Intro
At some point during the hike we got completely lost. However, lost or not, we it was really worthwhile. We could label it at least a **** hike.
This is not only true for the the hike on the GR 12 trail, but also for the kilometers we erroneously hiked on the GR 121 trail.
The trail offers a good mix of forested areas, and wide open hilly landscapes. The signs lead through the villages of Ittre and Virginal. Although this area is situated exactly in the center of our country, it looks like as if it's already the Ardennes. And on top of all this: you're hiking almost all the time on unhardened paths.
What went wrong?
We should have known. 'Good Friday' sounded too good to be true. Who decided to call a Friday 'Good'? The only good thing about this Friday is that it wasn't a Friday 13th.
Yet it was a beautiful day in spring, warm, the rain showers that were forecasted didn't happen, a good breeze kept us company, the landscape was captivating. But somehow it went wrong. Without realising it we started following the wrong white/red signs. Even when we started suspecting something was wrong we thought it probably had to do with a change in the trail. When we finally were convinced we were completely wrong, we knew (based on the time) that by then we had hiked about 22 km, more or less the distance we had planned before we started. That's when we decided to call it a day and to return home from the place where we ended up.
What was the plan?
We intended to hike from Braine-le-Château to Ronquières, the place that is famous for it's Ships Slope. At a given moment we thought we distinguished the tower of this industrial artwork, but that must have been a mistake. Afterwards we can only conclude we must have been looking in the direction of the industrial zones around Tubize and Clabecq. Yes, the 'experienced' hikers had got it completely wrong, and not even a little bit.
(click the picture for more images on Picasa)
Where did we end up?
We ended up in Braine-le-Comte on an old railway bedding. We were crossing a bridge over a traffic road. Below us we were looking at houses and backgardens. In one of them we spotted a guy and from our shouting conversation we realised we were in Braine-le-Comte …
It must have gone wrong at the place where the GR 121 trail separates from GR 12. Studying the map in our topoguide GR 121 leads to Braine-le-Comte. From reference point 20 we must have followed GR 121, while thinking we were still on GR 12. A good lesson. We've become too accustomed to simply following the excellent signs in the field, without reading the texts in the topoguide and interpreting the maps. Furthermore, at a given moment we must have left the area covered by the map, and without that support it became quite difficult to get an idea of our possible location.
Back and forth:
Braine-le-Château can be reached from Brussels. We went by train to Braine-l’Alleud (Eigenbrakel in dutch language, a stop on the line Antwerpen – Brussels – Charleroi) and from there took bus 115 heading for Tubize. The bus ride takes 15 minutes.
Returning from Braine-le-Comte wasn't a problem either. There's busses going to Braine-l’Alleud or Nivelles, and from there we took the same train going to Brussels and Antwerpen.
The hike:
Despite the fact that we got lost along the trail, this hike is really a must.
This is not only true for the the hike on the GR 12 trail, but also for the kilometers we erroneously hiked on the GR 121 trail.
The trail offers a good mix of forested areas, and wide open hilly landscapes. The signs lead through the villages of Ittre and Virginal. Although this area is situated exactly in the center of our country, it looks like as if it's already the Ardennes. And on top of all this: you're hiking almost all the time on unhardened paths.
- From Braine-le-Château to Ittre
The trail leaves the beautiful village square and ascends via the Les Colir quarter to the chapel of Notre-Dame-Au-Bois.
Then the signs enter the Bois du Chapitre. At first there's quite some houses and that means muddy paths and barking dogs, but further up along the trail it gets really quiet and dry.
Having left the forest the trail crosses an open landscape offering nice views, then descends into a little valley, leading us into Ittre. We walk in green pastures accessed through old tourniquets. This is one of the highlights of the hike.
In Ittre we're in the geographical center of Belgium. An orientation table indicates the exact spot. But there's more to discover in this charming village. Cozy little nooks, old houses and a castle with grazing cows in front of it make it an attractive place. - From Ittre to Virginal-Samme
The GR 12 trail now climbs out of the center of Ittre and winds itself through a forested area, before descending again to the bridge of Asquempont.
We're now at the canal Charleroi – Brussels, constructed for the transport of the black gold that once came from the thriving coal mine industry. It took an impressive 55 lock chambers to bridge the crest line between the Walloon and the Flemish water basins. The idea for the project dates from the time of Napoleon, it was carried out during the time of the Netherland's occupation, and it was inaugurated right at the time of the Belgian independancy in 1832. Perfect timing.
In 1960 the old canal was thoroughly modernised and straightened. Instead of being accessible for ships up to 300 ton it can now accommodate ships up to 1.350 ton. The famous Ships Slope at Ronquières is part of this modernisation. It was inaugurated in 1968. More about that later on ... once we succeed in finding our way to that industrial monument along the GR 12 trail …
From Asquempont our trail now follows an old arm of the canal. As mostly is the case, nature has taken over, transforming it into a nice green oasis. Even water turtles have decided to make this their habitat.
At lock chamber F5 we're back at the actual canal. From here the trail climbs through the fields towards the little village of Virginal. It's as if time stood still here. We find a café, filled with card players and other regulars. We manage to find a seat and enjoy the ambiance and the juicy Walloon dialect. Being flemish, we're welcomed heartily ... they want to know all about our hike, comment on the places, and fully agree they live in a beautiful area. No political discussions here.
- From Virginal to Rue du Pire
In Virginal we managed to follow the correct trail. The topoguide mentions that the Tour du Brabant Wallon (TBW) crosses our GR 12 trail here. We didn't notice any indications of that trail, so for a while we were not really sure whether we were still following GR 12 (the TBW signs are quite similar to the GR signs).
The track leaves Virginal offering some nice views on the village. We continue through the Bois des Nonnes and arrive at a traffic road. This part of the trail is less interesting. It's a typical situation of ribbon development where you walk from house to house along a dull road.
Finally the trail leads back into a forest. When we'll get out of it again, we'll be walking on the wrong GR trail ... The Bois de la Houssière is another leftover of the Forêt de Soignies. It's a beautiful forest that used to be the property of the German earls d’Arenberg. The word 'Houssière' refers to ‘houx’ (holly), a bush you will often see in this forest.
Judging from the map in the topoguide we followed the GR 12 trail correctly up to reference point 20: Rue du Pire. This is the place where GR 121 and GR 12 are supposed to go their separate ways. Somehow we didn't pay attention and we must have started following the GR 121 trails ...
Next time we'll have to pick up the trail here once again, find the GR 12 signs and continue on the right track. How did Earl de Broqueville say it? ‘Vaincus peut-être, soumis jamais’ ('Defeated maybe, subjugated never', see the hike Retie – Bladel).
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