Ocolașul Mare

Ocolașul Mare (Romanian: Vârful Ocolașul Mare) is the highest summit of the Ceahlău Massif in the Eastern Carpathians, 1,907 m above sea level. It lies in Neamț County, according to Czech Wikipedia about 12 km north-west of the town of Bicaz and 30 km west of Piatra Neamț. Neighbouring Toaca (1,904 m) stands only 2.8 km to the north and is just 3 m lower, so some sources wrongly consider it the highest.

According to the Ceahlău National Park, the massif is surrounded by the Bistricioara valley to the north, the Bicaz valley to the south, the Bistrița valley (with the Izvorul Muntelui reservoir) to the east and the Bistra, Pintic and Jidanu valleys to the west. Its ridges radiate at 1,000–1,300 m and converge on the two highest summits, Ocolașul Mare and Toaca. The nearest villages — Secu, Pintic and Neagra — are 7–9 km from the summit.

How to get there / routes

There is no marked path to the summit itself: Ocolașul Mare is a scientific reserve, and under the park rules access is possible only with the administration's written consent and, where required, accompanied by park staff. You can see the mountain up close from park route No. 3 with the red stripe: from the Izvorul Muntelui hut past the park visitor centre and the Poiana Maicilor meadow (1,321 m) to the Ocolașul Mic plateau and on to the Dochia hut. According to the park, the ascent takes 4.5–5 hours and the descent 3 hours; length 6.9 km, height difference 1,220 m, medium difficulty. From Poiana Maicilor to Dochia the route shares the path with the blue cross from the village of Neagra.

The path runs below the rock wall of the Ocolașul Mic plateau with its tower-like tops — Turnul lui Butu și Ana, Turnul Crucii, Vârful Ascuțit — and past two haystack-like conglomerate rocks known as Clăile lui Miron; the larger one rises to 1,650 m.

What you can see from the summit

Since the summit is closed, the best views of it are from the Ocolașul Mic plateau and around the Dochia hut, where Ocolașul Mare rises above the belt of dwarf mountain pine. From the edge of the plateau in clear weather you can see the Izvorul Muntelui reservoir to the east and the Hășmaș massif to the south-west.

Nature and history

The Ocolașul Mare scientific reserve covers about 97 ha. According to the park, 252 plant species have been recorded here, 62 of them on the Red List of vascular plants of Romania — a quarter of the local flora needs protection. Scientists have described nine types of plant communities here, some of which occur in only a few Romanian massifs. The reserve is also valuable because dwarf mountain pine thickets — a priority Natura 2000 habitat — are regenerating naturally. The massif hosts orchids such as Nigritella and lady's slipper, as well as edelweiss and mountain avens; mammals include red deer, wolves, bears and lynx.

Ceahlău is one of Romania's mountains richest in legends. A folk tale recorded by the park tells of the old shepherd Miron from Bicazu Ardelean, who grazed his flocks below Ocolașul Mare and played his flute by the rocks that now bear his name.

Safety, season and rules

The summit of Ocolașul Mare itself is closed to tourists: it lies in a scientific reserve, and entering it without written permission from the park is not allowed. According to the park, the Poiana Maicilor – Dochia hut section of route 3 is not recommended in winter. The massif is protected by the Ceahlău National Park. Under the park rules, entry is allowed only after paying the visitor fee and only on marked trails; tents only in designated places (a bivouac is allowed in an emergency), dogs must be on a lead, fires are prohibited, and so is picking berries, mushrooms or medicinal plants without written permission from the administration. Access to the Ocolașul Mare and Polița cu Crini scientific reserves is possible only with the written consent of the park administration and, where required, with its escort. In winter the high ridges carry a serious avalanche risk — follow the avalanche bulletin of Romania's National Meteorological Administration (ANM) on meteoromania.ro.

Bears are common in the Romanian Carpathians. Salvamont rescuers advise not to hike alone, to talk loudly so that an animal hears you in advance, to keep your distance and never feed wildlife, and to store food in sealed containers away from your tent; if you meet a bear, do not run and back away slowly without turning your back.

Mountain rescue: Salvamont national dispatch 0SALVAMONT = 0725 826 668 and the emergency number 112.

Interesting facts

• Ocolașul Mare is only 3 m higher than the famous Toaca.
• A quarter of the reserve's plant species are on Romania's Red List.

Photos: xulescu_g, CC BY-SA 2.0; Cristibur, Public domain; zaFleur, CC BY-SA 3.0 — Wikimedia Commons.