Through the Iron Gate

On Friday, April 4th our ship left Belgrade and sailed east during the night.  I loved sleeping on the ship, hearing the engines and feeling the slight vibration, knowing when I wake in the morning I will see a new place.

This a a photo I took early that morning as we approached the section of the Danube River called the Iron Gate, or more specifically the Iron Gate Gorge.  The river narrows here to 140 meters and reaches a depth of around 90 meters.  In this area the border between Serbia and Romania runs along the middle of the Danube.  As we sailed we saw Serbia and the Balkan Hills on the starboard side and Romania and the Carpathian Hills on the port side.

I got up early to take these photos.  The crew had suggested the night before that we might not want to  miss the scenery along this part of the river.  There was some new sight around every bend.

Remains of the 14th century Golubac Castle, on the Serbian side.

Villages along the Romanian side.

On the Romanian side, this statue was carved into the rock during 1994 to 2004.  It is the face of Decebalus, King of the Dacians.  The Dacians lived in this part of Romania during the first century BC and the second century AD.

At this point we are approaching the narrowest part of the gorge, where a large lock and dam complex was built between 1960 and 1971.  Most of the passengers on the ship came out to watch as we approached and went through the lock.

And onward we go… next stop, Bulgaria.