Good morning from Târgu Jiu

In Romania, it seemed like almost everyone had their own fruit and vegetable garden – maybe with the exception of the big cities. From the bathroom window of our place, we had a great view of the backyard, full of homegrown produce – pumpkins seemed to be in season. 😀 The Upstairs Residence was very well-kept and lovingly designed. When we checked in, we met our host, who was genuinely interested in our plans. He gave us a few great tips, and based on those, we spontaneously decided to stay an extra night.
What lay ahead now was the most exciting part of our trip – the DN66A, or at least a part of it. Why this road in particular? When Marco joined the Carbage Run in July, this was part of the route through Romania. Both the runners and those of us at home were on edge for hours – no contact, and the few updates in the WhatsApp group sounded more like scenes from a survival movie. 😲 Where on earth had they ended up? And more importantly – would they make it out with their cars still intact?
Long story short: they did. It was exhausting, nerve-wracking, and not entirely without risk. But that’s not stopping us from riding that very stretch again – at least halfway. Once again, it’s the wild, untamed nature that draws us in. Even in photos, it looks unbelievably beautiful!

From Târgu Jiu to the DN66A, it’s about 78 km heading toward the Carpathians – with views that are almost impossible to put into words. Along the way, we first stopped to pick up some groceries for ourselves and food for the stray dogs we had seen a few times already. The road to the DN66A took us through more winding curves and lush, healthy nature. The fir trees here seem to be 2 to 3 meters taller than the ones back home, and we barely saw any sick or damaged trees.
Just a few bends before the start of the 66A, we encountered our first truly wild pack of stray dogs. It was a group of about six, mostly shy and rather small dogs, all clearly very hungry. We filled up bowls with food and placed them in a way that made sure as many of them as possible got a share. The condition of some of the dogs really affected us – but aside from offering food and reporting any injured animals to local animal welfare organizations, there’s not much more you can do in the moment.
With heavy hearts, we moved on – and shortly afterward, around 2 p.m., we reached the official start of the DN66A.

The Drum național 66A(Romanian for “National Road 66A”, DN66A for short) is a main road in Romania.

At the southern edge of the mining town of Petroșani (Petroschen), the road branches off Drum național 66 ( European Road 79) to the west and leads in the valley of the Jiu de Vest (Western Reed) via Vulcan (Wolkersdorf), Lupeni (Schylwolfsbach) and Uricani to Câmpu lui Neag, where the asphalt road ends, and further between the northern Retezat Mountains and the Vâlcan Mountains in the south through the Domogled-Valea Cernei National Park, follows the Cerna valley downstream and ends near Tațu at the confluence with the Drum național 67D.

The road is around 105 kilometers long, of which only the eastern 28 kilometers are paved.^[2]

This main road, in particular, can barely be called a road anymore. At first, there was still rough gravel, but it quickly turned into a pothole-filled track. Marco carefully navigated us through all kinds of rocky terrain, crawling forward at walking pace, kilometer by kilometer. At some points, it was actually safer for me to get out and scout ahead for the best line to take.
We took a short break in the small settlement of Cerna Sat – clearly a tiny vacation spot with tent-like cabins situated by a small lake, surrounded by steep rock walls and the lush green of the Carpathians. It’s definitely a place for adventurers. We barely saw any other people – just the occasional car coming our way, a barking dog in the distance, or a few cows standing on a field.

Our goal was a reservoir at the end of the first third of the full DN66A route. From that point on, the road is closed to regular traffic. Standing in the middle of the dam, with the vast lake stretching out on one side and towering rock faces rising on the other, you can’t help but feel small – and deeply grateful. The view is wide open and radiates the calm of an ancient, untouched land.
We were soon greeted by a friendly stray dog, who of course got some food from us. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay long. It was already 5:30 p.m., and by now we knew exactly how long it would take us to get back – plus, nightfall was approaching fast. So we began the return trip. Long after dark, we finally made it back to the starting point of the DN66A – exhausted by the impressions and the demanding off-road terrain, but happy.
Back at our accommodation, we grabbed a bite to eat and got some rest – ready for the next adventurous day of our journey. 😊

Conclusion: Our day on the DN66A was challenging, but absolutely worth it. The tough route offered spectacular views and peaceful breaks in Cerna Sat. At the reservoir, we were rewarded with stunning nature – making every bit of effort along the way worthwhile.