The beauty of exploring close to home

It's funny how sometimes you travel halfway around the world to discover beautiful places, while some beautiful ones are waiting right near home!

I'd been curious about the Crovurile Mehedinților for years, especially since they're so close to my hometown. Yet somehow, despite all my mountain adventures, I'd never actually made it there. So this autumn, I finally decided to go!

Starting from the Băile Herculane area, we headed into the Mehedinți Mountains for a beautiful hike through the rocky landscapes and the fascinating crovuri, those unusual grassy depressions surrounded by limestone ridges. The autumn colors made everything even more beautiful, and I was genuinely impressed by the scenery.

After exploring the mountains and enjoying the views, the trail eventually took us back down towards the Cerna Valley, completing a lovely day in nature.

I was so happy to finally discover this little corner of Romania that had been on my mind for such a long time. And I couldn't help smiling at the irony of having traveled to so many distant places before exploring something so beautiful, practically in my own backyard!