OFF56 Tău Bistra Lake – Tărtărău Pass

If you ride on Transalpina and you want an alternative off-road variant, this route may be the answer. Coming from the North, on the bank of Lake Tău Bistra, immediately after the Popasul Regelui Hotel, you will see a macadam road ahead and the asphalt road turns to the left. Be careful not to take the uphill road, you have to take the wider downhill road.

Tău Bistra Lake – DJ704

The first part, from Tău Bistra to the intersection with the road leading to Cabana Curmaturi, is constantly climbing through the forest on a fairly good and wide macadam road. Then, at the intersection, turn left. From here the next section we go parallel to the level line on the hillside. In front and to the right, a beautiful landscape opens up, and in the distance you can see the peaks of the Șureanu mountains. After a few kilometers of relatively horizontal road, we begin the descent to the Canciu Reservoir on the Cugir River. We will enter the county road 704 that connects Lake Oașa with the town of Cugir. We will continue towards Oașa Lake.

Canciu Lake – Tărtărău Pass

The road begins to climb slightly again along the edge of a valley. We will climb to an altitude of 1500m to the clearing at the Poarta Raiului (Gate of Heaven). Here you can make a stop at the restaurant of the Poarta Raiului pension, we ate here and it’s ok. From here you can climb to the Șureanu Ski Area and from there descend to Petrila on an extremely spectacular road. You can find it here with all the details: https://2ride.eu/en/segment/off50-sureanu-petrila/ 

We will continue downhill towards Lake Oasa. This part is very well maintained because in winter it is the only access to the ski area. Before we reach the lake, we will come across an intersection where we will continue to the right.

From here we will follow the left bank of Lake Oașa, but unfortunately the lake can only be seen from a few places. The road continues through the forest. You won’t even realize when the lake is ending because of this. We continue along a valley for another 10km. After a few intersections where you will have to keep the road to the left we will reach a curve at 180 degrees to the left then we will climb a little and we will go out on the asphalt in Transalpina, before the Tărtărău pass.