Picture a barge sitting in a huge iron tank full of water, rising more than fifteen metres into the air while another tank, counterweighted, sinks beside it. That is what happens at the four hydraulic boat lifts on the old Canal du Centre in Hainaut, built between the 1880s and 1917 to carry boats over a steep change in level between the basins of the Meuse and the Scheldt. They were engineering marvels in their day, cast-iron and steel giants powered by water pressure, and they are still in working order, though now mostly used by pleasure boats. UNESCO listed them, along with their surroundings, in 1998.
The lifts sit along a few kilometres of canal between La Louvière and Thieu, and the towpath beside them makes a lovely walk or short ride past locks, bridges and old industrial buildings. Boat trips run in summer, so you can experience the climb yourself. A short distance away stands the Strépy-Thieu boat lift, completed in 2002 on the new canal, a colossal concrete structure that lifts large barges over seventy metres in one go. Its scale is staggering, and there is a visitor area with views over the countryside.
This was the industrial heart of Wallonia, with coal mines, steelworks and factories, and the landscape still carries the marks: slag heaps, workers' housing, railway lines. Bois-du-Luc, near La Louvière, is a remarkably complete mining village, part of the UNESCO site of the Major Mining Sites of Wallonia. Nearby Binche is famous for its carnival, when the Gilles, in wax masks and ostrich-feather hats, dance through the streets throwing oranges.
The riding around here is mostly urban and suburban, with busy roads, roundabouts and traffic lights around La Louvière and Mons. Away from the towns, the countryside is gently rolling, with fields and small villages, and the roads become quieter and more pleasant. Cobbles appear in some village centres, slippery when wet. To the south, the Ardennes are a couple of hours away, with the best riding in Belgium.
La Louvière has fuel, supermarkets and restaurants. Try a local beer or a plate of frites from a friterie. The weather is changeable, with rain likely at any time of year. Arrive in time to see a lift in operation; it is a strangely mesmerising sight.