Hiking

Hiking the Iconic Koppenberg Route in Flanders

With two guys in the house that absolutely love cycling. We had to hike this route. It is a 15.3 kilometer hike, starting in Nukerke in the Flemish Ardennes. The hike takes you along some of the famous climbs of the tour of Flanders. This time not with a bike, but we hiked on foot. 66% of the hike is paved, as it takes you along the beautiful back roads of the Flemish Ardennes. But you also cross through some of the most beautiful forests in the Flemish Ardennes. Especially in the spring, when all the spring flowers are blooming and the trees are starting to turn green.

We parked our car next to the church in Nukerke. Which is free of charge. In front the church you will find the first node. Which will take you out of town. Up until the road N60. which you have to cross, both at the beginning and at the end of the hike. But after the crossing you will walk along the most beautiful back roads and through the winding forests. The first forest that you will walk along is the Spijker Forest. It is one of the few forest laying on a south slope. Which means you can enjoy the sunshine here the entire day. Which we did, as we chose a beautiful sunny spring day to hike this route.

When you leave the forest of Spijker. You will walk along the beautiful country side of the Flemish Ardennes. With a beautiful view over the rolling hills. You will also have some climbs on your way. After a while, you enter back into the Spijker forest. When we were there the Spijker forest was covered in forest anemones. Which was incredibly beautiful. We also spotted a few bluebells already blooming.

Unfortunately we had to leave the forest again, and we headed over to the famous Koppenberg, with its 22% incline. Lucky for us, you hike up the Koppenberg from the side. You hike down the path the tour of Flanders comes up the incline. Ofcourse you can’t visit this iconic place of the tour of Flanders, without spotting a lot of cyclist. I wouldn’t have liked to trade places with them cycling up. If you are a cycling enthusiast, this is a perfect way to explore this iconic incline. You can do so without the pain of cycling up.

After the Koppenberg it was time to head back into the forest, this time it was the Koppenburg forest. If you don’t feel like hiking an incline, you can skip the hike up in the forest. As when you hike along the road you will end up at the same point again. As the nodes will only take you up the stairs in the forest and back down. We did hike up and down though. After this it was back into the Koppenbergforest for the last stretch of the hike. The Koppenberg forest is a beautiful forest. In the forest you will find information boards about the role the forest played in World War I. In spring you will also find bluebells in this forest. We didn’t spot any blooming yet, but the first signs of their leaves are already popping up everywhere. This forest path takes you through the forest back up the N60. Where you will hike parallel to it for about one kilometer. You have to cross it one last time to finish in the village of Nukerke.

Let me know if you would go and hike this beautiful route.

Starting point: Nukerkeplein, Maarkedal
Length: 15.3 kilometers
Starting point: Nukerkeplein, Maarkedal
Elevation: 350 meters
Time: we hiked this in 4 hours, with a lunch break

Discover the Haller Forest: A Spring Hike in Belgium

The beautiful forest of Haller is located near Brussel, Belgium. It is famous for the beautiful blue bells in spring. But the Haller forest is beautiful in every season. In March we hiked the 7 kilometer yellow roe deer route. It takes you through 3 of the 4 valleys you will find in the Hallerforest. And about 50% of the hike takes you through the blue bell areas in the forest. During blue bell season there are special blue bell hikes set out.

We started our hike at parking 1. There are different parking areas in the Haller forest and they are all free of charge. Since we parked at parking one, we had to hike about 1 kilometer to the start of the trail. We wanted to hike further than 7 kilometers, so this wasn’t too bad. One of the things we love about hiking in the Haller forest is that it isn’t flat like the Netherlands. So you start off with a descent and ascent right away. The other thing I love about the Haller forest is the variety in trees. Even in March, the forest wasn’t completely bare. It was actually still quite green in some areas with needle leave trees. And a big plus is that the needle trees smell amazing.

This hike completely takes you through the forest. If you want to hike even further, you can connect the yellow and the blue hike. This connection makes for an even longer hike. We decided while hiking up to the start of the route from the parking lot. We would only do the yellow route.

As I said the hike takes you through 3 of the 4 valleys of the Haller forest. I love the diversity of the different valleys, with different trees and different plants. Besides blue bells, you will find many wild flowers during spring here. We already spotted the first sign of wood anemones.

Also the height differences makes for a beautiful sight. It also makes this hike a little bit more challenging than the average forest hike in the Netherlands. Even though we have had a lot of rain this winter, the trails weren’t muddy. Which made for a pleasant hiking experience during this time of the year.

If you plan to visit during the blue bell season, check the forest’s website. This will guarantee you know which parking areas are open. You can also check and see if the bluebells are in bloom yet.

Let me know if you decide to visit this forest in Belgium this year.

Make This Valentine’s Special with Outdoor Dates

I am not a big fan of Valentine’s Day to be honest. But I never mind an outdoor date whenever possible. I prefer it much over a date night in the city. I prefer to spend my time outdoors. Like going for day hikes or an outdoor activity, like riding my bike. If you are an outdoor lover like me, you will like one if these five date ideas.

An outdoor picnic
Going for a picnic is always a good idea. You can bring some delicious food with you while you go hiking. Alternatively, you can go outside just for the purpose of having a picnic. Both are good choices. All you need is some blankets and some food and you are good to go. You can choose a spot somewhere in nature. If it is a rainy day, you can use the booth of your car for a car picnic. Just make sure to park your car somewhere with a beautiful view. For example in Zeeland you can park your car at the lighthouse in Westkapelle.

Bring some food you normally wouldn’t take. Try some tapas and some gluhwine. Enjoy a picnic with just the two of you.
Go stargazing
When the weather is clear, you can pack up some blankets to go stargazing together. Put them in the boot of your car to create a cozy spot to just sit back and relax. Find a spot where you have a free view of the sky. Make sure there is not a lot of light pollution. Bring some hot beverages and blankets to keep you warm. Also don’t forget some snacks. A stargazing trip without snacks isn’t complete. I went stargazing on La Palma once and it was the most perfect date night ever.
Go camping
Head out for the weekend with a tent. Find a campsite where you are allowed to pitch a fire next to your tent. In the Netherlands you can look at the ‘Natuurkampeerterreinen’. And bring some marshmallows to roast and enjoy a cozy night next to the fire. Afterwards you can bundle up together in the tent.
Try a new outdoor sport together
It doesn’t matter if you are both into climbing, or hiking, or something else. Try something new together, try out a new trail, or go to a different climb spot. Or just try something new entirely, something you both have never done before, like tennis or golf. You for sure will have a fun filled day together.
Go for a sunset walk on the beach

It is always a good idea to go to the beach in my opinion. It is even a better idea to go to the beach for sunset. Walk along the beach, even in winter time, this is a fun date idea. After your sunset walk, visit one of the many beach restaurants along the coast. Enjoy a drink or even a meal together to end this beautiful night.

Let me know in the comments if you will try one of these five date ideas. Or let me know what are your tips for a perfect outdoor date idea.

Hiking the Red Route in Hoge Kempen National Park

National park Hoge Kempen is located in Belgium. We decided to start our hike from the visitor center in Maasmechelen. There is a new walking and cycling bridge across the lake. You can park your car at the Maasmechelen outlet village. You can start your hike to the visitor center.

There are multiple day hikes available starting from the visitor center and they are clearly marked. The hiking routes start as easy as 3,6 kilometers and the longest is 15 kilometers. We decided to hike the red route which is 9,5 kilometers with a 200 meter elevation gain.

The hiking trails at Terhills are known for the lake and the hills. The hills provide a stunning view over the surrounding area. This area was a mining area for a long time, but it is not longer in operation. Now you find a beautiful nature reserve here.

We started our hike at the parking lot of Maasmechelen village and we headed over to the visitor center. At the visitor center, you will find some restrooms. There is also a small cafeteria where you can get something to drink or eat. You can also buy a hiking map here if you would like. We didn’t use a hiking map as the paths are clearly marked. We took the red route and at the first fork in the road we decided to hike clockwise. So we started out our hike flat up until the lake. We hiked all the way along the edge of the lake. We saw a lot of beautiful birds and we even saw a kingfisher near the edge of the lake.

It is a beautiful path along the lake, after you take the entire lap around the lake. You will find yourself at the foot of two hills. The hiking trail takes you up those hills, with our first 19% incline. But it is worth it. The top of the hill gives you an amazing view of the national park. You can also see the surrounding area and the lake you just hiked along. There are three hills to climb in total and they all offer a beautiful view of the surrounding area. There are also a lot of benches where you can sit and enjoy the view. As we hiked this on a cold winter day, we decided to not stop and keep on hiking.

A new attraction on this hike is the new walking and cycling bridge across the lake. Which is beautiful, as you get to see the lake from a completely different angle. As well as a lot of water birds that life on this lake.

It was a beautiful hike through the forest, along the edge of the lake, as well as hiking to the top of the hills in the national park which provide an amazing view of national park Hoge Kempen. I especially loved the view with the trees frozen over this time of year.

The map at the entrance said it will take about 2,5 hours . We did the entire hike in 3,5 hours. We did stop for pictures and the trail was very muddy, which took some slowing down on our part. Overall we loved this hike and we will return to do this hike in spring or fall. I assume it will be even more beautiful then when the trees aren’t bare. It did surprise me though that there are so many coniferous trees in this area. Which even in winter provides a beautiful green backdrop.

If you are a first time hiker, I would suggest to do this hike in either spring or summer. As this time of the year the trail was extremely muddy. Especially with the descents it can be quite tricky to hike down. If you do want to do this hike in winter, consider putting on good hiking boots. You could also choose shoes that provide a lot of traction.

Let me know in the comments if you ever hiked this trail or if you would in the future.

A micro adventure in Limburg

I love to go camping, and it is something that we haven’t had time for the past year. Due to renovating our new home. But at the end of September, we decided we would enjoy the beautiful weather and go for a one night camping trip in the beautiful province of Limburg, The Netherlands. And it didn’t disappoint.

Nature camping

We are a big fan of the Dutch nature campsites, or in Dutch the “natuurkampeerterreinen”. Every year we get the green card, so we can go camping at these campsites. We decided on “Hoeve Krekelenberg” for this mini adventure. We packed all our gear in the car, and we headed over there by car. Unfortunately it was a busy Saturday and it took us longer than we had planned to get to the campsite. But all was forgotten as soon as we arrived at this beautiful campsite.

I had called ahead and they had told us they only had spots left on the children’s field. Upon arrival though, we enquired about the tent fields, and there were a lot of open spots there. So we pitched our Coleman Darwin tent at one of the tent fields. Which was the best decision we could make. We had a beautiful view over the surrounding vine yards. And with the beautiful sunset that night it was a magical evening. With a glass of wine and some snacks overlooking the vine yards. It was a beautiful end to our Saturday.

Hiking

After a perfect night of sleep in the outdoors. We decided to go for a hike directly from the campsite. We headed over to Mulderplas, through the forest, which starts at the back of the campsite. With the rolling hills in Limburg, it actually feels like you are not in The Netherlands. A short hike takes us to the beautiful Mulderplas, and we decided to hike around it, we saw some beautiful water birds and reflections. It was such a peaceful place on a sunny Sunday morning.

After wards we walked past the small restaurant and headed back uphill, along a beautiful church which is situated in the middle of the forest, which is called the Maria chapel. We continue our hike through the forest, and eventually we get to an open field, which gives you a beautiful outlook of the surrounding landscape. After that it was time to head back into the forest, to the campsite and pack up our things and head back home.

It was a beautiful 24 hour adventure, something we will do again next year. Would you go on a 24 hour overnight camping trip? Let me know in the comments.

In the footsteps of Vincent Van Gogh

Would you like to follow in the footsteps of Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh?
You can in the beautiful province of Brabant. National Park Van Gogh provides you the opportunity to dive into the nature that has inspired Vincent Van Gogh. Even though the landscapes have evolved in the years, they still hold the beauty Vincent Van Gogh once used as an inspiration for his paintings.

National Park Van Gogh
The National Park stretches from Zundert in the west of Brabant all the way to Helmond in the east of Brabant. The National Park offers five hiking routes, all starting from a different point of interest. In this blog I will tell you more about the hike starting at the church in Helvoirt.

Hiking route Helvoirt
The hike is 15 kilometers long and starts at the Saint Nicholas Church in Helvoirt. This hike will give you an insight in the places Vincent Van Gogh loved, as well as were his family settled down.

The starting point of the hike is the Saint Nicholas Church, where his father was minister from 1871 up until 1875. Vincent Van Gogh never lived in Helvoirt himself, because he was studying during that period of time and lived elsewhere. But he did frequently come back to visit his family.

A peek inside the church is a must when you start your hike here. There is even an original bible who was donated by Theo Van Gogh to the church. Don’t forget to look up to the ceiling when visiting the church, as it holds some fascinating carvings. There are tours given in the church, visit this link to learn more about the tours provided in the church.

Zwijnsbergen Castle
From the church the hike takes you across the countryside to Zwijnsbergen Castle. Here you find a beautiful bench with a view over Helvoirt. A sketch Vincent Van Gogh also made while he was visiting his family in Helvoirt in 1874. It isn’t a coincidence that he loved the countryside as much, since his father had the rule that his kids had to go outside for an hour everyday to enjoy nature.

Loon and Drunen dunes

From here on out you continue your route all the way to the Loon and Drunen dunes. A place that doesn’t even seem real, with no sea in sight. The area combines beautiful forests, heather fields and dunes. Here you can roam freely along the dunes, but since we are enjoying the hiking route, we stick to our route.

In the Loon and Drunen dunes you find a special tree, the maritime pine. Which is closely connected to the paintings. As the maritime pine is a source for terpentine, which is used to make paint.

Farmshop Ons Jos
Before you return back to Helvoirt you will pass the farmer shop Ons Jos. Here you can pick up all necessities for a picnic. They have the most amazing farm fresh produce, bread and milk.

You could also stop here on your way over to the starting point, as there are many beautiful picnic spots along the route.

Let me know in the comments if this is a hike you will do in the near future. I would love to hear your experience on this beautiful trail.

AS Adventure hike heather forest Moerbeke

The days are getting shorter, and the weather is getting cooler. Which means it is time to hike more again. I love to go out for hikes on Sunday mornings, when the air is still crisp after a cold night and the grass is still wet. Early morning hikes are the best way to start a Sunday in my opinion. A couple of weekends ago we headed out for our first fall hike in Moerbeke, Belgium. We headed out to the heather forest in Moerbeke (het heidebos).

There are multiple parking lots at the forest, but we always park our car at parking lot 1, which is located at Keizershoek, Moerbeke. From here you can start 4 hiking trails, varying in length from 2,1 kilometer up to 6,4 kilometer. Since we didn’t bring our dog Indy on this hike, we decided on the AS Adventure route of 5 kilometer, which dogs aren’t allowed on.

Unfortunately we decided to hike counterclockwise, which isn’t the smartest thing, as the signs are set up to hike clockwise. It is a well marked route, so even having to look back for the right signs, it was easy to follow the route. The route is unpaved, and takes you through the forest, as well as through the heather fields, where cows roam free. We didn’t encounter any on our hike this time, but due to the cows, dogs aren’t allowed in this area.

The first signs of fall were already starting to show in the forest, with leaves starting to turn color and fungi popping up along the trail. You can take some time to rest at multiple places with benches. The perfect spot to just take in the beauty of this forest.

It is just a short, but beautiful hike. You can combine this loop with the longer yellow one for a longer hike.

Let me know in the comments if you will visit this beautiful forest in the future.

Winactie, een weekend Voorne-Putten

Win een weekend weg naar het prachtige Voorne putten

De afgelopen twee jaar mocht in de herfst genieten van al het moois dat het eiland Voorne-Putten te bieden heeft. Fietsen over het eiland, langs uitgestrekte landschappen of wandelen door de duinen. Het kan hier allemaal. En jij kan een weekend naar deze prachtige najaarsbestemming winnen. Hoe? Dat lees je onderaan deze blog post. Voor nu neem ik je even mee in mijn tips voor Voorne-Putten.

Wandeling Duinen en Valleien in Rockankje

Deze wandeling start vanaf het bezoekerscentrum Tennellaplas in Rockanje. Een prachtig opgezet bezoekerscentrum, wat zeker een bezoekje waard is. Deze wandeling neemt je mee door de prachtige duinen van het eiland. Hier waan je je even alleen op de wereld. Met prachtige weidse landschappen gedurende de wandeling heb je even helemaal niet het gevoel in Nederland te zijn, maar midden in de natuur.

Verdedigingslinies Hellevoetsluis

Over de verdedigingslinies in Hellevoetsluis is veel te vertellen, ga met een gids mee van “Stichting Verdedigingswerken” Zij kunnen je alles vertellen over waarvoor de bunkers dienden tijdens de verschillende periodes in de geschiedenis van Hellevoetsluis. Een informatieve en leuke ochtend gegarandeerd.

Wandelen in het Ravense hout, Hellevoetsluis

Een schitterend bos, net buiten de stad Hellevoetsluis. Hier kan je heerlijk wandelen, langs de watertjes, over bruggetjes en door schitterende bomen lanen. Een korte, maar leuke wandeling.

Overnacht in Boutique Hotel de Oude Veste in Hellevoetsluis

Ik mag een overnachting voor twee personen weg geven in het prachtige Boutique Hotel de Oude Veste, te Hellevoetsluis. Een bijzonder hotel, want dit hotel is gevestigd in een historisch pand uit 1878. Dit pand is jaren in gebruik geweest door de Koninklijke marine. Nu dient het als kleinschalig hotel, met 7 hotel kamers. Met elk hun eigen stijl. Wij verbleven in kamer 6 met uitzicht op de haven van Hellevoetsluis en de molen. Heerlijk wakker worden met de grote raampartijen en dit uitzicht.

Wil jij dit nou ook?

Laat dan je gegevens achter via deze link en wie weet overnacht jij binnenkort in dit prachtige hotel! Deze winactie sluit op 8 oktober 2023.

Voor meer informatie over een weekendje Voorne-Putten, bezoek mijn blogs:
A weekend hiking at Voorne-Putten
Weekendje weg op Voorne-Putten

Hiking in the valley of Zwalm, Belgium

Since The Netherlands is relatively flat, I love to go hiking in Belgium. One of the areas I love to visit is the Flemish Ardennes. A beautiful area with rolling hills and beautiful forests. But you will also find beautiful valleys with winding rivers, like the river of Zwalm. This is the area I would like to tell you a bit more about in this blog post.

We picked the Zwalmriver hiking route, which is 13,2k long. We started our hike at Rekengemstraat, in Zwalm. Where you will find the Zwalm Mill, a beautiful piece of history of this area. As the mill was used to process grain.

You can park your car next to the mill. But there are multiple other parking lots along the route, where you can park your car. Along the route you will also find multiple little restaurants where you can stop for a drink or a bite to eat. Unfortunately restaurants “Klein Zwitserland” wasn’t open when we were there, but it truly looked so picturesque and it was situated right along the river.

The first part of the road you will walk along the river the Zwalm the entire time. You will pass multiple watermills. The calming sound of the water will join you the first part of the hike.

At the halfway point you will enter the backroads of the area. Here you will hike along the roads until about 1k until the end. I don’t like hiking on roads, but it does provide for some beautiful views. You can even watch the windmill on the “Molenberg”, which is the “Huisekoutermolen”. Which was a beautiful sight.

For the last kilometer you will hike along the river the Zwalm again. At first we thought we didn’t take the right turn, as it didn’t seem like a path, but after continuing for just a bit, we found that we were in the right place and we came across the route markings again.

We finished our hike back at the mill in Zwalm.
All in all a beautiful hike, but if you don’t like hiking along roads, this might not be the hike for you. Even though the roads aren’t busy with traffic, you will still have to watch out for cars now and then.

Let me know if you try this hike.

A bluebell hike in the Kravaal forest in Belgium

If you are looking for a hike to witness the beautiful bluebells in Belgium, but you don’t want to beat the crowds at the popular places, this forest might be the place to be for you.

During the month of April multiple forests are covered in a beautiful sea of blue flowers, bluebells. A magical sight to behold that is for sure. We explored a new forest to us which is famous for it’s bluebells. A smaller forest that is, but still beautiful. The bluebells were just starting to bloom. So now would be the perfect time to visit this forest.

We decided on a 8 km hike through and along the beautiful area next to the Kravaal forest. We parked our car at a little bar called “Bij Stinne” from where we started our hike. First we hiked along the edge of the forest and unto the open fields. Which at the moment where blooming with beautiful yellow rapeseed. Which gave a lot of color to the landscape. The first leaves are also starting to show on the trees. So finally it is time to hike through some lush landscapes.

The hike is mostly unpaved, and passes in between the acres, but also through some beautiful villages close to the forest. After about 4k, you enter the forest. Which was quite muddy this time of year with all the rain. But we didn’t let the mud stop us. As we entered the beautiful Kravaal forest we had to hike a little before we reached the area where the first bluebells where showing their colors and the blossom trees where also in full bloom. As I said before this week would be the perfect time to visit this beautiful forest.

Where to start the hike?

The hike starts at Dorpveld 1 in the town of Asse.
You can park your car at the local bar called “Bij Stinne” from where you can pick up the trail.

Let me know in the comments if you try out this hike.