Tâmpa Peak – Brașov, Postăvaru Mountains

Hike or run, as you wish

Tâmpa Peak – Gabony’s Steps – Braşov

Introduction

Hello again! Continuation from the previous article The story continues after the article describing where I climbed Vf. Tampa, running, via Saua Tampa. As I was not going to stay and spend the night on this forested hill populated with bears, I had to go down and finish the mountain running training first.

Location and access

Tâmpa Peak (960 m a.s.l.) – everyone knows it, because it guards Brasov and because there on the top are mounted those big letters with the name of the city and because up there, the cable car goes up and down, thus being a very visited. Tampa Peak is part of the Postavaru Massif.

Access is from the promenade area below Tampa, next to the fortress wall. From here start 3 access options to Tampa peak plus the cable car.

Route Map

(click on objectives for extended version)

Technical Box

Length: 2 km

Duration: 1 hour

Marking: yellow triangle (I also made a small combination with a red triangle)

Difficulty: difficult

Start: 18:00, Arrival: 18:28

Difference in level: -380 m

Minimum altitude: 590 m

Maximum altitude: 940 m

1. Tampa Peak (Cabel Cars Descent Station) – Gabony’s Steps

I decided to go down the harder version of the 3 presented in the previous article (via Saua Tampei, via Drumul Seroentinelor and via Treptele lui Gabony), that is, the last one. The descent time is 1 hour on each of them.

18:00. I mark first the photo with the relay near the cable car station. We have to follow the yellow triangle marking.

The path passes right next to the relay construction and descends some cement steps. We will follow the ridge line, through the forest, on the path and in a few minutes we will pass an antenna. I like this path better than the wide road I went up. I sniff and run quite slowly because there are many tree roots, some covered with leaves and slippery because of the rain earlier. Not long after, several beautiful views of the city open up, in some clearings there are also places to stop. We begin to feel the downward slope of the path even if it is not pronounced yet.

belvedere

ridge

antenna

me

Belvedere

descent

2. Gabony’s steps – Braşov (lower cable car station)

Time 18:11 – 18:16. The most spectacular is the rightly called “Gabony’s Steps”. They are really stone steps. In some places, the path is bordered by a safety metal parapet. The city is closer. This segment of steps, as well as a portion after them where the path crosses some polished rocks, had to be approached with great care, I basically walked, I didn’t run anymore, so as not to slip. The last section was again the usual forest path, good for running.

Time 18:24. I arrived at the intersection with the red triangle, “Drumul serpentinelor”. And I followed this new marking, because it is a short cut that takes you near the bottom station of the cable car.

Time 18:25. I arrived at the asphalt, next to the cabin station building. We are at the superb place on the promenade under Tâmpa. From here I ran a little further (600 m) towards the city, to Michael Weiss Street, where I wanted to end my shift. And on the way down I met people, but none on the ridge, in the forest, where I whistled from time to time to announce my presence so as not to meet the bear.

The steps of Gabony

Braşov

rocks

me on Mount Tâmpa

the red triangle route

The cable car boarding station

Promenade

Conclusion

Of the 3 access options to Vârful Tâmpa, this is the most difficult. It’s hard for me to say if it’s more approachable going up than going down. But it is more beautiful, wilder. It is worth approaching the ascent and descent of Tâmpa on different routes because you will have different perspectives at the viewpoints, especially if you opt for the extreme routes, presented here. I kind of ran you over, it can be seen from the moving pictures, I apologize.

All the best!

Steps: