Via TransilvanicaStage 2 · Sucevița – Vatra Moldoviței
21 km · 9 hours · very hard · +1167 m
21 km · 9 hours · very hard · +1167 m
Bucovina's hardest day, with 1,167 m of ascent. From the monastery you walk on tarmac to Poiana Mărului, then take the forest road on the left, marked with a sign. After two kilometres, past a logging yard, the road turns right by a barrier and climbs steeply for some eight hundred metres on a skidder track, almost parallel to the forest road.
Then gentler but frequent climbs to Poiana Ovăzului. On the crest a wooden cross appears: a sign the red-stripe waymark is close. From there, a kilometre and a half of easy walking along the ridge, then the path drops into Poiana Calului, a small clearing where a few cows usually graze. Further on, through the cool of the forest, you reach Poiana Rija, which is inhabited: the people there give you water, sometimes food, and above all good words. Three kilometres of forest to Poiana Lupoaia, then Stoișta, Plaiul Rotunda and a steep drop straight down to the monastery.
In Poiana Lupoaia and in the clearings with sheepfolds you will almost certainly meet shepherd dogs. Stay calm, keep your distance and speak to them kindly: the owners usually call them off when they see walkers.
Sucevița → Vatra Moldoviței · traseu pietonal
Altitudes in metres. The stage's total ascent is greater than the difference between its ends, because the path climbs and drops several times.
130 lei for a double room, 180 lei for the apartment, breakfast and dinner on request. All year: 0745 922 447.
22 de locuri. 100 lei single, 130 lei dublă, 180 lei triplă. 0744 301 667 (Nicoleta Crețu).
26 beds, with a restaurant. All year: 0722 419 513.
Call at least a day ahead. In villages lodging is prepared, not found: your host puts the water on to heat and cooks only if she knows you are coming. Prices change from season to season, so confirm them on the phone.
On arrival, in Vatra Moldoviței, from the guesthouse where you sleep or from the monastery.
A foundation of Petru Rareș, 1532, one of the eight UNESCO monuments. The Siege of Constantinople, the Tree of Jesse and the Akathist Hymn, on its outer walls.
The largest museum of painted eggs in the world: over 11,000 exhibits in 106 cases.
A narrow-gauge train on the line of 1888, from Moldovița to Argel, 10.5 km. Today it runs occasionally, for visitors.
An ethnic subgroup of Bucovina, Maramureș, Transcarpathia and Pokuttia. In Suceava county they live in Brodina, Breaza, Cârlibaba, Moldova-Sulița, Moldovița, Izvoarele Sucevei, Vatra Moldoviței and Ulma.
Mănăstirile de pe etapă
Neighbouring stages
In two days you will be near us
If you walk Bucovina end to end, Sadova and Fundu Moldovei are on your way. There you can sleep two nights in one place instead of moving your bags every day.
Route, waymarking, ascent, critical spots and lodging data are those published officially by the Tășuleasa Social association, which waymarked and maintains the path.
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No platform fee, because there is nobody in between. You let yourselves in with a code, you leave late if nobody is coming after you, and if plans change you cancel free up to seven days ahead.