Wildlife sound recording expedition to Romania
September 25 - October 3 2026

Join me on this small group expedition to Northern Romania where we will record the sounds of wildlife in one of Europe’s last wildernesses. Autumn is the perfect time to record red deer rutting, which is one of the most intense wildlife sounds you can hear in Europe. October is when owlets fledge their nests and become quite vocal, so the forests will be resonating with owl sounds. It is also possible to record wolves, even though it’s not their mating season. We will have access to wild roaming bison, and there is a chance to capture their sounds. Lastly, there will be plenty of quiet nature to capture the sounds of rain, wind and potentially even thunderstorms.

Key facts

Fee - £2100 per person (+VAT if you are in the UK)
Group size - 3 attendees plus expedition leader
Dates - Sep 25 - Oct 3 2026
Pickup/dropoff - Iasi airport, Romania (IAS)
Base - hotel in Pascani and/or Targu Neamt, Romania
Proficiency level - basic sound recording knowledge required
Equipment - bring your own, some kit available to borrow
Fitness level - moderate physical activity expected
Fee includes lodging on a single basis, food, snacks, coffee, transportation, access
Fee does not include flights, visas, personal expenses, alcohol, tips
£500 required to confirm attendance, balance due one week before the trip

What to bring

• head torch

• thermos flask

• cold weather clothing

• base layers, ideally merino wool

• binoculars

• waterproof footwear

• insect repellent

Discussions

Introduction to wildlife and nature sound recording
Listening in the field
Recording equipment basics
Attended vs unattended recording - drop rigs, tree ears
Field recording for sound design
Working with studios and brands

Field work

We aim to spend full days in the wild exploring the landscapes and field recording sounds. We will be driving and hiking to reach our recording locations and we have local support from porters and rangers if needed. We will do animal tracking and species observation so we can understand their behaviours and capture their calls. Our main approach to field recording will be unattended with drop rigs, but we will also bring directional microphones to capture sounds as we go.

We will do at least one early predawn session and one night outing, so we can better immerse ourselves in the land- and soundscape. Our schedule will be flexible as we need to adapt to weather conditions. There are more good locations than time permits, so I will do some recces before the expedition starts. This way we’ll be able to make informed decisions about which species and locations we should focus on.

Our mission in the wilds of Romania will be twofold. One the one hand, we are going there to learn how to record wildlife sounds in the field in relatively safe but demanding conditions. On the other hand, we will be building a sound recording collection and putting it to work through storytelling. I expect each of us to end up with enough material for a small finalised project, be it a Youtube video, blog post, podcast episode, article, book etc.

Key species

• Red deer - Cervus elaphus

• Northern raven - Corvus corax

• Ural owl - Strix uralensis

• Tawny owl - Strix aluco

• Boreal owl - Aegolius funereus

• Eurasian eagle owl - Bubo bubo

• Black woodpecker - Dryocopus martius

Expedition leader

I am George Vlad and I have more than 15 years of experience as a field recordist and sound designer. I grew up in these landscapes and I have a deep connection with the land here. I’ve worked on many high profile projects including Dune Part II, Mufasa the Lion King, Google Sound Matters for Pixel devices etc. I’ve had the privilege of recording in many parts of the world but I come back to Romania a few times every year. More info about me at https://mindful-audio.com/george-vlad-credits.

Disclaimer

Autumn is a great time to record wildlife in this part of Romania, but the weather can be unpredictable. In some years it’s been warm and dry, and in others there has been cold and frost. While access might be more difficult, we aim to explore these landscapes regardless of the weather. We will have support from local rangers and explorers, plus capable 4x4 vehicles and excellent local knowledge.

A note on recording wildlife and nature. The outdoors isn’t a zoo and wild animals are unpredictable. I have been exploring and recording in these landscapes for decades but there is never a guarantee of seeing/hearing certain species. Maximising time in the field and immersing ourselves in the landscape merely gives us the best chances of encounters. The rest is up to nature and wildlife.

Feedback from previous expeditions

Houstin Lichtenwalner wrote a nice blog post about his experience joining me on expedition: https://fieldlog.net/blog/2026/05/fieldcraft-is-the-definition-of-a-craft/

Questions/How to book

Email me through the contact form and I will get back to you. See you out there!