Today we are collecting road bikes from Sibiu to start a four day road tour. We say our goodbyes to Charlie and Ray, and the Bobo clan - they've looked after us very well.
We are meeting the rental company at 10am in the Continental Forum hotel where we stayed on arrival. Ripped jeans glamourous granny Claudia from the rental company arrives with a trailer loaded with three BMW bikes, sidekick Alex has ridden the fourth himself.
Steve and Danny have each chosen a F750GS, while Christopher and I are in the cheap seats atop two G650GS. Apparently the bikes have names, mine and Christopher's are brides of Dracula, Danny's is Phantom and Steve's Queen Bee!
I bore Steve and Claudia with facts about the 750GS having a 270 degree crank, and then explain 'crank' to Claudia (manivelă, if you're interested). We sign the paperwork while Alex unloads the bikes and fits panniers, which takes longer than expected, but we're underway by about 11am.
We take the route that heads back towards the farmhouse, but pass by its turn-off. It's a main road but not particularly busy so we make good progress. Turning left off the main road we had south west and onto a road that takes us past Jina where we stayed a few days ago at a hotel on top of a hill. Further on we join the DN67C, aka the Transalpina.
This winds its way through trees you don't really appreciate the fact that you are gradually climbing. We pass the reservoir where we had previously stopped for photos and then we ourselves stop at Cabana Oasa, where we had had lunch. We repeat the experience.
We've made good time and the roads have been enjoyable. But guess what, it starts raining! Just like it did a few days ago, deja vu!
By the time we've eaten, the rain has eased a little so we don't add a rain layer, a decision that pays off as the rain eventually stops altogether.
Unlike previous days we see many bikers on the road, it is a Sunday, so there must be many weekend adventurers out despite the dark skies. Each gets a wave or a nod if hands are busy with clutches. Those riding in the same direction as us we see multiple times.
As we near the Transalpina Pass it becomes more touristy with resorts and entrainment facilities in various places. We clear the tree line and the bends become more frequent and tighter. Great fun but at the weekend busy with tourists that we overtake where permitted. The road is narrow but well made.
The remnants of winter snow look very dirty at the roadside, but add to the alpine feel. It's mid-June and there's still snow at 2000m, I guess that's normal. There are clouds in the sky and even below us, but it's clear enough to appreciate the views we've missed in the past week so we stop several times for photos and admire the scenery. We top out at around 2130m - this is apparently the highest paved road in Romania.
Winding our way down now and hairpin bends are always more challenging downwards, and moreso when the roads are a little damp and some corners littered with flotsam and jetsam from impromptu rivers in the rain. I'm impressed with my little 650cc engine (four-stroke incidentally so there's engine braking!), it's one I'm familiar with as I had an earlier version of the same bulletproof Rotax engine. It's just enough power to be entertaining and chugs along sipping fuel. The handling on road oriented rubber is also reassuring, it feels very flickable on corners, even if it's double the weight of the KTMs we were riding only yesterday.
We have completed the pass and our hotel for the night is not so far away.
Eventually we find it using a combination of technological assistance from satellites provided by some good friends of mine and the age old standby, asking directions! The marked location on Googlemaps seems correct but somehow we couldn't find it on our own.
We check in to the recently built holiday accommodation that is Casa Alex, then shower, get the WiFi password, and change into fresh clothes (I leave you to guess the correct order of those events!)
For dinner we ride about 3km into town but the pizza place we were aiming for was closed. Instead we take the opportunity to buy breakfast for tomorrow at a supermarket, and then go back to a restaurant we passed on the way here where there were some bikes parked outside. The pizza there was surprisingly excellent.
We retire for the evening after 160km on the road. Today was a relatively short riding day but with a late start. Tomorrow will be a long day with an early start.
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