Why this ride
From Hoeilaart it runs 190 km to Hoeilaart; allow about 3 h 36 of riding. The stops in between: Grand Béguinage of Leuven, Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren, Stadhuis met Toren and Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa and Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 190 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 36
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. 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. Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa
Brussels has a forest on its doorstep, and a very good one. The Sonian Forest, Forêt de Soignes or Zoniënwoud depending on who is speaking, spreads over the south-eastern edge of the city in a dark green arc of about four and a half thousand hectares, and its core is beech, tall, grey and straight as columns. The forest is shared among three regions of Belgium, and the Joseph Zwaenepoel reserve is a protected section in the Flemish part, where the managers let nature take its course and fallen trees are left to rot. It is part of the UNESCO listing for ancient and primeval beech forests, extended in 2017 to include the Sonian Forest.
Read the complete Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa is where the day begins. Next is Grand Béguinage of Leuven.
2. Grand Béguinage of Leuven
Step through the gate of the Groot Begijnhof in Leuven and the city noise drops away. Cobbled lanes, small brick houses with white window frames and stepped gables, little bridges over the arms of the river Dijle, and a Gothic church in the middle: this is one of the largest béguinages in the Low Countries, part of the Flemish Béguinages group listed by UNESCO in 1998.
Read the complete Grand Béguinage of Leuven write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Grand Béguinage of Leuven comes up 27 km in. Next is Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren.
3. Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren
Tienen means sugar to most Belgians. The town in the east of Flemish Brabant has been the home of Belgium's largest sugar refinery since the nineteenth century, and the smell of sugar beet being processed hangs over the town in autumn during the campaign, when trucks loaded with beets roll in from the surrounding fields. The Sint-Germanuskerk, the church of Saint Germanus, with its massive tower serving as the town's belfry, stands near the huge Grote Markt, one of the largest market squares in Belgium, and it is part of the UNESCO listing of the belfries of Belgium and France. The tower, a mix of Romanesque and Gothic, has a carillon whose bells ring out over the town.
Read the complete Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
54 km in you reach Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren. Next is Stadhuis met Toren.
4. Stadhuis met Toren
Sint-Truiden's Grote Markt is one of the largest market squares in Belgium, and at its centre stands the town hall with its belfry, a tower that has watched over the town since the Middle Ages and been rebuilt and remodelled several times. The belfry, with its carillon, is part of the UNESCO listing of the Belfries of Belgium and France, inscribed in 1999 to honour these civic towers that symbolised the freedom and wealth of the medieval towns. Climb it if you can, and you will see the whole of the Haspengouw region spread out around you, a gently rolling landscape of orchards and fields.
Read the complete Stadhuis met Toren write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Stadhuis met Toren, about halfway. Next is Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto.
5. Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto
Tongeren likes to remind you that it is the oldest town in Belgium, and it has a strong claim. The Romans founded a settlement here, Atuatuca Tungrorum, on the road between Cologne and Bavay, and the remains of its walls can still be seen around the town. Before that, the area was home to the Eburones, a Celtic tribe whose chieftain Ambiorix famously ambushed and destroyed a Roman legion in 54 BC. His statue, a heroic nineteenth-century figure with a winged helmet and a magnificent moustache, stands in the main square, the Grote Markt.
Read the complete Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto sits at 107 km, about halfway. Next is back through Stadhuis met Toren.
6. back through Stadhuis met Toren
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Stadhuis met Toren write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Stadhuis met Toren comes up 134 km in. Next is back through Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren.
7. back through Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
161 km in you reach back through Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren. Next is back through Grand Béguinage of Leuven.
8. back through Grand Béguinage of Leuven
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Grand Béguinage of Leuven write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Grand Béguinage of Leuven, late in the day. Next is Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa.
9. Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa 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 190 km.
Leg by leg
Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa to Grand Béguinage of Leuven
Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa → Grand Béguinage of Leuven is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Grand Béguinage of Leuven to Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren
Grand Béguinage of Leuven → Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren to Stadhuis met Toren
Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren → Stadhuis met Toren is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Stadhuis met Toren to Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto
Stadhuis met Toren → Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto to back through Stadhuis met Toren
Onze-Lieve-Lievevrouwebasiliek met Stadsto → back through Stadhuis met Toren is 27 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Stadhuis met Toren to back through Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren
back through Stadhuis met Toren → back through Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren to back through Grand Béguinage of Leuven
back through Sint-Germanuskerk met Stadstoren → back through Grand Béguinage of Leuven is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Grand Béguinage of Leuven to Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa
back through Grand Béguinage of Leuven → Sonian Forest - Forest Reserve “Joseph Zwa is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.