Still on the way to our next destination written on the little notepad we carry with us with a list of the things we want to discover on that journey, we crossed a place that even though we've seen for quite a few times already, it's almost impossible not to stop one more time and spend a while.
The Red Lake is a fairly popular attraction of Romania, especially that you get very close to it while being on the way to Cheile Bicazului so it's hard not to see it or be curious what's with so many cars and tourists in a single place.
However, nor the crowd or the big number of people you will notice won't make you want to stay away from this lake because I promise it's something that you won't see every day and you have plenty of activities that you can enjoy there to reconnect more with the wilderness of the nature.
Usually, I'm not a fan of crowded locations or these sightseeing attractions that make you run into a bunch of people without being able to even see what you wanted entirely, but on The Red Lake the things are a little bit different.
Hence why, no matter how many people will be there, the lake is large enough so you can find a spot just for yourself and take plenty of pictures or even rent a boat for a more interesting exploration.
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Even the boat themselves create a great scenery with a lot more colour added to the whole picture that otherwise could turn into a quite sober landscape if it's a cloudy day. I'm saying that from my own experience because if you look carefully at the images attached you will notice that we caught a pretty changeable weather running from the clear blue sky to a gray one in no time.
And just like every place comes with its own story why it's being called like that and how it was formed, The Red Lake makes no exception to the rule even though the lake is not really red as its name says.
First of all, we are talking about a lake formed naturally after the collapse of a slope during the earthquake from 23rd January 1838 that presented level 8th of intensity with almost 7 magnitude.
The name of the lake is mostly based on the river with the same name that crosses the area having iron oxides and hydroxides in its composition that leave behind red layers over the stones from the water.
However, the name of the lake was not always Lacul Roșu but also Gyilkostó (in Hungarian) or Mördersee (in German), both of the names being translated as The Killer Lake.
The story behind this 2nd name comes with a legend that says that the place where the lake was formed was a fairly big village which was entirely buried and took into the underground hundreds of people with their pets and houses, bringing to the surface just a red liquid which was the blood of those who lost their lives.
I usually like legends because these are the ones who make the places seem a lot more interesting sometimes, but judging on the surface of the lake that covers around 11,47 hectares and you can notice on most of its area these tree trunks, makes me think more of a forest that was flooded with water rather than a village because I can't see too much space where this one could ever be existing.
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Talking about the tree trunks, this is a fairly unique lake you will see in Romania and that's why it represents the most important lake of the country from the last ice age that came with many changes in the mountains but especially for the forest that was flooded and the trees that were petrified because of the movement of the clay mass.
Despite the thing about how the whole place was formed and the consequences the earthquake came with, Lacul Roșu and its surroundings represent the best place for anyone who's being exhausted physically or mentally, suffers from insomnia or other diseases, because the air is very purified and rich in natural aerosols. Additionally, the average temperature is 8°C, which is 2 degrees warmer than the temperature you will find in the intramontane depressions. The explanation comes from talking about a place that is very well surrounded by stones and forests which make the valley stay away from winds or powerful storms.
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The Red Lake is the largest barrier lake in the Eastern Carpathian Mountains and it can easily reach a depth of around 11 meters in some areas. But along with the boat ride that is the main activity there, you can also follow plenty of paths exploring the surroundings or even reaching the peaks of the mountains from where the natural disaster came, but you should be really well equipped because not for a few times there were noticed wolves and bears nearby.
There is also a panoramic point from where you can get a more wonderful view over the lake but which we gave up on because there was a big queue of people waiting to take pictures.
Lacul Roșu is powered by 4 large streams and 12 temporary watercourses which make it maintain a constant volume of 587,503 m³. In order to reach the lake, you must known that this is located at the foot of Hășmașul Mare Mountains with just a few km before reaching Cheile Bicazului and 26 km away from Gheorgheni city.
The road you need to follow is DN12C, which also represents the single path that gets through this side of the mountains and you will cross both of the sightseeing attractions mentioned before.
SEE YOU IN THE NEXT TRIP! 🗾
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