Rediscovering Orienteering: A Journey Back in Time

 Last weekend, I attended an orienteering race for the first time in 33 years. It all started when I reunited with my old orienteering coach, who invited me to join the event. Running through the forest took me back to my teenage years, and it was an incredible experience that reignited my passion for this sport.

Surprisingly, my orienteering skills are still pretty sharp, scoring a solid 4 out of 5. However, my running game is a different story, with a humble 0.5 out of 5. It's clear that while the mind remembers the maps and compasses, the body needs some serious catching up.

Determined to improve, I decided to go for a training run today. Given the temperature in the low 30s°C, it ended up being more of a walk than a run. Despite the heat and the mosquitos having a feeding frenzy, it was a really enjoyable outing. There's something uniquely refreshing about being out in nature, even when conditions aren't perfect.

This experience has motivated me to continue this journey and see where it takes me next. Whether it's improving my running stamina or honing my orienteering skills, I'm excited about the adventures ahead.

Stay tuned for more updates on my orienteering journey!

#Orienteering #BackInTheGame #FitnessJourney #NatureLover

The cave at the trout farm

 

Video from our recent dive at this beautiful, intimate cave near Tismana, Romania. To reach the cave you need to pass through, or around a trout farm, hence the name "The cava a the trout farm".

Diving the granite quarry in Racoş

A nice training dive at the granite quarry in Racoş today. Visibility wasn't great, water temperature a chilly 5.8°C...

A good few days on the mountain

Spent a few days skiing the local mountains. Good weather, good snow... good times! 

Skiing season just started

Got a bit over 6 kilometers on skis yesterday, second day out on the mountain...

Cave diving in Transylvania

I never thought I'd say this, but cave diving can be lots of fun. Pictured above, my buddy and I returning from a training dive in one of Transylvania's karst springs...

Ciorbă de perișoare

Azi am făcut puțin spionaj în bucătărie,

 în urma căruia m-am ales cu rețeta unei minunate ciorbe de perișoare,  

așa cum se face la noi în casă...

Curățăm un morcov, o ceapă, o țelină mică, un păstîrnac, mic și el.

Adaugăm cîteva bucăți de ardei, ca în poza de mai jos.

Pentru perișoare măcinăm carnea de pui,

împreună cu jumătate din ceapa curățată mai devreme.

Adăugăm o mînă de orez, un ou, împreună cu verdețuri din abundență:

pătrunjel, țelină, puțin mărar, piper mănăstiresc și foarte puțină sare.

Amestecăm compoziția și o lăsăm deoparte...

Pentru zamă tăiem mărunt legumele,

păstîrnacul se lasă bucată mare, doar despicat în patru...

Punem legumele într-o oală și adăugăm puțin ulei...

Le călim cîteva secunde...

Adăugăm apa, ca în pozele de mai jos...

Trîntim puțină făină într-o farfurie...

Formăm perișoarele, le dăm prin făină după care le aruncăm direct în oală.

E important ca perișoarele să fie grăsune!

 Punem ciorba la fiert. O fierbem 10 minute în oala sub presiune...

Între timp, pregătim următorul amestec, 

cu care dregem ciorba după ce fierbe:

un ou,

puțină făină,

puțin suc de lămîie,

și verdeată din belșug: pătrunjel, țelină, mărar.

plus leuștean din abundență,

iar la final mai trîntim vreo trei linguri de iaurt gras, sau smîntînă...

Și amestecăm bine...

La ciorba fiartă mai adăugăm apă fierbinte, dacă este nevoie...

Dregem ciorba ca în pozele de mai jos...

Amestecăm bine, și potrivim de sare și acreală după gust...

Atîta tot...

 This is what happens if you're not careful and drag your skis through water while crossing a creek which looks frozen but it isn't, although it is totally covered with fresh snow: in seconds snow will stick to the bottom of your skis and is almost impossible to get rid of, especially if you're skiing off-piste, in remote areas and temperatures are way below 0. Forget about exhilarating descents for the rest of the day unless you're patient enough to scrape every bit of ice away...

Winter's upon us

Looks like winter's here to stay this time. Just got back from a great afternoon of ski touring in Bâlea. Miercuri had to sit this one out since she hurt her paw yesterday...

Another perfect day

Just back from another amazing day in Bâlea! Man and dog back safe after shredding powder all day long, they're both still high on adrenaline...

First snow

Roots & snow - Făgăraș Mountains, Romania

Blog vs Google+

I haven't posted here in quite a while. I have been using G+ exclusively for the past few months and for the time being nothing will change. You can follow me here if you'd like. In the meantime I'll leave you with a photo of Miercuri I recently found on an old memory card.

Back in the saddle

Now that the summer holidays madness is over, traffic on Transfăgărășan road is slowly returning to normal, virtually non-existent that is. Time to put this road to some good use before the first snow closes it down.

 So, I took the bike out for a ride today. The plan was to climb all the way to Bâlea Lac. Cârțișoara village to Bâlea Lac is a 30km long climb, starting at an altitude of 450m and reaching the top at 2042m.

Weather was excellent, temperatures in the low twenties (centigrade), no wind whatsoever at high altitudes. Even so, it took me almost 4 hours to reach the top. My right knee has been acting up recently, forcing me to keep the speed down for most of the climb.

Exploring

With summer holidays in full swing I decided to stay off the Transfăgărășan Road. It is simply too crowded this time of the year, especially during weekends. There's really no point in fighting the crowds when I can have this road almost to myself every year from October to June while it sits unused, closed to the public.

So I went exploring some unmarked trails I've had my eyes on for a while. The plan was to reach the Valley of Avrig, descend into the town of Avrig and return home on the busy DN1 road. The trails were awesome, steady climbs through the forest, followed by smooth, fun descents. Spectacular views over the Făgăraș Mountains opened up in places.

I left the forest descending through a stream bed probably having missed a turn higher up somewhere. Return trip was uneventful, however in the future I'll look for an alternative route to avoid traffic on DN1.
For anyone interested, the GPS track is available for download from bikemap.net

Training ride

I'm quite happy with this morning's training ride: climbed from Bâlea Waterfall (1234m) to Bâlea Lake (2040m) in 92mins. A total distance of 13km, average speed of 8.5kph, a personal best for this particular stretch.

Panoramic view over Fundul Caprei Valley

Ferns

Photos shot today during a relatively short walk through the forest. Luxuriant ferns in Doamnei Valley, Făgăraș Mountains.

R&R

Had a couple of days off work recently so I planed an overnight trip into the mountains. The old cabin that we found a few months ago seemed like the perfect place to spend the night in. Up there time passed quickly. First day flew by between roaming the alpine tundra, cutting wood for the fire, fixing bits and pieces in and around the cabin. Miercuri was in charge of our touristic activities on the second day, which meant we had to inspect every single marmot burrow in the area. Kind of super fun for her, a lot less for me so I got busy with my camera. Below are a few pictures from that trip.

No fun on leash!

Preparing for the night

Getting the fire going

Cozy

Reading

Early morning

Crocuses

Insolation

Training ride

Took the bike out for a spin this morning. The plan was to try and climb up 25km on Transfăgărăsan road, then turn around and enjoy the descent. Left quite early to take advantage of cooler temperatures and get back home in time for work.

Snow still covers the road in places at higher altitudes but it is melting rapidly. Road should officially open in about a week, right now two huge concrete beams are blocking vehicle access beyond Bâlea Cascadă. Not a problem to get through by foot, bike or ski.

Turned around shortly after passing the 25km mark, about 5km before Bâlea Lake. Descent was a joy, having the road to myself I didn't have to worry about incoming traffic. Average speed going up: 11km/h. Average speed going down: a bit over 50km/h.