Following the waterways through Belgium-to-Luxembourg dipping into France along the way.

Our ride descriptions give an account of the ride that we completed. As part of the description we also provide links to Wikiloc or Google maps and elevation profiles based on mapping data available through the internet. The ride profiles are smoothed to give what in our opinion is a more beneficial view of the profile. We use paper maps, GPS and on line data to plan and conduct our rides. We are happy for you to use our descriptions, but be aware that we do not guarantee the accuracy of the information provided as situations surrounding any ride change over time.

• Distance 28km

The profile for this part of the Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride is pretty well flat so is not included.

For the start of our Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride the North Sea was flat calm and we had a good night’s sleep. As we ate our breakfast both of us were excited with nervous anticipation. 

The only map that we had was a basic overview of the Belgian cycling network and Garmin-Asus Nuvifone phone with Google maps. We needn’t have worried. After short ride west along the coast road we picked up the route 27 towards Brugge, which was clearly signposted. 

The route was through peaceful countryside and mostly on dedicated cycle lanes or back lanes or following the Belgian Waterways with no traffic. Even the ride into Brugge centre was straightforward. Infact the whole ride from Belgium-to-Luxembourg was superbly signed. 

We sampled our first Belgian coffee in the main square before finding tourist information and directions to the only camp site, “Camp Memling”.

After pitching the tent we went back into town to explore the sights and sounds of ancient Brugge, with its windmills.....

..... churches....

...... old buildings and canals. 

After cycling all over the town and desperate for liquid refreshment we discovered an Irish bar which happened to be showing Andy Murray playing Tsonga in the Wimbledon semi-finals. We were glued to the TV and had to have more than one beer by the end of the match. Our ride back to the campsite was slightly wobbly.

• Distance 54km

The profile for this part of the Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride is pretty well flat so is not included.

There were quite a number of touring cyclists using the Brugge campsite. We chatted to a French trio who were heading in the same direction as us on the long distance Belgian waterways route number 5. This follows the canal most of the way to Gent, but where we continuing from Belgium-to-Luxembourg they were heading further down into France. 

Despite the threat of heavy rain it was warm and mostly sunny . The ride along the canal banks was easy. As it was Saturday there were lots of Belgian cycling club groups speeding along but except for a few barges cruising along the canal it was very peaceful.

Eating our lunch we were privy to a view of a beautifully preserved windmill, frames like an oil painting. 

Our new found French friends caught us up and we cycled with them into Gent along the side of the canal. We had researched a camp site at Blaameersen, but they seemed to be confident there was another closer to the town so we followed them. After a while it was apparent that they didn’t know exactly where it was so we stopped to ask the way. A friendly lady told us that there was only one camp site and that it was at Blaameersen. Steve felt more than a little bit smug. The lady said she had a big house but only a small garden otherwise we could have stayed there. 

Steve‚s smug grin was wiped off his face when he was pushed to the front to lead the whole party to the site. Fortunately he had entered the location into the sat nav so it was not too daunting. 

We checked into the site, shopped for food and pitched the tent. It was a nice site with pitches partitioned by hedges. The facilities were good and showers were free. However it was next to the highway and the traffic noise was continuous. Ok for a one night stop, (actually we ended up staying longer).

• Distance 69km

The profile for this part of the Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride is pretty well flat so is not included.

• Distance 67km

The profile for this part of the Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride is pretty well flat so is not included.

The tent had held up well to the overnight rain and we woke up dry. We bade farewell to Henry and his wife and Steve drooled over his array of special gadgets, a sat nav, a charger for batteries from the dynamo and a nifty little spirit level on the handlebars to tell you how steep the hill is. 

We continued our Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride on the road and navigated our way across country to Ath. Tourist Information there was very limited. According to our guide there were two Ravel routes crossing the town but the staff only knew about route 4. They did have details of a campsite at Mons so we had a coffee and found our way back onto the canal on route 4 south. 

• Distance 102km

The profile for this part of the Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride is pretty well flat so is not included.

The intention was to leave early but first we had to wait for the English couple in the caravan to get up to retrieve the phone, then we had another visit to the tourist office and some shopping to do. It was 10.15 before we were rolling. 

The whole of today's route was along another of the Belgian Waterways routes, the Canal de Centre.

Leaving Mons the canal heads towards the hills and by way of four separate boat lifts, gradually climbs to the top of the plateau.

The canal lifts are a magnificent feat of engineering, using hydraulic power to lift the boats and have been designated as World Heritage sites.

However, they have now been replaced by a much quicker and equally impressive, if not quite so quaint, single lift.

The route along the old Canal Historique passes through several pretty towns as well as the four boat lifts. There were a few leisure boats using the old lifts. All the working barges use the new lift. The sun was shining and there were hardly any other people on the towpaths. As we approached Charloise there was lots of heavy industry along the canal banks on both sides, and no towpath through it. There were no route signs so we had to navigate our way through the city and find a way back onto the canal. From there it was another 40kms to the campsite at Malonne. As it leaves Charloise the canal starts to sweep in long curves, making its way through the hills. We began to realise that the approach to campsite which was marked as about 1km from the canal was bound to be uphill. It was a 13% gradient which, on tired legs and with bags full of food, was a bit too much and we both finished the day pushing. Luckily the camp shop sold bottles of beer so we collapsed on the grass and guzzled the beer before pitching the tent. A young Irish man arrived soon after us on his bike and we spent the evening swapping tales of our travels.

Day Off - Malonne

It was time for a rest today and we wanted to visit Namur as we had been told it was a beautiful city. We planned to cycle there along the canal but missed a route sign and ended up on the busy road most of the way. We climbed up to the citadel, standing on a huge rock outcrop at the confluence of the canal and the river Meuse. Other than this there was little of note except that the Tourist Information had free Internet ( and was a good place to shelter from the rain) and there was a cafe with delicious pizzas.

• Distance 37km

The profile for this part of the Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride is pretty well flat so is not included.

After a lovely snaking descent through a forest we arrived at Profondeville, a lovely town on the banks of the river Meuse. The river was brown and swollen from the heavy rainfall and the bars and cafes were deserted. We set off to follow the river upstream on the Ravel 2 cycle path. This is also the route of the Camino de Santiago de Saint Jaques. The track was a mixture of smooth cement, tarmac and ancient cobbles with a strong headwind and still more rain.

We reached Dinant at about 2pm and wanted to visit the Citadel and the Leffe Abbey, home to the famous beer.

After shopping we cycled a bit further up-river past the Rocher Bayard to find a sign to a campsite up a narrow side road through the Lesse valley. Arriving at the site in warm sunshine we pitched the tent quickly, thinking it would dry nicely, and hung out load of wet clothes and washing to dry.

• Distance 58km

The profile for this part of the Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride is pretty well flat so is not included.

We never did get a chance to go to the Leffe Brewery, but we reckoned the 7 euro entrance fee was better spent on the product than seeing how it was made. So before we set off we headed back into Dinant to get a photo instead....

..... as well as the bridge showing art of the Sax Festival. 

From here our Belgium-to-Luxembourg route followed the Ravel route along the main road at the side of the river to Hastiere. As it was Sunday the road was fairly quiet. Just south of here we crossed the border from Belgium into France. 

The rain meant that we had our heads down and so we didn't see any of the sights at Givet and rushed straight on through, trying to find the beginning of the French via verde route which continues up the Meuse valley. 

Once we found the signposted route it was a relief to get off the busy road and onto the smoothly tarmacked cycle route following an old railway route at the side of the river. The rain stopped and the sun came out and suddenly it was fun again.

• Distance         31km
• Max Elevation  202m

Belgium to Luxembourg - Haybes to Montherm Ride Profile

• Distance        49km
• Max Elevation 431m

Belgium-to-Luxembourg - Montherme to Buillon Ride Profile

Morning rain meant we were late getting up and packed. It was almost 10-00 before we set off. There were some unexpected guests for breakfast but unfortunately we had just packed all the food. 

We rode through the town of Bohan that we hadn't bothered to venture into the night before and were surprised to find a number of bars and restaurants that we could have gone to instead of staying in our tent for dinner.

It was overcast and although we were only at 300 meters it felt very cold. Back in Belgium again the river was now named the Samois. It was a lovely ride with a long climb up to the village of Hauteroche with a great view across the river. This was our lunch stop. 

The Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride continued through more lovely scenery and spectacular views before dropping down into the historic town of Buillion with its citadel dominating the town below.

Tourist information helped us to book the cheapest B and B we could find, which unfortunately meant a steep climb for about 600 meters to get there.

• Distance        62km
• Max Elevation 440m

Belgium-to-Luxembourg - Buillon to Montmedi Ride Profile

In the morning we took Steve's computer to a local repairer, but they pronounced it totally dead so they copied our hard disc onto our spare drive. We cycled back up the hill to the B and B, picked up our gear and continued up the hill to its peak at 325m on the border between Belgium and France. We so enjoyed the descent that we missed our turning. We retraced our steps and found a road through the Bois de Sedan. It was the first time that the sun had shone in two weeks.

It was like riding through Dalby Forest (near our old home in North Yorkshire)without the people. The road was 12km of smooth tarmac with no cars, through beech and coniferous forest and mostly down hill. Just into the forest we met an old gentlemen who stopped and enquired of our nationality. He then proceeded to rabbit on, in French about the English being here during the war and sang some old French song to us. Once out of the forest we rode on minor roads through small french villages. None of them had any food outlets so we had to head back onto the main road and found a restaurant run by two fat ladies. We were just too late for lunch, but they made us some sandwiches and frites.

The Belgium-to-Luxembourg ride once again cut off the main road and followed the river along the valley, eventually climbing a steep mound to find the memorial to the heroes of the Fort of Villy la Ferte. This was the last fort in the infamous Maginot Line formed by the French to halt a potential invasion of the Germans from the east.

This fort like others in the Maginot Line was made up of huge bunkers with reinforced concrete walls about 2meters (12ft) thick, linked together with tunnels. 

Guns were mounted in turrets made of at least 150mm thick steel. A bloody battle was fought here.

These pictures show the effects of some of the shells that hit the steel turrets....

..... ultimately dislodging this one.

We approached Montmedi along the main road and were toiling up a long slow ascent into a head wind when we were cheered on by a group of road workers putting out signs. They kept overtaking us and pointing to the 70km speed limit sign to encourage us. As the name suggests the old Citadel town of Montmedi, which is visible from miles away stands on top of a hill and you guessed it, we had another steep climb to the top to reach our camp site.

The municipal site was cheap and quite with several other cycle tourists there. It was worth the climb and we looked around the old Citadel at dusk.

It is apparently the only citadel in the area that has an inhabited center and after years of neglect following heavy bombardment during the war it is now being renovated. 

It had a bloody history and a plaque talks of the 2500 men of the garrison that were either killed or taken captive during the World War One battle on th 27th August 1914.

• Distance        48km
• Max Elevation 376m

Belgium-to-Luxembourg - Montmedi to Longwy Ride Profile

Today we planned to ride to a campsite on the outskirts of Luxembourg. The Belgium-to-Luxembourg route followed a small river valley on quiet back roads. It was scenic and pleasant with intermittent sunshine but it seemed to be constantly up and down with a strong head wind. The towns all had traditional buildings in a warm yellow sandstone. Longwy is one of the towns that make up a conurbation in the area where the Belgian, French and Luxembourg borders meet. It was difficult to sort out the best way through it. A Korean cyclist that we met at Montmedy had given us a cycle route map for Luxembourg, we just had to find our way onto it. Deciding that we'd done enough cycling for one day we went into the Tourist Information to find where the nearest campsite was. It was about 25km distant so we booked into a hotel. Just around the corner was a lively bar and the only restaurant in town served good Italian food.

• Distance        48km
• Max Elevation 376m

We cycled into the city along their fantastic cycle route and didn't see a single other cyclist . It was warm and sunny.

We did the city walls and enjoyed perusing the wonderful foods on the markets.

About 3pm we set off back to the campsite as there were black clouds gathering. Unfortunately we mis-timed it by about 5 mins and got absolutely drenched in the downpour.