The Road to Arak

The "road to Arak" (for want of a proper name) long ago led from Sidnar to the heart of the Mountains of Misery. There it joined the road that preceded that of the planned Strigos Road and that at that time led to the Old Svalich Road in eastern Barovia. The road from Sidnar would have passed between Mount Nirka and Mount Nyid. The principle function of the road was swept away along with the Arakians in 588 BC by the Scourge of Arak. The reputation that Arak would acquire in subsequent years was ample deterrence against the use of the road for prospecting or exploring beyond the Darkonian frontier. Whether the Darkonian portion of the road remained in use and was maintained over the decades that followed is unclear. There was more reason for the would-be dwarven and gnomish miners of Tempe Falls and Mayvin to have maintained the Darkonian portion of the predecessor to the Strigos Road. Its condition as of 750 BC was such that it afforded passage only on foot due to washouts, rockslides, boulders, and fallen trees. Within the former territory of Arak, the essential absence of trees, except near the frontier, eliminated one obstacle but gave free reign to erosion with the consequence that the other obstacles would be far worse. There are no known plans for the reopening of the "road to Arak".