The basalt columns

Poiana Brașov

The ski slope at Poiana Brașov in winter, under snow-laden firs, with the Bârsa plain spread out on the horizon.

This series gathers six years of short trips, from 2020 to 2026, in the eastern half of Romania, east of the Rucăr–Bran corridor. The order is chronological rather than geographic, so the mountains around Brașov return in several seasons: snow in February, the Ciucaș ridges with patches of snow in April, beech forest in October.

Bucegi Mountains

The snow-covered Bucegi plateau above Sinaia, with wide slopes and a sea of clouds toward the horizon.

Comana

A wooden boardwalk through the reed beds of Comana Natural Park, in the Neajlov floodplain.

Rupea Fortress

Rupea Fortress, first recorded in the 14th century, its walls climbing a basalt hill.

Bozioru

The hills around Bozioru in Buzău Land in autumn, with large boulders rounded by erosion along the trails.

Brașov

Brașov and its surroundings from the nearby slopes, with a chairlift and mountains still white in early March.

The Mud Volcanoes

The mud volcanoes of Berca: cones and craters of mud pushed up by natural gas, on bare, cracked ground.

In winter, Poiana Brașov and the Bucegi plateau above Sinaia are wide ski slopes under snow-laden firs. In spring and summer the series drops to the plains: at Comana a wooden boardwalk crosses the reed beds of the natural park, and at Călugăreni, site of Michael the Brave's battle of 1595, the water catches the colors of sunset. Rupea Fortress, first recorded in the 14th century, stands on a basalt hill, and at Racoș the basalt columns, left by volcanic activity in the Perșani Mountains, rise next to the Emerald Lake, which formed in a former quarry.

Costinești

The Black Sea shore at Costinești, with rocks on the beach and the clear light of May.

Mangalia

Rocks and turquoise water on the shore at Mangalia, with the town in the distance.

The basalt columns

The basalt columns of Racoș, left by volcanic activity in the Perșani Mountains, standing like a wall of stone.

The Emerald Lake

The Emerald Lake at Racoș, formed in a former basalt quarry, with green water below steep walls.

Călugăreni

Sunset reflected in the water at Călugăreni, where Michael the Brave fought the Ottoman army in 1595.

In Buzău Land, a UNESCO Global Geopark since 2022, autumn colors the hills around Bozioru, where large boulders rounded by erosion line the trails, and at Berca the mud volcanoes build small cones of mud pushed to the surface by gas from below. Dobruja appears twice: the Black Sea shore at Costinești and Mangalia in May, then the medieval fortress of Enisala on a hill above Lake Razim, and the shore of Lake Sinoe at Histria, the oldest Greek colony on the Romanian coast, founded in the 7th century BC.

Ciucaș Mountains

The Ciucaș Mountains, with their 1,954-meter summit and the conglomerate towers that give them their look, in summer and spring.

Lerești

A reservoir between wooded slopes near Lerești, in northern Argeș County, under a heavy summer sky.

Lake Sfânta Ana

Lake Sfânta Ana, in the crater of an extinct volcano in the Ciomatu massif, ringed by forest.

Enisala Fortress

The ruins of the medieval fortress of Enisala, on a limestone hill above Lake Razim.

Histria

The shore of Lake Sinoe at Histria, next to the oldest Greek colony on the Romanian coast.

Dâmbovicioara

Green hills and meadows at Dâmbovicioara, in the Rucăr–Bran corridor, with the mountains hidden in cloud.

The mountains take up the most space. The Ciucaș, with its conglomerate towers and a summit of 1,954 meters, is crossed on spring hikes, with the beech forest of Măneciu as its gateway. The Bucegi return in June with the Sphinx, at about 2,216 meters, and the plateau seen from Moroeni. Brașov appears from Tâmpa, with the old town below, and Bunești, the commune that includes Viscri, is represented by a Saxon house painted blue.

Bunești

A Saxon house painted blue in the commune of Bunești, which also includes the village of Viscri.

Măneciu

Beech forest in its October colors along the forest roads of Măneciu and, in spring, conglomerate towers above the valley.

Tâmpa

Brașov seen from Tâmpa, the mountain that stands guard over the old town, and a few mountain views from the same spring.

The Sphinx

The Bucegi Sphinx, a rock shaped by wind and rain, at about 2,216 meters.

Moroeni

The Bucegi plateau from the Moroeni side in June, with the last snowfields melting below the peaks.

Further north, Lake Sfânta Ana lies in the crater of an extinct volcano in the Ciomatu massif. The Red Lake formed in 1837, when a landslide dammed the valley, and the trunks of drowned trees still stand in the water; the Bicaz Gorge begins a short way below. Beyond it, the reservoir at Bicaz spreads between wooded hills. In 2026, short drone clips show the conifer forests and meadows around the Red Lake from above, and the series ends at the reservoirs of the Doftana Valley and Siriu, on the Buzău River.

Izvoarele

Lowland forest at sunset near Izvoarele, with low light slanting between slender trunks.

Doftana Valley

The Paltinu reservoir in the Doftana Valley, between wooded hills, in early May.

Red Lake

The Red Lake, formed by a landslide in 1837, with the trunks of drowned trees rising from the water.

Bicaz

The reservoir at Bicaz, spread between wooded hills under summer clouds.

Siriu

Lake Siriu on the Buzău River, winding between wooded slopes in the evening light.