Romania · Southern Carpathians · Parâng
Transalpina — 2,145 metres across the Parâng plateau
Profile of the Transalpina (Pasul Urdele, DN67C) — 2,145m in the Romanian Carpathians, the highest road in Romania, rebuilt in the 2010s.
Transalpina, officially DN67C, is the highest road in Romania and a quieter alternative to the more famous Transfăgărășan one range east. Its high point is Pasul Urdele at 2,145 metres, and the section above the treeline runs for nearly 50 km — a scale that has no real equivalent elsewhere in Europe.
History
The route across the Parâng has medieval and military origins: Roman legions are thought to have used a version of it, and the current alignment was used by Austrian and Romanian forces during the First World War. For most of the twentieth century it was a rough gravel track, impassable for ordinary cars, kept alive mainly by shepherds moving stock between summer pastures. The full rebuild in the 2010s, finished in 2012 after decades of stop-start works, transformed it into a full alpine crossing and opened the plateau to tourist traffic for the first time.
Riding it
From Novaci in the south the road climbs steadily for around 30 km onto the Parâng plateau, a treeless rolling tableland that is unlike anything else in Europe at this latitude. The gradient averages around 7% but the scale is what catches you out: long straight ramps that go on for kilometres at a time.
The descent north toward Sebeș passes the Obârșia Lotrului reservoir and winds back down through forest. Total route length is around 148 km if you ride it end to end, and the high section above the treeline runs for nearly 50 of those.
Along the way
- Rânca resort — A small ski village on the south side, the practical overnight base for the climb.
- Obârșia Lotrului reservoir — The mountain lake on the north descent, surrounded by spruce forest and largely undeveloped.
- Parâng alpine plateau — The treeless tableland at the top, where the road runs at altitude for nearly 50 km with no settlements.
- Transhumant shepherds — The high plateau is still grazed each summer by shepherd-led flocks, a living use of the land that predates the paved road.
- Carpathian Crossing — Transalpina pairs with Transfăgărășan on the multi-day route across the Southern Carpathians.