The road was built between 1970 and 1974 under Nicolae Ceaușescu as a strategic military route, after the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 raised fears of an attack on Romania. Much of the work was done by soldiers, using vast amounts of dynamite at high altitude, and it came at a heavy human cost. The road climbs to more than 2,000 metres, and in 2009 Top Gear’s Jeremy Clarkson famously called it ‘the best road in the world’.
Hairpin bends and long curves lead past the Bâlea Waterfall to Bâlea Lake, a glacial lake at 2,034 metres close to the highest point, where a tunnel carries the road through the ridge. On the southern side, the route descends past the Vidraru Dam, a 166-metre-high arch dam completed in 1966, and the ruins of Poenari Fortress, associated with Vlad the Impaler. Because of snow, the high section is usually open only from around early July to late October, so check conditions before you travel.
Take it slowly and stop often: on the Transfăgărășan, the journey really is the destination.
