The Romanian Carpathians surround the Transylvanian basin northward, eastward and westward, like a protection wall; that is why they are, with good reason, called " the blackbone " of the Romanian teritory.
Besides the Danube and the Black Sea, the Carpathians are the fundamental geographical element in defining the territory of Romania. The name itself: Carpati, comes from the powerful Geto-Dacian tribe called Carp: Karpathos - Horos, according to the earliest Greek historical information.
The flora of the Carpathians includes more than 1350 species, among which many are endemic. Deep forest cover more than one third of the country’s surface.
The fauna of the Romanian Carpathians is also extremely rich and diverse. Here is found the higher concentration of large carnivores anywhere in Europe (about 6000 brown bears – mare than half of Europe’s bear population, about 3500 wolves (over a third of Europe’s wolves), along with 2000 lynx (35% of Europe’s lynx).
The Carpathians create a wonderful scenery, with green valleys nestled between foothills ascending to wild crags or precipitous gorges. The little villages encountered on the way, the secret shepherd’s paths bring a unique, pastoral fragrance, long forgotten by the modern world.
The mountains’ beautiful forests and glades, lakes and springs, waterfalls, bizarrely eroded rock formations, glaciers, canyons, caves etc offer a wealth of natural beauty, history and adventure matched only by the country’s rich cultural heritage.