Balea Lake

We ended our stay in Sibiu this morning and started out towards Balea Lake, which was on our way to Brasov. This lake is high in the Fagaras mountains and the scenery on the way there was spectacular. You can see the snowy area in the picture below. That was our destination!

We were lucky because the road had been blocked the previous week. All the rain and cold weather that we had in Sibiu was snow storms at these altitudes. Some parts of the road were one lane paths through the snow, while in other areas it was perfectly clear and bare. The snow wasn't the only issue. There are occasionally falling rocks too. We didn't have problems with that, although we did see rocks on the road in places. Scary!

We reached the top where it was only nine degrees and found Balea Lake. It is actually quite small. It still had ice in it, but where the water had melted it was crystal clear. A few skiers were still tramping up the mountain for a short run down. There wasn't much snow left - just enough to make the wind feel really cold!

There was a cable car, so of course we had to take a ride. I'm a bit afraid of heights so it was nerve wracking in places, but the views were really fabulous. There was a mountain stream that turned into a waterfall and the cable car went right by it.

By cable car it only takes about 12 minutes to go part way down the mountain, but in our car it took about twice that long. You can see why if you have a look at the roads in the picture below, which was taken from the cable car.

After hairpin turn after hairpin turn we eventually made it down the mountain and then on to Brasov. It was late by the time we arrived so we didn't see too much of the city, but enough to know that it will be another great time. There will be lots to see in Brasov and also in the surrounding areas.

CM