Bicaz Gorges

Cheile Bicazului (English: Bicaz Gorges, Hungarian: Békás-szoros), are situated in the Eastern Carpathians, on the river Bicaz, making the connection between the Romanian provinces of Moldova and Transylvania, are 8 km long (from Lacu Roşu resort till Bicazul Ardelean village).


The gorges attract by their beauty many tourist every year. They are crossed by a winding road. The limestone walls of the gorges are like a medieval fortress walls. One can admire the "Altar Stone" - rocky mountain (1120 m high), impressive by its verticality, important for the alpine climbing; Piatra Pinteştilor (Pinteştilor Rock - 847 m) and Piatra Arşitei (Heat Rock - 835 m) peaks.


The road that slices through the Bicaz Gorges, 20 km west of Bicaz, along the 8 km of ravines, often in serpentines with rock on one side and a sheer drop on the other, is one of the most spectacular drives in the country. The gorge twists and turns steeply uphill, cutting through sheer, 300 m high limestone rocks. At one point, the narrow mountain road runs uncomfortably beneath the overhanging rocks in a section known as Gâtul Iadului (The Neck of Hell). This stretch of road is protected as part of Parcul National Hăşmaş - Cheile Bicazului (the Hăşmaş - Bicaz Gorges National Park). A few kilometers west, you cross into Transylvania’s Harghita County and immediately hit the resort of Lacu Roşu (Red Lake - see our previous post).


One of the deepest gorges from Carpathians - Bicaz Gorges is a real rock climbing paradise. With huge walls over 300 m high, including spectacular ceilings, deep crackers, great clear faces is an area recommended for real climbers. It is also a noted location to see the wallcreeper, an uncommon cliff-dwelling bird.