Why this ride
96 km from Mons to Mons, about 1 h 44 of riding. On the way it passes The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and, Beffroi de Thuin and back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes and Beffroi de Thuin
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 96 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 44
- 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: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes
Beneath the fields south-east of Mons lies a honeycomb of shafts and galleries dug by Neolithic farmers more than six thousand years ago. They were after flint, the essential raw material for axes and tools, and they dug shafts up to fifteen metres deep through the chalk to reach the best seams, using antler picks and stone hammers. The mines at Spiennes, covering more than a hundred hectares, are the largest and earliest in north-western Europe, and they were inscribed by UNESCO in 2000. An interpretation centre allows visitors to descend into one of the shafts, and on the surface the ground is still scattered with flint flakes.
Read the complete Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes is where the day begins. Next is The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and.
2. The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and
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.
Read the complete The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and comes up about 19 km into the recorded legs. Next is Beffroi de Thuin.
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
about 51 km into the recorded legs you reach Beffroi de Thuin. Next is back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and.
4. back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and, late in the day. Next is Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes.
5. Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes to The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and
Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes → The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and to Beffroi de Thuin
The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and → Beffroi de Thuin is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Beffroi de Thuin to back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and
Beffroi de Thuin → back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and is 26 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and to Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes
back through The Four Lifts on the Canal du Centre and → Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes is 19 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.