Motorcycle routes · The DJ 175, at Izvoarele Sucevei
A dead-end valley, not a circuit: up the DJ 175 through Fundu Moldovei, Breaza and Moldova Sulița, to Izvoarele Sucevei, then back the same way.
Start and finish: Câmpulung Moldovenesc
You take the DN 17 to Pojorâta, turn right onto the DJ 175 and from there follow the Moldova valley upstream, through Fundu Moldovei, Breaza and Moldova Sulița, to Izvoarele Sucevei. The last village before the Ukrainian border, at the end of the county road. 108 kilometres out and back and under three hours of riding, with 4.9 bends per kilometre. It isn't a circuit: you return the way you came. It's the loop you come for if you want Hutsul villages and a narrowing valley, not mountain hairpins.
Daylight · The DJ 175, at Izvoarele Sucevei · today,
The times are for the starting point. Between ridges the light goes earlier than the clock says, so turn back a good hour before sunset.
Weather · The DJ 175, at Izvoarele Sucevei · today,
The forecast is for where you set off. Up on the ridge, count on a few degrees less and on wind you cannot see from below.
The kilometres and times are measured on the map, from the gate of the house. The time is what you actually ride: with photo and coffee stops, add half again.
See the whole route on the map All 7 points of the loop, in order, opened straight in Google Maps. From there you can start the navigation or send it to your phone.| Câmpulung Moldovenesc → Pojorâta | 6.6 km · 11 min The DN 17 west. At Pojorâta you turn right onto the DJ 175, the road up the Moldova valley. |
|---|---|
| Pojorâta → Fundu Moldovei | 4 km · 7 min The first kilometres of county road, between houses. |
| Fundu Moldovei → Moldova Sulița | 30.1 km · 40 min The long stretch: Colacu, Botuș, Braniștea, Breaza de Sus, Benia. Villages strung along the valley, one after another. |
| Moldova Sulița → Izvoarele Sucevei | 14.3 km · 21 min The last stretch, to the end of the county road. Beyond it is the border. |
| Izvoarele Sucevei → Moldova Sulița | 13.9 km · 30 min Back, the same way. |
| Moldova Sulița → Câmpulung Moldovenesc | 39.4 km · 55 min Back on the DJ 175 and the DN 17. |
We counted every bend on the route. Not the gentle waves of the road, but the real turns: where the road changes direction by more than 12 degrees, which is enough to feel the bars move. Then we split the loop into two-kilometre pieces and gave each piece its number of bends. That's what the chart below shows: the taller the bar, the twistier that stretch is.
Twistiest: kilometres 53–55 54 bends in two kilometres, that is one every 37 metres.
National road, the first six kilometres.
A county valley road, with rebuilt sections and old ones. It changes from year to year; ask Suceava County Council or ask us before you go.
Tarmac changes from one year to the next. Above is what we know now. Before you go, ask us.
These are the pumps mapped in the villages and towns along the route. They close, they move: in the mountains, don't count on just one.
The things that come from the road itself: how narrow it is, how steep, what it passes through. How often they happen is our own judgement, not statistics.
Colacu, Botuș, Braniștea, Breaza, Benia, Moldova Sulița. Thirty kilometres almost entirely through villages, with a 50 limit and gateways.
Logging country. Timber trucks on a narrow road, above all in the morning.
Villages with farmsteads, cattle taken out to graze along the valley.
The road ends. If you've passed Izvoarele Sucevei without turning round, you've reached the border: it is not a crossing point.
On the upper part of the valley the coverage is patchy. Download the map first.
The valley narrows gradually, with ridges on both sides. The best shots are from the bridges.
The area is Hutsul country, with its own architecture and gates. Shoot freely from the road; for a yard, say hello and ask.
The last village, with the border mountains ahead.
The Hutsul breed is raised in the area. Check visiting hours before you turn off the road.
a Bistro or Brasserie, before you set off.
A few places in the village, irregular hours out of season.
Guesthouses rather than restaurants. Call ahead if you're going for a meal.
Taste Bucovina
In Pojorâta, just before you turn right onto the DJ 175. If you set off early, it's the stop on the way back.
we've eaten hereYou won't find a workshop that works on motorcycles alone on any of these roads. The nearest is in Suceava, some seventy kilometres from the house and further from most of the loops. What you will find are car workshops and tyre places in the villages and towns, and plenty of them will turn a hand to a motorcycle. For a puncture, a battery or a tyre, they'll sort you out. For the engine, call first.
Call ahead. They keep their own hours and not all of them work on Saturdays.
We checked all of this in . We measured the kilometres on the map ourselves; the fuel stations and workshops are the mapped ones.
The other loops
A base for the loops
Parking in the yard and the whole house to yourselves. Leave at sunrise without waking a reception desk, and come back as late as you like.
Via Transilvanica