Ordancusii Gorge & Ionele’s Gate Cave
Located in the Western Carpathians, the Ordancusii Gorge is an asphalted road along the Ordancusa valley, stretching for four kilometers. The gorge is made up of a lot of caves, of which the most tourist-friendly is Ionele’s Gate cave, halfway through the gorge. The gorge and cave can be easily accessed by car from Garda de Sus, very close to the path leading up to Scarisoara Ice Cave. The road is pretty good, only a little narrow, so you’ve gotta watch out for cars coming on the other streak of the road.
Ordancusii Gorge – Western Carpathians
Ordancusii Gorge – Western Carpathians
Besides the large number of caves you can observe along the way, the beautiful scenery is completed by tens of waterfalls, all heading towards the Ordancusa stream, making the place even more beautiful:
caves along Ordancusa Gorge – Western Carpathians
waterfalls along Ordancusa Gorge – Western Carpathians
Once you get to Ionele’s Gate Cave, you’ll see that the road and the newly-built steps are leading the path without any confusion. The place is full of signposts leading up to the mouth of the cave, so I doubt anyone could get lost along the way:
the mouth of Ionele’s Gate Cave
For a symbolic fee, one can get in (preferably after a group has gathered), and check out the cave, which is 131 meters long and has a portal that is more than 10 meters high. There is a guide who can answer your questions regarding the cave and the area, although I’m not quite sure if he knows good English. The cave is not so spectacular as the ice cave or the Bear’s Cave of Chiscau, but I think it’s still worth a stop (considering the beautiful area it is located in).
inside Ionele’s Gate Cave – Western Carpathians
Ionele’s Gate Cave – Western Carpathians
entrance of Ionele’s Gate Cave from inside
I can’t stress enough how beautiful the Western Carpathians are! Even if you don’t like hiking, there are still a lot of attractions and beautiful natural wonders you can see and approach by car! So don’t hesitate to visit, because you’ll be missing out on some very cool sights if you skip this part of the country! If you want to explore the area a bit more, I’d recommend checking out the Bear’s Cave and Scarisoara Ice Cave. The Detunata is also close-by.
PS: I’ve advertised this on Facebook and Twitter, but I’m gonna go ahead and give a shout-out to Airbnb here as well. I’ve recently made my very first booking with Airbnb, because I found an awesome apartment right on the seaside in Croatia. If you know you’re going to need accommodation anytime this year, and are looking for something more than a hotel, sign up via this link to get $25 off for your first booking! You don’t have to book right away, because if you log in the system will remember you, and you can even redeem those 25 dollars if you book, say, three-four months from now.
Happy accommodation-hunting!
And I hope that I’ve convinced you a bit to squeeze the Western Carpathians of Romania into your visiting schedule!
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I’ve heard of Ionele’s Gate Cave but never got the chance to visit it. The path to it looks beautiful! 😀 Also, when are you going to Croatia? I wanted to go in May, but we decided on a Greek island instead (I wasn’t happy about it, haha).
The whole area is just amazing, I could go around exploring it for weeks I think.. Ionele’s Gate is not the top attraction of the area, since Scarisoara is more famous and spectacular (as well as Pestera Ursilor), but I still think it’s worth a visit 🙂
We’ll be going in August but will have only 4 days in Croatia, since we’ll spend 2 in Hungary (Szekesfehervar and Demjen Cave Bath & Aquapark), 1 day in Slovenia (I’ve chosen the Skocjan and Postojna caves & the Predjama castle, but during my research I decided that I’m gonna have to do a separate holiday just in Slovenia and at least stay for 10 days since it’s sooo beautiful! -next year maybe :), and an extra day in Venice.
Which island in Greece? 🙂 Are you going in May? I’ve only been to Skiathos on a one-day trip from the mainland. It was pretty, but since it’s a small island it was awfully crowded (again, in August).
Yes, we’re going to Thassos in May. Unless I convince them to go to Dubrovnik, haha. 😀 Our other option was going to Budapest, Vienna and Bratislava but it’s a looong drive and a lot more expensive.
Thassos is lovely! I heard from a relative who has been going back every summer for the last 5 years, that if you like to avoid the crowds you can just go a few bays further and you’ll have a whole beach for yourself 🙂