Summer in Călimani National Park

We found Călimani National Park in a great greening process. The weather was amazing and we could walk around, discovering the place.

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We took the car for a big part of the trip but then, when I found this beautiful landscape that changed it’s appearance after every turning, I didn’t want to miss it in the car speed. I got out of the car. The sky made a beautiful contrast with the red soil. It was a busy work day. Later on I found that in that particular place you can meet the lynxes. I had luck that none came.

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When we arrived at the sulfur pit we found a few workers and an engineer that was very kind to show us the surroundings. In this place sulfur was exploited for a long time (1969 – 1997). Now the pit is closed but you can still see the boulder clay that were left behind after the excavation works.

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Sulfur

 

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The greening process involves the terracing of the mountain and planting the seedlings. It is a wonderful thing, especially that this area was very much affected by the past exploitation. The ground doesn’t seem too „vegetation friendly” but it’s starting to come to life. We took the car, once again, to reach on the top of the pit. We could see the volcano’s caldera. I took long walks. I couldn’t get enough of taking pictures.

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New life

 

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In the past, in this valley that is now covered with trees, right where you see that small house, existed a settlement specially made for the pit workers. In this settlement lived approximately 8 000 people. During the communist era, people from Vatra Dornei made their groceries here. You would have found here a good marketplace, a cinema and apartment buildings. After the Revolution, they stopped exploiting the sulfur pit, workers left their place here to look for a job somewhere else and, in time, everything got degraded and disappeared. Now it’s hard to imagine how this place really looked like in the not-so-distant past.

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Spot the house

 

We took the car for the last part of our trip, until we arrived to the Weather station. I didn’t want to leave that place.. To understand what I’m saying you have to be there. You have to breath that air and feel the wind on your skin.

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The Weather Station

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Love, Andreea

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