I’ve been planning this ride for years now: the ridge road in Baiului Mountains, from South to North. Some years ago I went on the ridge from Zamora to Azuga, a ride which I’ve kept on doing over time. And every time I kept hoping to do more.
Finally it looked like the time was right. Iulian was eager to try a mountain biking tour, Christi was also looking forward to it and so both of them were on board. Iulian also got Soso and Bubulu to join in the fun, and there we were, the five of us.
Before entering the route itself, we ate some asphalt from Azuga to Sinaia. From Sinaia to Posada we followed the dirt road adjacent to the railway, where we were met with a bunch of crazy dogs and also got to see the men working at the railways – loads of lorries and heavy machines, dust, hustle and bustle.
We were ready for some heavy push bike at the start of the southern route to Baiului and Bubulu tried to divert us to Zamora. I however really wanted to take a look at the road for myself and did not yield. Good thing too, because the road was much improved and from Posada (780m) till we reached 1,500m we were constantly on our bikes. From 1.500m onward the road got a bit worse, but still manageable. We had two push bike sessions, which did not take more then 20 min together (which was very good training for Soso’s foreign legion aspirations, which Bubulu enjoyed bringing up every time he felt his friend needed some encouragement).
The rain completed our foreign legion training, but instead of facing the pain, Soso abandoned ship and went downhill near the sheepfold in Valea Rea, while Bubulu chose to descend through Zamora. Christi, Iulian and I kept at it, if only because our car was in Azuga, and we decided it was better to get rained on on the trail, rather then on the national road. In the area of the Zamora ridge the road was recently cut, but since the snow had just melted, things got a little muddy. There were still patches of snow here and there, but it was OK.
On the way back Iulian started to feel the importance of owning a pair of padded biking shorts. He kept on wondering why the bike shops don’t give away a pair of shorts with every bike you buy – it would be a good promo tactic.
All in all, a difficult but fun ride. A lot too climb, and hard too, but the view is breathtaking even when the weather is less then perfect.
Bubulu made a short video. I recommend it to everyone with thoughts of the foreign legion… 🙂
cezar jipa 
