Caving in Romania: Under the hills with a local cave explorer ⛰️🏕️

WHY ROMANIA? Romania is such an underrated travel destination, a vast playground for adventurers, home to some of the last truly wild forests of Europe, the country of Dracula and other mysteries, myths and legends, a land of castles perched on the ridges of the Carpathian Mountains, a place to reconnect with nature. If you enjoy caving, Romania is home to over 13,000 caves, many of them of spectacular size and beauty. WHY JOIN MY TRIP AND WHO AM I? Call me Andy. Archaeologist, university lecturer, adventurer, and professional cave explorer. I have visited, mapped, and explored hundreds of caves all around the world, cycled and ran thousands of kilometers across the vast deserts of China, climbed 6000 meters peaks in the Qilian and Kunlun Mountains. I know the location of caves you won’t find on any maps, and I can introduce you to the magical world of the underground, as well as giving you training on the basics of spelunking. WHICH CAVES WILL WE EXPLORE? Our main adventure will be exploring a cave with over 4 km of passages in the Mehedinti Plateau. This is not a show cave, so there are no stairs, elevators, pathways, or lights. We will explore the cave as an independent team, carrying our gear, provisions, and light sources. On the second day we will explore Balta Cave and then we will visit the entrance to Topolnita cave, one of the largest cave portals in Romania. If we have enough time, there are numerous smaller caves we can check out. IS IT DANGEROUS? I have chosen caves where no technical gear or skills are required, there are no vertical pits, no chance of getting lost. If you can hike 5-10 km, then you can do it. Being moderately fit is required. ACCOMODATION! ⛺️ This being a chance to explore wild places, we will be SLEEPING IN TENTS, so you must be aware there will be no bathrooms (yes you must be comfortable with doing a no. 2 in the forest), no beds, and no kitchen. There will be NO ELECTRICITY 🪫 except for some power banks I’ll bring along (but I encourage you to bring yours also). Internet and mobile coverage are patchy, so prepare for an off-the-grid adventure. Each person will have their own tent and sleeping mat, but you must bring your own sleeping bag. I will send you a comprehensive list of the gear required or recommended. The campsite is very close to the cave entrance, so we don’t have to carry our camping gear over long distances. FOOD! 🍱 There are NO RESTAURANTS in the immediate vicinity of the caves, but there are some small shops in the villages nearby where we could grab some snacks and such. It is advisable that we buy our food in a supermarket in Craiova and prepare it over the campfire. WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THE PRICE? - Transportation from Craiova 🚗 (I will pick you up from the airport, train station, long-distance bus station, and hotel) to the caves and back to Craiova. We will use my personal car. - Advice and support on how to get to Romania/Craiova. - Advice and support on other possible locations you could visit while in Romania. - Accommodation in tents ⛺️ (a separate tent for each person). - Helmets for cave exploration. ⛑️ I have a feeling you’ll have a much better experience if you don’t bump your heads on anything, so I got you covered on this. - My expertise as an outdoor enthusiast and professional cave explorer. I’ll take you there and back, under and out, and I’ll tell you lots of stories on the way. - Introductory training on spelunking. Get your hands dirty (literally) with caving, maybe you’ll discover a new passion. - Toilet paper 😅 Yup, I’m sure you’ll forget to bring some. Thank me later. So what are you waiting for?! Join me on a one-of-a-kind adventure in Romania ⛰️🏕️ If you have any questions or if something isn't clear feel free to send me a message and I'll reply as soon as possible. FINAL NOTES *It takes 2-3 hours to drive to the Mehedinti Geopark from Craiova so we should start early morning on Saturday. It is preferable you arrive in Craiova on Friday evening. I can help you find accommodation and we can meet up Friday evening for a drink and to discuss our trip. We can also do our grocery shopping in the evening. ** We will return to Craiova late in the evening on Sunday. *** My German and Italian are rusty but good enough to have a good laugh while trying to communicate.