Cheile Varghisului (ADE 500) Varghis - Poteca Cheii - Canton Tiglarie - Vf. Mal - Belvedere II - Poteca Lupilor - Varghis

When: August 2024. Trail length: 13 km
Description, map & photos by instagram.com/cookiecocker.gt/

Time: 5h15m. Moderate, steady pace - including rest-breaks, landscapes & photos, sandwich-breaks. The uploaded photos were taken by me on this trail

My objectives: Grota Tatarilor (km 1.8); Turnul lui Csala (690 m; km 2.1); Pestera Meresti (Orbán Balázs; km 2.5); Pestera Sura Cailor (km 2.6); ruinele Capelei Tatarilor (km 7.7); Vf. Mal (931 m; km 8.8); Belvedere II (722 m; km 10.5); Belvedere I (km 11.5)

Segments of my trip:

Centrul de Vizitare Cheile Varghisului (near Varghis village) - Turnul lui Csala - Grota Tatarilor - Pestera Meresti (Orbán Balázs) - Pestera Sura Cailor - Poteca Cheii - Canton Tiglarie. Trail-mark: blue cross; also unmarked path from the river to Turnul lui Csala. Time: 2h30m, including rest-breaks, landscapes & photos, sandwich-break and a quick look of the caves - mainly the areas near the entrance

Canton Tiglarie - ruinele Capelei Tatarilor - Vf. Mal. Trail-marks: yellow stripe to Poiana Pietrii; next - red triangle from the forest edge to Vf. Mal (Mal Peak); also unmarked path-sections. Time: 1h45m, including rest-breaks, landscapes & photos

Vf. Mal - Refugiul Belvedere II - Poteca Lupilor - Belvedere I - Centrul de Vizitare Cheile Varghisului (near Varghis village). Trail-marks: red triangle from Vf. Mal to the forest edge; next - red dot from the forest edge near Belvedere II to the river; next - blue cross until the end of the trip. Time: 1h45m, including rest-breaks, landscapes & photos, sandwich-break

Poteca Cheii (Gorge’s Path) includes also eight swinging wooden-bridges, one fixed wooden-bridge and two metal-bridges which cross the Varghis river. The map contains three detours - 1st to Turnul lui Csala (Csala Tower, which contains itself a detour - to Grota Tatarilor), 2nd to Mal Peak and 3rd to Belvedere I. Metal-chains to hold for safety: I noticed 3 sections - 1st of approx. 1 meter, 2nd of 20 m and 3rd of 8 m

Tips: Could be tricky to locate the beautiful Grota Tatarilor (unmarked path). Same case with Capela Tatarilor - it is in the large meadow quite close (maybe like 250 meters) to both the refuge-hut and the point Belvedere II, completely hidden under a huge tree. Tricky to spot also the point Belvedere I - it is maybe like 100 meters (unmarked path) at the right of the red-dot-path

Transport: I traveled by car to Varghis village. The last 1,2 km near Centrul de Vizitare Cheile Varghisului (the one on the Varghis village side) is a gravel-road

Have fun :)