Exploring The Risnov, Romania Valea Cetatii Cave

After my disappointing trip to the Risnov Fortress I cycled up the road and into the mountains for another two kilometers before reaching a gravel path that went another 800 meters uphill to the entrance of the Valea Cetatii Cave. I paid 15 lei to enter to cave with an English-speaking guide who took me and a Marine family of four from California through the small cavern. Inside, a series of LED lights illuminated some of the more interesting segments of the cave. Stalactites and stalagmites could be spotted in nearly every direction and water dripped constantly from the ceilings. At one point, our guide turned out the lights in the cave completely and we sat in pure blackness just listening to the water fall from the ceiling. While the lights were out our guide said, “Can you imagine getting trapped in here without a flashlight? You would stumble around for days and never find the opening. Can you imagine?” And that was the end of the tour. We then exited the cave, I retrieved my bicycle from a nearby tree where I had locked it up, and then I spend the next hour or so cycling back to Brasov as the sun set behind me and I struggled to keep warm.