and that the proceeds must be used for the living expenses of the monks, maintenance of the buildings and grounds or given to charity.
A typical example is the Abbaye Notre-Dame de Saint-Rémy 2km north of Rochefort, where only about 15 monks are in residence. It boasts the longest history of Trappist brewing, dating back to 1595, and the water used in the process is drawn from a well inside the abbey. There are three strengths of beer produced: 7.5 per cent ABV (alcohol by volume), 9.2 per cent ABV and 11.3 per cent ABV, misleadingly labelled ‘6’, ‘8’ and ‘10’ respectively. Considering that over 97 per cent of British ‘bitter’ beer sold in pubs is less than 4.2per cent ABV it would be wise to remember, when quaffing a couple of bottles of Rochefort 10, that it is likely to be about three times as strong as most people’s usual tipple. Be warned!
Early guides to the Ardennes
Pont de France (Bouillon) with train, date unknown. The tunnel is now a road (Walk 1)
The first English-language guide to the Ardennes was written by Percy Lindley, a prolific author whose books include Walks in Epping Forest (1885), Walks in Holland (1889) and The Great Eastern Railway Guide to the Continent (1902). Walks in the Ardennes – subtitled Cycling, driving, boating, by rail and on foot (with some fishing and shooting notes) – was published around 1890.
HOW TIMES CHANGE: AN EXCERPT FROM PERCY LINDLEY’S WALKS IN THE ARDENNES
Passport – In Belgium it is quite unnecessary but as some Ardennes tours cross and re-cross the French and German frontiers it may be as well to carry one. A passport is issued on application to the Foreign Office or your banker will save you the trouble.
Time – Antwerp and Brussels time is 18 minutes in advance of English.
Letters – Can be sent from home to care of ‘Poste Restante’ at any place and should be legibly addressed and the ‘Esquire’ omitted. Show your visiting card on applying for letters.
Inevitably, in the last 120 years much has changed in the landscape, as seen particularly in agricultural practices but most notably in the villages. Almost all were at the very least hugely damaged, and in some instances completely destroyed, during the fighting after the German army offensive of December 1944. But such is the rural nature of the Ardennes that I suspect if Percy Lindley had the opportunity of repeating his travels today, he would find much of it is recognisable (although the metalled roads and motorised transport would doubtless surprise and possibly dismay him). There is also a fascinating account of a journey through the Ardennes in 1880 written by Katharine Macquoid (In the Ardennes, Chatto & Windus, 1880) but this is not strictly a guidebook. From time to time observations from these earlier books are included in this guide to point up the contrast with the present day.
Scope of this guide
Horse riding in the forest above Poupehan near the Chaire à Prêcher (Walk 2)
This book can only give a flavour of the walking that is available in the Ardennes. Such is the number of possible routes it would be a near-impossible task to cover much more. Each town (and many villages) boasts a tourist office where it is possible to obtain an extensive list of walks suitable for all levels of ability and enthusiasm. For this reason the walks described in this guide are based around five centres in Belgium. In addition there is a long-distance path in the Grand Duchy – the Sentier du Nord – divided into six manageable walks that can all be accessed easily by train.
The selection of routes is always difficult and necessarily reflects the preferences of the writer. Wherever possible these are walks with a purpose, but there has also been a determined attempt to limit road-walking to an absolute minimum (although in some instances stretches of tar are unavoidable). There will be many, many walks in other centres, much-loved by others, that are not included here, but tough choices had to be made in order to keep the guide to a manageable size. The fact that over 50 per cent of the walks are in the areas of Bouillon and Spa/Hautes Fagnes reflects the quality of these walking centres.
The challenges of ascent are never too great, given that much of the high ground is between 350m and 500m – although it does rise to over 650m in the Hautes Fagnes.
If, rather than day walks, long-distance footpaths are more your cup of tea, the Ardennes is loaded with them, with a particularly high concentration in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. All have the prefix GR (Sentiers de Grande Randonnées in French; Grote Routepaden in Flemish/Dutch) and most have a Topo-guide that can be purchased in local shops. Special mention should be made of GR14 (Sentier de l’Ardenne), which traverses the area from northeast to southwest, starting in Malmedy and finishing in Sedan in France. It is 221km in length, quite well waymarked and passes through some key ‘must-visit’ towns in the Ardennes, notably La Roche en Ardenne and Bouillon. Walk 1 and Walk 32 in the book make use of sections of this GR.
Getting there
Crossing the river using the railway bridge (Walk 25)
One of the great attractions of Belgium for British visitors is its proximity to the UK. Almost any of the French or Belgian ports provide good and quite speedy access to the Ardennes, so seeking the sharpest fare in this competitive market is worthwhile. Although at the time of writing there are car ferries from Dover to Dunkirk and Ramsgate to Ostend it is usually quickest to travel via Calais, the crossing time being shorter and services more frequent (with three competing carriers in 2014). Precise directions from the channel ports depend on your destination.
You can fly to Brussels from most major UK airports and then either hire a car or continue by train. Rail connections from London to Brussels are also good and it is possible, though not straightforward, to tailor a walking holiday to an arrival by train with or without local buses. For rail access to the centres featured in this book there are stations at Dinant (for the lower Lesse valley) and Spa in Belgium as well as Clervaux in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. La Roche-en-Ardenne can be reached by bus from Marloie on the Brussels to Grand Duchy line. Malmedy (for the Hautes Fagnes) has a bus service via Stavelot from Trois Ponts station on the Liège to Grand Duchy line. Bouillon’s nearest railhead is Sedan in France but the bus service between the two only runs twice a day, two days a week. However, there is a fairly good connecting service to the station at Libramont on the main Brussels to Grand Duchy railway. See Appendix B for details of websites offering information about rail and bus travel in the region.
Rather predictably, most visitors use a car because it allows much better coverage of the area and is more flexible than using what is often poor local transport provision.
When to visit
You can walk in the Ardennes at almost any time of the year, although given that there are a few resorts boasting cross-country skiing – especially in the Hautes Fagnes – winter walking may prove challenging. In July and particularly August the area is extremely busy and early booking for hotels and campsites is highly recommended. For those who can travel outside school holidays, June and September are ideal months for the best chance of decent weather and more peaceful surroundings. By October many hotels, restaurants and activities are closed.
Generally the weather, rainfall and hours of sunshine are very similar to the Lake District region of the UK, although the Hautes Fagnes can have prolonged periods of mist and rain and the winters there are rather colder, with snow sufficient for cross-country skiing.
Accommodation
B&B in Lellingen (Sentier du Nord, Stage 4)
There is a wide choice of places to stay, ranging from quite big-ticket hotels to B&Bs and campsites. You have to search a bit more assiduously for rented accommodation (gîtes), but it is available. Trawling