Intro:
Another hike through the fruit-culture region, but this time it's one that offers quite some variation along the way.
Contrary to the previous dissappointing hike on this GR 564 trail, this one again fully deserves the 'GR'-label. There's still quite some dull traffic roads in the itinerary, but the region also offers some interesting sightseeing and nice landscapes. The convent Mariënlof at Kerniel and the proud little town of Borgloon are cultural highlights that are really worth a closer look.
If you plan this hike for the time when the fruit trees are blossoming, you won't regret it for a minute.
Back and forth:
In Antwerp we purchased a weekend ticket for a trainride to Hasselt and a ride back from Sint-Truiden.
In Hasselt we had only 10 minutes to catch bus 38 to Heers at 10.00 am. On Saturdays that bus only makes the trip every 2 hours, so you can only hope your train won't be delayed (but who would dare to doubt the punctuality of our national train company?). The ride to busstop Klooster in Wellen takes about 25 minutes.
The region we went hiking in only offers limited public transportation facilities, especially in the weekends. Initially we wanted to hike up to Boekhout (at a distance of a little more than 22 km.) but in the weekends there's no busses at all serving that place. So, we settled upon Gelinden where an on-call bus service is available. Don't forget to make your reservation at least 2 hours in advance. The little cozy bus drove us to Sint-Truiden train station. From Sint-Truiden you can get to Antwerp by train via Hasselt or via Brussels. The fastest connection is via Hasselt.
(since the topoguide isn't sold anymore, we exceptionally publish the GR track of this hike; the track reflects the trail we hiked, taking into account all changes we found on the local GR organisation's website, as well as onsite; keep in mind that this track has been recorded at a given time, so there's no guarantees that it will remain valid)
The hike:
On leaving Wellen our GR 564 trail returns to the wetlands near the little river Herk. Unlike last week we couldn't count on a frozen ground to keep our feet dry. Our hiking boots where soon all covered in mud. Fortunately the remainder of the hike offered better circumstances, so there was plenty of time to get them quite dry again by the time we had to travel back.
From Kerniel up to the center of Borgloon there are some changes to the trail. They're well documented on the website of the Groteroutepaden organisation.
Click the picture for more images on Picasa
Arriving at Kerniel we went up to the Sint-Pantaleon church where the topoguide promised us some nice panoramic views over the region. Unfortunately, since the time the guide was published a lot of new houses have been built, so there's nothing left to see.
Meanwhile the little known name Sint-Pantaleon had caught our attention. Who was this holy man? He seems to be from Turkey where he was living at the end of the 3rd century. He's the patron saint for doctors and midwifes. According to the legend he became the personal physician of emperor Maximianus. All went well but when he attempted to convert the emperor's wife to his christian faith, the emperor didn't like it at all and had him arrested. Of course he was tortured and finally executed. The sentence was decapitation, but the executioner was so clumsy that he split the man's skull ... And that's when it happened. It wasn't blood that was flowing out of his head, but milk! A miracle had happened! Always a good source for some juicy stories, those religions.
Once we had left the houses at Kerniel, we were finally offered the nice views. One of them is the classified Convent of Colen, Mariënlof. It's an idyllic place that seems to attract a lot of visitors. However, when we arrived there was nobody there. That probably had to do with the fact that the refectory was closed for the wintermonths. Also the church was closed (ring 3 times, but not in winter). The gates of the 17th-century entrance building were wide open, so we went in nevertheless. The place would still be home to some Cistercian nuns, but we didn't get to see them either.
Anyway, the inner court place protected us from the hard winds that day, so it was the perfect place to eat our picnic and to enjoy the nice setting.
The trail now follows the former railway line Sint-Truiden - Tongeren. The rails have been replaced by a smooth concrete cycling path. Approaching Borgloon we walk past an old factory where they used to produce a famous local fruit syrup. In 2007 this complex was the much disputed winner of the Monuments Contest, organised each year by our Flemish radio and television company. The buildings and installations indeed don't seem to be of great value or importance. The real importance lies in the conservation and revival of the production process. Winning the contest gave a much needed boost to the people that made the revival of this activity their ultimate goal. We can only agree that it's a worthwhile initiative.
Before ending up in the center of Borgloon we walk along a path that marks the old ramparts of the city. We're treated to nice views on the Motvalley and the Grote Mot Castle. The quite steep slopes of this valley with their southward orientation were used as vineyards up to end of the 18th century. In recent years this culture has also been 'revived' which gives a pretty good idea of how it used to look in ancient times.
The GR 564 trail doesn't forget to enter the beautiful historic center of the 'Pearl of the Hesbaye region', the former capital of the County of Loon. Borgloon's long interesting history is explained all over the place on a number of information panels. It certainly looks interesting enough to come back at a later time and try to spend some more time here.
Our hiking schedule forces us to proceed towards the Castle of Hulsberg. The elegant looking building is situated on top of a 108 m. high hill and is visible from Borgloon. The castle dates from 1882 and was built at the spot where there used to be a chapel. The chapel was broken down and rebuilt at the foot of the hill. A little later we arrive at that place. It's a Loreto Chapel, which means there used to be a hermitage next to it, but this one has long since dissapeared. Loreto chapels (there's several in Flanders, see our Viversel - Kiewit hike on the GR 5 trail) always point to the Italian pilgrimage place of Loreto. Here it was a clergyman called Nicolaas Poislevache that (around 1680) left on the long pilgrimage. He made it back safe and sound and to express his gratitude he had the chapel built in 1689. Today it's a classified monument and according to the topoguide it's the ideal place to take a rest on the benches in the shade of the old surrounding trees. However, we only noticed a heavily barred and inaccessible place ...
Nothing left but to continu our hike amongst the endlessly succeeding orchards. Here and there we noticed trimmers, telling us that wintertime is coming to an end. Yet, it's still difficult to imagine that within a little over a month all these naked branches will be transformed into a white and pink sea of blossoming trees.
We're arriving at a wellknown place, the Tjenne hill on the 'Roman high-road', where the GR 128 trail is crossing our path (see the hike Nieuwerkerken - Voort). This intersection gave way to a nice hike combining both trails. It's documented in the 'Dagstapper Limburg' publication, hike nr. 11.
We continue southwards which leads us to the hamlet of Mettekoven.
This is where we meet the river Herk again, the same one we started this hike with. Pay attention, there's a change in the itinerary and it's not documented on the GR organisation's website. Instead of crossing the river, you stay on the eastside of it. The signs lead you through a little place called Klein-Gelmen. A little bit further the original path is joined.
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Jullie verslagje en foto's deed me onmiddellijk terugdenken aan mijn wandeling op dit stukje vorig jaar toen de bloesems bloeiden. Leuk om het landschap ook eens in een winterkleedje te zien.