custura Sărății

Negoiu Peak - 2535m. The highest point of the main ridge

Resting on Negoiu Peak

"On the Rocks" - descending to Călțun Lake

Descending to Bâlea Lake for the overnight break

Morning on the run... descending to Capra Lake

Capra Lake

Podul Giurgiului Lake

Descending from Viștea Mare Peak (2527m) - Moldoveanu Peak, the highest in Romania, 2544m, is nearby, 20 minutes south off the main ridge. We've been there with other occasions, no time today...

Descending to Fereastra Mare a Sâmbetei saddle

Urlea Lake

The team

Flying across the alpine grassy expanses

Fresh trail markings

Custura Sărății saddle. The only place along the main ridge under 2000m

The evening is approaching. Let's get running!

The impressive Piatra Craiului Ridge seen in the evening light from the last major peak on the Făgărași Ridge - Comisu Peak.

Running on the Edge!

Almost exactly 3 years after my first successful run along the entire main ridge of Piatra Craiului, here I am again on the Queen Mountain of Romania! Since last time I was several times up on the ridge but I did not cover the whole length.

September 16 2017 had the perfect conditions for the strenuous run/hike along the rocky Piatra Craiului Ridge. A day with perfect blue skies and not too warm weather. The weather was warmer than normal for mid-September, but the wind on the heights kept us cool for most of the day.

Vlad, my work colleague was my running partner this time. We followed almost the same route as last time as I find it to be the best option. It gets up on the ridge quite quickly. The route up to Turnu Peak, the northern-most peak of the ridge, is varied and this makes it seem short and easy. There are only a few cables on the rockiest part of the route.

We did the Ridge faster than last time. 4h07, including a lunch break on La Om peak (2238m) the highest point of Piatra Craiului. This time we took some easier alternative paths that go around some rocky sections of the first quarter of the ridge route.

The descent on the eastern side from the southern end of the ridge (Funduri saddle) is the only runnable access route to/from Piatra Craiului Ridge and is my favorite descent route. It was already mid-day as we were descending. We started to feel the heat, but soon we reached the deep and cool limestone Prapastii canyon. Vlad's car was waiting us at the exit from the canyon...

Here is the route of the day:

And some photos of the Queen Mountain of Romania:

Piatra Craiului Ridge

One of the top of the list trail running day tours planned for this year was Piatra Craiului Ridge; especially after the failed attempt of last year. However the very unstable weather of the 2014 summer made it hard to find a good day for this trip. Doing the ridge in safe conditions requires dry and stable weather. Then I also had to find someone with comparable fitness level as it is not a good idea to do the technical ridge hike alone.

The higher section of the main ridge of Piatra Craiului measures about 10km in length, and most of it is above 2000m altitude. It is one of the most spectacular routes in the Carpathian Mountains. It is a technical hike, recommended only on good weather and for people in good physical shape and without fear of heights. In fact only about 10% of the route is suitable for running. On many sections of the ridge route one has to also use the hands when hiking up and down on the rocky sections.

On Saturday the 13th of September, most trail runners in the area were participating in the Ciucas Trail Marathon races. After doing the half-marathon in 2012 and the marathon last year, I have decided not to participate this year. I was however hiking on Ciucas mountains where I met and encouraged the racers in the 105km ultra-marathon race. The weather was very good for trail running. Dry, cool and sunny, a bit windy though. For the Sunday, the 14th of September the weather forecast looked even better. Same stable weather but less windy. So I knew that it might be a good day for a hike on Piatra Craiului Ridge.

I was wondering if I was the only trail runner in the area who did not participate at Ciucas marathon, so in good shape for a hike along Piatra Craiului Ridge next day... Around 19:00 I phoned Mihai, a passionate trail runner that also lives in Schei district of Brasov where I live. I first met him this spring at the Brasov Marathon, where we ran together the last kilometer of the race. He told me on the phone that he tried to call me, but realized that he might have lost my number... His idea... Piatra Craiului! We quickly agreed on all the details and next morning at 6:30 we left Brasov.

As expected, the day turned out to but to be perfect for hiking along the ridge. The weather was sunny, stable and not to warm. The constant but quite weak wind kept us cool and dry. We progressed very well along the ridge, making short breaks to admire the landscape, take photos, eat, and talk to other hikers. It took us 4h30 from Turnu Peak to Funduri Saddle; a good time. I am sure that we could have done it faster, but we were not competing in a race and also wanted to enjoy the amazing landscape.

Here is the GPS recorded track of the day:

Here are some of the photos I took along the ridge, in chronological order:

On Turnu Peak. The main ridge starts here!

Looking East.

And west, towards Fagarasi Mountains

1000m below, Plaiul Foii

On the north section of Piatra Craiului Ridge

Looking down on the "gentler" east side of the ridge

And on the rocky and steep west side of the ridge

"I was here" photo on La Om peak (2238m), the highest point of Piatra Craiului.

Looking north towards La Om peak (2238m), the highest point of Piatra Craiului.

The spectacular south section of Piatra Craiului Ridge

Cliff edge...

Same cliff edge... with a wider angle of view

Looking east towards Brasov Depression

Looking east from the south ridge

On the south ridge

The beautiful descent from Funduri Saddle - This is the only gentle trail to Piatra Craiului ridge!

On the return way, Looking up to Piatra Craiului Ridge

Top of Madeira

During June I visited Madeira Island for one week. I really enjoyed this place! Great scenery and nature, impressive mountains and nice not too hot weather. Of course, I took my running equipment with me and didn't wait for too long before heading to the mountains.

Here is the impressive mountain route I ran on my second day on the island. The route was suggested to me by a guide in a bike rental shop. Indeed, it is a very nice route, passing through really impressive mountain landscape, reaching the highest peak on the Island, Pico Ruivo (1,862m).

The route has two sections. Fist section starts from Encumeada mountain pass at about 1000m altitude and ends on Pico Ruivo. It starts ascending through the lush forest then follows an impressive mountain ridge. As it was quite early in the morning I did not meet anybody on this section of the trail.  I could tell that not too many hike along this route, because there were plenty of tasty wild strawberries along the trail.

Stairs on the way above Encumeada

Above the clouds

On the way from Encumeada to Pico Ruivo

On the ascent to Pico Ruivo

On Pico Ruivo

The second half of the route is the most popular hiking route in Madeira. It links Pico Ruivo (the highest) and  Pico do Arieiro (1818m), the 3rd highest on the island. The route is impressive, carved on the almost vertical sides of the mountains and has many sections with stairs. The route passes several times through tunnels beneath the mountain ridge.
I was lucky with the weather as the clouds were low during my hike. I started in thick fog, but soon I was above the clouds in the sunshine. The subtropical mountain sun can be quite powerful., but luckily, long stretches of the trail were protected by the shadow of the mountain peaks.

On the spectacular trail from Pico Ruivo to Pico do Arieiro

Tunnel shortcut...

Steep Stairs

With Pico do Arieiro in sight 

From Pico do Arieiro,, there are several options to get down to Funchal, the main city on the island. The peak can also be reached by car on a modern paved road. I ran all the way down the mountain on steep roads., often, as most roads in Madeira, too steep for running. I got lost in the thick fog that was covering the lower slopes of the mountain so I cut out this section from the track above. Nevertheless, all downhill roads lead to Funchal...

This was my mountain running adventure in Madeira. I highly recommend this route to experienced trail runners and hikers. However, before leaving check the weather report and check that the trails are open. Also make sure that you have good equipment, especially good running/hiking shoes and a rain coat, as the weather can change quickly on the mountains.

Down in Funchal I ran almost daily on the beautiful seaside promenade from Funchal Lido to Câmara De Lobos village. A great route for morning runs. One day I ventured further and ran all the way up to Cabo Girão, an impressive almost vertical cliff that rises 600m above the sea. The way up was hard, but the downhill on the extreme steep streets of Madeira was even harder!

The complete album of my Madeira photos can be found here.