Encountering Wild Pojorta Valley
Shortcut of tour:
Breaza - barrier at forest road in lower Pojorta valley - wild forest trail in Pojorta valley - ascent to mountain meadow “Poiana Curmaturii”
Description and guidance:
Some of the wild forest valleys in the Fagaras Mountains are pathless in their upper sections. An intensity of wilderness that hardly exists in the Alps anymore. The narrow and steep Pojorta Valley is a truly wild landscape. A number of bears and plenty other wild animals live here. Their tracks can often be seen in the ground.
The hiking trail starts at a barrier (park your car here at the side of the road). You first follow a forest road along the stream. Unfortunately, tree felling is still carried out in the old growth hillside forests near the path. There is currently intensive logging and the road is muddy, littered with tree trunks - and not very attractive. But: it's still worth going on and leaving the depressing scenery behind you. The traces of logging stop after a while – and you enter the wild part of the Pojorta Valley.
Environmental groups and scientists hope that the old growth forests in the Natura 2000 protected area can be preserved in the future and logging will be banned here.Here you are surrounded only by forest wilderness.
The path then enters a gorge - the rock faces get closer and you will see many waterfalls. After a wooden bridge, the path ascends and leads uphill through the primary forest. The valley is now very lonely and wild. There are very few people coming here.
The narrow path follows the steep slope with impressive primary forest, sometimes high above the white rushing mountain stream. The gradient is moderate and you can enjoy the very wild scenery - with large, mossy trees, dead wood and lush vegetation.
After just approximately two kilometers, you reach the last point of the hike at the bottom of the gorge and the path now turns uphill. It then climbs steeply up to the "Poiana Curmaturii" - a mountain pasture with the ruins of Urlea mountain hut.
At the top, you can recover from the steep ascent and either continue in the direction of the Mosuleata bivouac hut (fairy-like view, high mountains; over 2000 m above sea level) and Urlea peak (long hike) - or descend again.
Descend along the ascent route (red triangle) or via Poiana Cultului into the neighboring Brezcioara valley (red dot). However, the latter route leads to an area with more forest roads and logging sites than in the pristine Pojorta valley.
Map / tour description on Outdooractive:
