Why this ride
94 km from Bergues to Bergues, about 1 h 37 of riding. It goes by way of Landhuis met Belfort, Stadhuis met Belfort and back through Landhuis met Belfort. It crosses from France into Belgium - carry ID and check the toll rules.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Beffroi de Bergues and Stadhuis met Belfort
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 94 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 37
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: planning record, not independently verified geometry.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distances and riding times are planning figures. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Beffroi de Bergues
Bergues found a new kind of fame in 2008, when the comedy Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis, filmed here, became one of the most successful French films of all time, and suddenly the whole country wanted to see the town where a postman from the south is exiled to the cold north and ends up falling in love with it. The film's best-known scenes include the belfry, from which the hero rings the carillon, and the town still welcomes visitors who come in search of the locations. But Bergues was a proud place long before cinema arrived. It is a small fortified town in French Flanders, surrounded by ramparts and canals, with fortifications improved by Vauban in the seventeenth century.
Read the complete Beffroi de Bergues write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Beffroi de Bergues is where the day begins. Next is Landhuis met Belfort.
2. Landhuis met Belfort
Veurne's market square is one of the most complete in Flanders, and the old Landhuis, with its belfry rising behind it, is the reason. The Landhuis was the seat of the castellany, the regional administration that governed the surrounding countryside, and its belfry is part of the group of Belgian and French belfries protected by UNESCO. Around the square stand the town hall, the old meat hall and a row of gabled houses, many dating back to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when Veurne was under Spanish rule, which explains the stepped gables and ornate facades.
Read the complete Landhuis met Belfort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Landhuis met Belfort comes up about 27 km into the recorded legs. Next is Stadhuis met Belfort.
3. Stadhuis met Belfort
Diksmuide was almost wiped from the map in the First World War. The town stood right on the front line along the Yser, and from 1914 to 1918 it was pounded into rubble, along with its town hall, belfry and church. In October 1914, the Belgian army halted the German advance by opening the sluices at Nieuwpoort and flooding the low-lying plain, creating a watery barrier that held for four years. After the war, the town was rebuilt in the old style, with the town hall and belfry carefully reconstructed on the market square, and the belfry is now part of the UNESCO listing of the belfries of Belgium and France.
Read the complete Stadhuis met Belfort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 47 km into the recorded legs you reach Stadhuis met Belfort. Next is back through Landhuis met Belfort.
4. back through Landhuis met Belfort
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Landhuis met Belfort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Landhuis met Belfort, late in the day. Next is Beffroi de Bergues.
5. Beffroi de Bergues
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Beffroi de Bergues write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Beffroi de Bergues. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Beffroi de Bergues to Landhuis met Belfort
Beffroi de Bergues → Landhuis met Belfort is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Landhuis met Belfort to Stadhuis met Belfort
Landhuis met Belfort → Stadhuis met Belfort is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Stadhuis met Belfort to back through Landhuis met Belfort
Stadhuis met Belfort → back through Landhuis met Belfort is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Landhuis met Belfort to Beffroi de Bergues
back through Landhuis met Belfort → Beffroi de Bergues is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.