Buila-Vânturarița National Park
The Buila-Vânturariţa massif is located in the central-northern part of Vâlcea County and is part of the Căpăţânii Mountains. The massif stands out from the main chain of these mountains through its orientation, its geology and its relief. The main ridge of the Căpăţânii Mountains, made up mostly of crystalline schists, runs east-west, with secondary ridges extending north and south. The exceptions are two limestone massifs whose main ridges run SW-NE: the Târnovu Massif in the north-west and the Buila-Vânturariţa Massif in the south-east.
The Buila-Vânturariţa massif stretches from west of the Bistriţa Gorges to east of the Olăneşti Gorges (Folea). It is connected to the Căpăţânii Mountains through Plaiul Netedu (the interfluve between the Bistriţa and Costeşti rivers), Plaiul Lespezi (the interfluve between the Costeşti and Cheia rivers) and Plaiul Hădărău (the interfluve between the Cheia and Olăneşti rivers).
The Buila-Vânturariţa ridge has a linear layout, with a length of about 14 km and a width of between 0.5 and 2.5 m km (the extent of the Jurassic limestones). The highest altitude is at Vânturariţa Mare Peak (1885 m), and the lowest where the Bistriţa leaves the gorges (550 m).
The main peaks of the massif, from south-west to north-east, are: Arnota (1183.7 m), Muntele Cacova (1525.1 m), Muntele Piatra (1643 m), Muntele Albu (1658.9 m), Buila (1848.6 m), Ştevioara (1847 m), Vânturariţa Mare (1885.2 m), Vioreanu (1866 m), Vânturariţa Mică (1655 m), Stogu (981 m).