A journey of discovering the deepest secrets of Romanian forests
The south Carpathians are a classic, but if you’ve already seen them, you’ll want something different. And western Carpathians are different indeed. There you don’t get the endless 2000+ m ridge journeys, but instead you dive into the enchanting, rich forests, that hold a lot of mystery, surprises and serious offroad challenges, making it a daily randezvous with the unknown. From the forests, rivers and waterfalls of Cheile-Nerei national park and Anina mountains in the south, to the enchanting rocky peaks and caves of divine beauty in the Apuseni nature park. Western Carpathians are the hidden gem of Romania, waiting to be revealed!
A 4×4 journey along the Danube, the cradle of Europe
It was the Iron Gate gorge on the banks of the mighty Danube river where Lepenski Vir civilization sprouted 7000 years ago. In the meantime many have passed through those jungles, making a living from the big river, and building trade routes along it. During the demanding offroading tours some of our guests called this biggest continous forest in Serbia “Serbian Amazon jungle”. No wonder – passing along it is very similar to an exotic jungle adventure! Rocks protruding high above the Danube offer some amazing scenic points, and wandering inland reveals hidden river valleys, canyons, caves and waterfalls. And of course, the famous stone arches of eastern Serbia!
Early springtime mud fun in the mystical eastern Serbia
The Homolje mountains are a place where green pastures and rich forests on steep slopes were home for shepperds for centuries. And the hidden valleys, like a maze well tucked away from civilization, inspired people to resort to magic and sourcery, so it’s full of legends. But one of the strongest local traditions is that of gold panning in the rivers! So the locals will teach us that art, in the midst of touring caves of breathtaking beauty (also known as places of hidden gold), and conquering demanding offroad trails that surpass everything that you can expect in those, seemingly tame and pastoral hills. Embark on a unique early springtime 4×4 adventure!
Serbia, not Siberia… But there’s not much difference!
When the wind starts howling, wave after wave of snow blizzards encase the Kučaj mountains in white, everyone flees them as fast as possible, knowing that they can be stranded there until springtime. Everyone, except us. That is when we buckle up our snow chains, pack up our winter recovery gear, and engage on the snowdrift surfing tour through that vast kingdom of the wolves… And when we conquer Kučaj winterscapes, it’s time to move over to western Serbia, for a whole different flavour of snow adventure! And inbetween our daily ice games, we’ll bask in the warm thermal pools and enjoy the spicy Serbian cuisine. There’s no better way to experience the Balkan winter!
Building on the success of Eastern Serbian Nomad’s Adventure, we take the journey further south. Stara planina left the participants in true overlander’s extasy – the sheer beauty of the mountain, the rich experience of the landscapes, combined with demanding trails, make you crave to return! So we’re starting our south Serbian journey from there. Southeast Serbia is the home to all the highest Serbian mountains, giving you the opportunity to float on endless grassy ridges. The kind of landscape typical for Stara planina goes on for an entire week in this tour, revealing to the participants mountains such as Ruj, Vardenik, Suva, Besna Kobila and Dukat.
The thing that makes eastern Serbia so special is the fact that it’s one of the few remaining sparsely inhabited wildernesses in Europe. It’s the kind of place that you’re dreaming about when you want to break all your ties with everyday life and find silence and unspoiled nature somewhere. And freedom, yes, that is the key factor. Because, unspoiled nature throughout Europe is in most places actually spoiled by guards, cameras, rules, which are there to, allegedly, “protect” that nature, but actually keep reminding you of the things you want to forget about. And you every move is closely monitored. But not in eastern Serbia, no. You can really wander for days there without meeting a single human being, without being forced to obey any regulation or rule, except the natural, logical ones. You can really forget about the place where you’ve come from. You can be relaxed, and FREE. Continue reading Through the wilderness of eastern Serbia→
Contemporary ecologists usually regard motorized vehicles as enemy #1 of life on our planet. They talk about cities without cars, sustainable development, renewable energy sources, repeating the same phrases over and over again as mantras with a strong dogmatic power, without feeling the need to substantiate or offer proof for any of the claims. If anyone dares to ask for proof of these, to put it pollitely, half-truths, if anyone dares to call those claims exagerration and asks for scientific tests or measurements, he becomes cast off, mocked, regarded as “barberian”. So contemporary ecology moves in big steps in the direction of a new religion, in which people believe without questioning, and where anyone who doubts any of the dogmas becomes a heretic, rejected by the society which embraced the new religion.
