Intro
Another topoguide finished! Yesterday we hiked the last pages of the topoguide describing the GR 12 trail between Bergen-op-Zoom and Braine-le-Château. It was only a short hike (15 km), but it certainly was a nice one.
Back and forth
The trip to Dworp wasn't a smooth one. We had planned to take the 9.03 am train from Antwerpen-Centraal to Bruxelles-Midi. But that train was simply cancelled, they probably couldn't find a driver … Fortunately we had arrived well in time at the station, so we could still catch the 8.45 am to Brussels. At 9.50 am an IR train going from Brussels to Nivelles took us to Ukkel-Kalevoet. We were supposed to arrive there at 9.58 am, but the train was delayed by 10 minutes, so we missed our bus correspondence (line 155) to Dworp. We finally arrived there at 11.45 am. Three hours to get from Antwerpen just past Brussels, there must be better ways to promote public transporst.
Returning from Braine-le-Château (Kasteelbrakel in Dutch) was easier. At 4.58 pm we took TEC bus 115 to Braine-L’Alleud where a train took us straight to Antwerpen. We arrived at 6.43 pm, so that's less than two hours traveltime.
The hike
(click the picture for more images on Picasa)
The hike from Dworp to Kasteelbrakel (Braine-Le-Chateau in french language) takes you through an exceptionally beautiful hiking area: hills, lakes, brooks, forests, meadows ... plenty of idyllic spots.
Yet we couldn't help but notice that all this beauty seriously suffers from the urbanisation pressure. Moreover, the renovations and newly built houses you see here are not the kind that are inhabited by the common people.
On several occasions the trail follows small paths through posh housing quarters. At a given moment we even crossed a private garden. At our left the (closed) entrance gate, to our right the house. We felt like intruders, but the GR signs left us no choice. It looks like quite a few inhabitants do their utmost best to get public paths closed down, or to incorporate them into their properties. But what can you expect if even our royal family tries to ban public hiking paths from within sighting distance of their domains?
A few highlights during this hike:
- The lakes of Zevenbronnen:
Up until the 18th century there was an abbey here. The abbey has gone, but the ponds still illustrate how clever the monks were. During the Lent (and on the many other fasting days) people weren't allowed to eat meat. They simply solved that little problem by keeping a lot of fish in these lakes. After all, you don't have to be a better catholic than the Pope ... - The Haller forest:
Just like the other (smaller) forests that we walked through, this forest used to be part of the vast Kolenbos (Coal Forest) that covered almost all of the provinces of Flemish and Walloon Brabant. The Meerdaal forest near Leuven and the Forêt de Soignies near Brussels are the biggest left-overs of this enormous forest. It started dissapearing from the Middle Ages because agricultural and urbanisation needs.
The Haller forest is relatively young and features mostly oak and beech trees. The forest almost completely dissapeared during World War I. It had to be replanted afterwards. That's also the reason why it's quite open, an ideal environment for the wild hyacinths that cover the forest with a vast blue carpet in spring. Each year this miracle attracts thousands of visitors. However, when we passed by all was quiet and brown.
- Kasteelbrakel (Braine-Le-Chateau):
This village is situated on the Walloon side of the language border. It has a lot to offer to the visitor: a castle, a pillory, a church, the scout house, a mill, a brewery …
The place also has a special link with the Earls Egmont and Hoorn. They were beheaded in Brussels on June, 5th 1568 by order of the Duke of Alva. At that time a relative of the Earl of Hoorn was living at the castle. The same day he had a yew tree planted to commemorate the Earl. Four centuries later, that tree is still there. The trunk has a circumference of 4 meters. Furthermore the church accommodates an alabaster shrine for the unfortunate Earl.
All in all this was a wonderful hike. But taking into account that the area is situated in one of Belgium's better hiking regions, that can't really come as a surprise.
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