Brussels long day · Grand Hornu

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Brussels

   Brussels is a city that does not quite match its reputation. People think of meetings and regulations, and the capital of Europe is indeed full of both, but the town itself is full of odd, cheerful corners. The Grand-Place is the best-known, a cobbled square ringed by gilded guild houses and a lace-like town hall, and it is lovely at night when the lights come on. A few minutes' walk away, a small bronze boy relieves himself in a fountain and is regularly dressed in costumes by local clubs, which tells you something about the local sense of humour.

   Read the complete Brussels write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Brussels is where the day begins. Next is Beffroi de Namur.

2. 2. Beffroi de Namur

   The belfry of Namur is a stout, round tower with a bulbous slate roof, not at all the slender Gothic spire people imagine when they hear the word. It started life in the fourteenth century as part of the town walls, the Tour Saint-Jacques, and later became the belfry, holding the bell that rang the hours and the curfew. It is one of the many towers in the World Heritage Site of the Belfries of Belgium and France.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Namur write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Beffroi de Namur comes up about 74 km into the recorded legs. Next is Beffroi de Thuin.

3. 3. Beffroi de Thuin

   Thuin sits on a rocky spur above the Sambre, and from the river it looks like a town that climbed a hill to keep its feet dry. At the top stands the belfry, a tall square tower with an onion-shaped spire that was originally the bell tower of a collegiate church and survived when the church itself did not. Since 1999 it has been part of the UNESCO listing of belfries of Belgium and France, a reminder that towns in this region measured their freedom in bells, towers and charters.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Thuin write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   At least about 139 km into the recorded legs you reach Beffroi de Thuin. Next is Major Mining Sites of Wallonia.

4. 4. Major Mining Sites of Wallonia

   Grand-Hornu, on the edge of the Borinage coalfield west of Mons, looks less like a coal mine than a neoclassical palace. In the early nineteenth century the industrialist Henri De Gorge built it as a model colliery, with workshops, offices and stables arranged around a vast oval courtyard of brick arches, and hundreds of houses for workers, each with its own garden, laid out in streets around it. It was a revolutionary idea at the time, combining industry and housing in one planned complex. Mining ended in the mid-twentieth century, and after years of neglect the site was restored. Today it houses a museum of contemporary art and a design centre, and it is one of the four Major Mining Sites of Wallonia listed by UNESCO in 2012.

   Read the complete Major Mining Sites of Wallonia write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Major Mining Sites of Wallonia, about halfway. Next is Grand Hornu.

5. 5. Grand Hornu

   A coal mine designed like a neoclassical palace sounds like a joke, but Grand-Hornu is real, and the man behind it meant every column. Henri De Gorge, a mining entrepreneur, took over a failing colliery at Hornu in the early nineteenth century and built, between about 1810 and 1830, a complex of workshops, offices and workers' housing around a great oval courtyard. The buildings are in pale stone and brick, with arcades, pediments and a perfect sense of proportion. De Gorge was an idealist, and he wanted his workers to live in decent houses with gardens, which was unusual in an age of slums.

   Read the complete Grand Hornu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Grand Hornu sits at 180 km, about halfway. Next is back through Major Mining Sites of Wallonia.

6. 6. back through Major Mining Sites of Wallonia

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Major Mining Sites of Wallonia write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Major Mining Sites of Wallonia comes up about 182 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Beffroi de Thuin.

7. 7. back through Beffroi de Thuin

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Thuin write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 239 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Beffroi de Thuin. Next is back through Beffroi de Namur.

8. 8. back through Beffroi de Namur

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Beffroi de Namur write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Beffroi de Namur, late in the day. Next is Brussels.

9. 9. Brussels

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Brussels write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   The route ends here after 366 km.