After a leisurely breakfast I returned to the centre of Șuncuiuș then followed the E3 which led me to the south west. My destination tonight was north west, but rather than take a direct route along the river valley the E3 took me on a tour of nearby mountains. After passing the houses that stretched along the road out of town, the walk into the hills was pleasant enough in the cooler, overcast weather I was now experiencing. I wandered through beech woods and over grassland, rosehips adding colour to the trackside. Blackberries were not having a good season, going from an unripe red to a shrivelled, dessicated black with no ripe plump fruit in between. Multiple tracks meant I sometimes accidentally deviated off the route but soon found my way back onto it. The excitement came with the rapid descent into and along the gorge of the River Crișul Repede. At first the path took a measured approach, zig-zagging across the slope rather than heading straight down at a ridiculously steep gradient. Near the bottom, the path became steeper and more slippery. Then it turned back on itself to follow the river for a kilometre or so. Due to assorted rocks, damp and smoothed by passing feet; a cliff one side and a drop into the river on the other; rock outcrops; slippery, slopping paths, and fallen trees this part of the trail was particularly slow. I could see skid marks where a person before me had slipped, a warning to myself, but also reassuring that other people had walked this way recently. From the river I could hear shouting and laughter from youngsters in inflatable canoes.
It was a relief to arrive at a bridge, beyond which a good path led to the Vadu Crișului Cave. This show cave had tours and since I had time today I planned to go on one. A crowd had gathered, so I assumed a tour was likely soon, however a lad who spoke English said they did not know when. Taking a seat I waited a while until eventually a lady appeared and told everyone it was 20 Lei for a ticket and a tour would depart in five minutes (I had to ask her to translate this for me). After handing over my 20 Lei, and another wait, we departed on the tour. This involved the lady talking at length at different parts of the cave. As it was in Romanian all I picked out was words like stalagmites, that were the same in English. Nevertheless the stalagmites and stalactites were easy to spot. Between stops there were steep steps to climb up and down and some low sections of roof which my rucksack brushed against, although other members of the tour seemed to be struggling more than I. Two bats were spotted hanging upside down from the walls, and there were apparently more in parts of the cave not accessible to visitors. Not the best cave I have visited, there were no large caverns, and a limited number of stalagmites and stalagtites, however, being in an area of many caves it was not a place to miss.
My path continued along the gorge from the cave. In places where it was cut into the side of the cliff, chains were provided to hold onto. These were not necessary today as the stone floor of the path was dry, but would be reassuring if wet. There were also notices giving advice such as to clean up litter. One panel showed all the things a backpacker like myself should have such as a tent and water bottle. It included a map and compass but not a GPS which is what I use for navigation.
Tonight I am in a more expensive hotel. I was welcomed with palinka and a pastry with apple in by the genial host. For dinner I had "mici", which means "small" but is actually like a sausage.
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