Mother's Day Hike in Bertem Wood

I knew exactly what I wanted for Mother's Day and so I asked my kids if they were up for a family hike - thankfully, they were all free yesterday, and the weather report was decent.  Florian offered to plan a route for us in Bertem Woods, where he frequently runs - I was excited about this because I have never been to Bertem Woods; even though it is just on the other side of Leuven, the walking map system I usually use to plan walks doesn't include that area of Flanders.  Which is a shame because it turned out to be a cool place to walk!

Florian planned a route that would end up being about 12 km.  We agreed to meet up at the carpool parking on the Brusselsesteenweg in Herent, where the trail begins.  I never even knew there was a carpool parking there - it was well hidden between the ramp to get on the highway and a local garage.  But we found it, parked and headed out, by which time it had stopped raining.  Perfect!

The path wound us up along the highway into an open field.  We crossed through the field and entered the woods at the bottom, and wound our way up through the windy forest paths towards the village of Bertem, which is about 6 km outside of Leuven.  The woods were beautiful this time of year, bright green with new growth and still filled with the last of the wood anemones (Florian said a couple weeks ago they were fantastic).  I will have to remember to go back earlier next spring to get a look at them.

It was a challenging path with quite some ups and downs.  Once we got near Bertem, we wound out into the fields again and as we approached the edge of the village, we saw there was an ice cream shop set up in the garage of a local chocolatier.  So of course we treated ourselves to a scoop (or two!) and then continued on our way, winding back into the woods and then finally, for an incredible finale, out through a field full of colza in full bright yellow bloom - amazing.  We spent a lot of time taking pictures (I think I got some good shots for my Christmas card this year!) and then we headed back through the fields again, back to the car.  

It was a great hike and the best way to spend Mother's Day with my kids.  I feel very blessed!

National Park Hoge Kempen Trail Walk

 

A small deviation from our Extratrail adventures this weekend - we signed up to participate in the National Park Hoge Kempen Trail Walk/Run in Maasmechelen.  Stefaan and I were planning to walk the 12 km route while Florian was going to run the 22 km route, which would include running up two "terils" (this is a specific Belgian/Northern French word that refers to the steep, perfectly shaped conical hills that are created from piling up earth extracted from coal mines).  

The Corona-proof organization meant that we had to pick a specific time slot to start - only 80 runners/walkers were allowed to start the trail during each hour slot.  We picked 10-11 am on Sunday, Valentine's Day, knowing that we would need about three hours to complete the course.  I was excited to do something that was organized, and looking forward to perks like porta-pottys at the race venue, something we don't always have when we do Extratrails, with cafés and such being closed due to Corona at the moment.

We had had a cold week in Belgium leading up to Sunday, with a good layer of snow that had stayed on the ground for a week.  We knew the trails were probably going to be slippery, but the weather forecast was really good - bright and sunny and supposed to be getting up to 6°C.  We dressed for the cold in layers, put on our hiking boots and headed out.

Maasmechelen is a short hour's drive away, and we found the designated parking easily.  The only downside was that the parking was a 1.3 km walk from the start location!   But we looked at it as a warm up, and it took us through a very fancy neighborhood with enormous houses, which was interesting to see.  The start location was a youth hostel right on the edge of the National Park, and there was a row of porta-pottys ready and waiting.  Other than that, there were no facilities - due to Covid - no catering foreseen, nor aid stations along the trail; however we knew that and were prepared with sandwiches and plenty of water we were carrying with us.

So all we had to do was get started.  Florian headed out first and we followed behind.  The friendly man at the start warned us that the trail was dangerously icy in many spots and to be careful.  We took his advice very seriously - neither one of us wanted to fall - which meant that we started out slowly.  The first part of the trail wound through a wooded section of high pine trees, which was gorgeous with the bright winter sun filtering through the trees.  It felt great to be out and the landscape was beautiful.

After a while, the forest made way for a more open landscape and we came up around a ridge that had a view on a deep valley with small lakes at the bottom which we assumed had been dug out for mining purposes.  All around us were the dried and dead looking scrubby heather plants - but come August all that heather turns an intense purple.  For a long time I have wanted to come to the National Park in August to see this, but have not yet gotten around to it.  I am thinking we need to come back this summer when the heather is in bloom. 

The trail was challenging at some points but definitely not as steep as the Extratrails we have done.  It wound us down to one of the lakes, and then back up again to more heath, and I kept trying to imagine how it would look with the heather in full bloom, as I enjoyed the sun on my face.  At about 8 km, the trail split and the 22 km looped off in the direction of the terils - I was glad we didn't have to hike up those, as Florian told us later they were really tough (especially considering his legs were already tired because he ran a 24 km Extratrail in Stavelot the day before - he is training for a 55 km trail race at the end of March).  By this time we were able to pick up our pace a bit - the paths in the more open areas had thawed a bit and were less icy.

We finished the route after almost exactly 3 hours.  Florian was there waiting for us, having come in about 15 minutes sooner.  We picked up our goody bags (another fun perk of an organized event!) and after that longish walk to our car, we headed home, very happy with our Valentine's Day adventure together.

Extratrail Series #3 Spa

 We left early with Florian this morning to tackle our third Extratrail route - and we were all levelling up today - Florian was planning to do a red route, and Stefaan and I were going to do a blue one, in Spa.  Also, all of the Extratrails have a nice amount of snow on them, which was going to be an additional challenge for all of us.  I was a bit apprehensive about how slippery the trails were going to be - so much so that I didn't sleep very well!  Boo!

We decided to go to Spa for several reasons, the biggest being how busy it has been in the Haute Fagne area of Belgium lately, lots of people driving in to remoter villages and recreational areas to sled, ski and walk in the snow for the past couple of weeks.   They actually closed access to some of these areas, because the crowds of people had become unmanageable.  We felt like Spa, being a bigger city to start out in, would be more accessible, a little bit easier to drive into (big national road) and to find parking, and we were hoping the tourist office would be open and have public toilets.  Also, I am fairly familiar with Spa, having done their big trail/walking event "Les Crêtes de Spa" twice now with Ingrid.  

Florian's route, which was about 20 km, was going to roughly follow where Ingrid and I had walked on that organized event.  The route Stefaan and I were going to do, which was going to be about 10 km, was on the other side of the town, which was completely new for me, and which I was looking forward to.

We got into Spa with no difficulty and found parking right in front of the Radisson Hotel, near the base of the funicular (the only funicular in Belgium, it takes people up 80 m to the Thermes de Spa above the city).  The Extratrail routes start at the Tourist office, so we walked over there and luckily it was open and had nice clean bathrooms!  Score!  Once we got our pit stop taken care of, we all headed out.  The four different Extratrail routes start out together for the first couple kilometers, but Florian's pace is about double ours, so he got ahead of us right from the start.

The trail takes you up through the town to the steep hills on the north side, a pretty spicy winding trail up to the Thermes, where it took us right past the top of the funicular station and wound us down again, one part a quite challenging descent (especially with all the slushy slippery snow on the trail) which brings you out at the far end of the city park that started from where our car was parked.  Then it wound us right back up again, on another side of a side valley, through the woods, and then down again, and then up again - it was relentless and our first three km took us an hour to complete!  By then we finally got to the split in the trails - red and black continued on to the other side of the town, towards the ski piste and the fagne, and the blue and green continued north towards Theux, through a beautiful forest and with some welcome

respite from climbing, before winding us back around in a big loop up and down towards the town again.  

I have to say, all the climbing was totally worth how beautiful it was to hike in the woods there today - the nice layer of snow made it a true winter wonderland, and at certain points it was so quiet and peaceful.  Once the sun came out and started shining through the trees and glittering on the snow, it was breathtaking.  We really enjoyed ourselves and were happy we had come out for the day.  It took us a good three hours to finish the route.  We met Florian at the car (as per usual he got there about 15 minutes before us), but not before we stopped in at the tourist office for another pit stop and a lovely tea room patisserie right on the same square, to pick up some coffee and hot chocolate and some cake to take home with us.  (Another reason for choosing to start in Spa today - we had high hopes we'd be able to get a hot drink afterwards and thankfully, it worked out!).  All in all it was a great day and we really felt like we were on vacation.  We definitely recommend the Spa Extratrails!

Extratrail Series #2: Theux

This past Saturday the weather forecast was great - one of those perfect fall days with mild temperatures and a glorious blue sky to contrast with the fall leaves - so we decided to tackle another of the Extrail Series, this time the network of trails in Theux. 

 

We were not sure if we were going to be able to go, with an impending second lockdown, but it turned out that the new measures still allowed for non-essential travel around Belgium, so we were able to go.  Florian wanted to run the 18 km Blue Route, while Stefaan and I would walk the 8 km Green Route, together with our middle son, Gillis, which was great because we haven't seen much of him since he and his housemates had to quarantine twice in the past couple months.

 

 

The trails start out in the busy little town of Theux.  It was Saturday morning and people were out getting all their shopping in (masked of course).  It was a bit confusing at first to figure out where best to park the car and get started but we finally found the car park along the river at the cultural center and library and Florian got us pointed in the right direction before taking off for his run.

 

 

The Green Route started out with a pretty spicy climb right away once we got out of Theux, and wound us through fields with beautiful views (including the Franchimont Castle ruins), forests with crackling leaves, and along a little stream called the Wayai.  It was a lovely route, and aside from the tough climb at the beginning, we felt like it was a bit less challenging than the one in Stoumont.  It also felt like the route in Theux was more suburban, not taking us as much into the "wilderness" as the last one we did.

 

  The final big climb on the route took us up to a high meadow, where we could really enjoy the beauty of this area of Belgium as we rounded the top and headed back down into Theux. 

It took us about two hours and 15 minutes to finish the route and when we got back, Florian was waiting for us.  Had it not been for Covid, we probably would have hung around the town and had a drink, but given that all the cafés were closed we decided to call it a good day and head home.

Extratrail Series #1: Stoumont

 

My oldest son, Florian, used his time during lockdown this year to start trail running.  We've already been to one race with him in the Belgian Ardennes as his support team, and while he was running we got a short hike in, making sure we were back at the finish line around the time we thought he was going to come in.  It was a great day and the three of us really enjoyed spending time together as well as running and hiking.

Recently, looking for trails to run to train for some upcoming races, he discovered a really cool concept around the city of Spa: Extratrail.  In Spa and each of six neighboring towns, there are four trails of increasing distance and difficult that start and end at a common central location.  All the trails are really well marked and easy to follow and are intended for trail runners, nordic walkers and hikers.  Additionally, there are linking trails that connect the trails in one town with the trails in the next town and it is even possible to do an entire loop of 157 km!

Florian asked us if we'd be interested in joining him for the trails in Stoumont this past weekend.  Stefaan and I decided to give it a go and try out hiking the green route (7 km), while Florian would run the blue route (14 km) figuring that our times would be similar enough that whoever got in first wouldn't have to wait too long at the car.  

The drive out to Stoumont on a Sunday morning took about an hour and was relaxed.  The weather report was good.  We found the Tourist Office in Stoumont easily and parked the car.  The Tourist Office here is closed on Sunday but there was a little bakery/café open just down the road in case we needed the loo or a hot drink.  It was cold to start out so we were eager to get moving and warm up - Florian was off pretty quickly and Stefaan and I followed, at our much slower pace and directly uphill and into a forest, as we passed a big group of people who were out on a mushroom picking tour! 

 

The route was varied and at times challenging (forest, field, ravine, steep inclines and declines, including some pulling ourselves up on rocks which reminded me of our hikes in Norway) and really pretty with the fall sunlight coming through the trees.  There were several points where we crossed over or walked along little gurgling streams and baby waterfalls, which was wonderful to listen to.  The end of the hike wound us back up from the Amblève River valley into the village of Stoumont, another steep climb but with this breathtaking view as a reward at the end:

It took us about 2 hours to hike the green route and Florian finished the blue one about 15 minutes before us.  An bonus to the way the trails were laid out, was that we bumped into Florian twice along the way - once when his trail crossed ours, which was totally unexpected - we stopped for a minute or two and compared notes about how it was going so far - and a second time towards the end, where all the trails have merged again on the same path, when he caught up to and passed us.  When we got back to the car, he was waiting for us and had already freshened up!

We were all really happy with our first experience of Extratrail hiking/running and on the way back we decided we'd like to try the other six towns' trails as well - and I immediately thought it would be fun to blog about the series. So this is the first in hopefully a series of seven. 

25 KM Trail in Woluwé

Aisling, Ingrid and I signed up for the 25 km trail walk that was held last Sunday in conjunction with the more well known 15 km of Woluwé, a community on the southeast side of Brussels.  As you can see above, there were less than 20 people at the start of the walk!   (There would be about a hundred trail runners that would pass us a few hours later.)

The trail itself was a great course - who knew there was so much green surrounding Brussels!  From the start, we followed an old tram track that had been turned into a walking and biking path, then we were led into the park around the Red Cloister which is now a museum and cultural center, and then into the Sonian Forest, more than 10,000 acres of winding trails and greenery.  It was beautiful.

Ingrid and I walk slow, we are well aware of that - we both have short legs and we also talk a lot while we are walking.  So we were prepared to be out for 5-6 hours (we also take breaks and try to sit down for 10-15 minutes every two hours or so - it really makes a difference in how our legs feel).  And Aisling was willing to adjust to our slower pace.  Which meant most of the other walkers got ahead of us pretty quickly.  And then the trail runners started passing us, and it was sometimes challenging to stay off the path to let them pass.  But we weren't too concerned - there was no time limit set for the trail, and we were having a good time, enjoying the perfect walking weather and gorgeous scenery.

However, we never expected that we would be going so slow that the organizers would start pulling up the trail markings before we finished - but that is exactly what happened!  To be fair, they did warn us at a certain point that that could happen, and the young man on a bike who was taking the markings away did stop when he caught up to us and made sure we had a map (he gave us his and helped Aisling download a route on her phone).  He was apologetic and friendly, and dare I say cute (even though he was probably as old as our own kids)?  So of course we forgave him. 

And luckily Aisling had a cycling map of Brussels with her, so we were able to navigate our way back out of the forest without getting too turned around, and made it back to the finish in 6 hours, as foreseen.

Luckily, they hadn't yet taken down the tent with the drinks, so we were still able to have a beer and toast our accomplishment (and get our friend above to take a nice group pic for us, which he said was the least he could do after leaving us behind in the forest, LOL!):

So if the organizers do decide institute a time limit on the trail walk next year, we might just be to blame for that.  

24 Hours in Reykjavik

Last November I had a ticket on Icelandair to go visit my mom in Texas.  A couple weeks before I was supposed to leave, the airline contacted me to tell me my connecting flight from Iceland to Texas was cancelled, and gave me the option of spending the night in Reykjavik and going out the next day (and they would reimburse my hotel).  I was a bit nervous about spending 24 hours on my own in Reykjavik, but excited as well - my husband had been there for work and it always sounded like an interesting, as well as safe place to visit.  So I started researching what all there was to do and see, and what would be feasible for such a short visit.  I quickly stumbled on this lady's blog about nearly the exact same situation, which was a big help.

The city center of Rejkjavik is about a 45 minute drive away from the airport, and is actually pretty scenic in the sense that you get a view of the desolate rocky Icelandic landscape. I took one of the airport shuttle buses (I booked my ticket online ahead of time), which was quite easy and was dropped off right in front of my hotel at about 3 pm.  I had chosen a hotel just across from the Harpa opera house (I'll explain why in a moment) so I checked in, pleased with the view out my window of the Harpa and the water, and then decided to take a quick walk down the walking path along the seaside before it got dark, to get my first glimpse of the Sun Voyager sculpture.

When I learned about Harpa during my research I decided to see if there were any concerts or performances on the night I would be there, in order to have something to do in the evening.  As it turned out, they program several English language shows specifically for tourists and the night I was there it was a two-person comedy show about the Icelandic Sagas.  So I booked a ticket and after a nice dinner (it is surprisingly easy to eat vegan in Reykjavik!) in the hotel's top-floor restaurant (with fabulous views of the Harpa and its exterior light show) I walked over to the venue.  I was surprised to see about 40 other people in the hall - it seemed like a lot for a cold Sunday evening in November - and it turned out to be an enjoyable way to spend the evening.  The two performers were funny and engaging as they took us through a quick overview of several major Icelandic sagas, performing all the different roles as they went along, as well as using volunteers from the audience.

 
I was especially inspired by the fact that the blogger I mentioned above used some of her precious time to go swimming, so I decided to plan to do that while I was there, and along the way I learned a lot about Icelandic swimming culture.  Reykjavik has several public swimming pools, so there was plenty of choice as to where and after looking at all the options, I decided to go to the Sundhöllin pool after breakfast.  When I woke at 6 am and looked out my window, I saw it had snowed quite a bit during the night and was still snowing - I only had one pair of light shoes with me (because who needs winter shoes when your final destination is Texas, right?) and wondered if I was going to be able to manage the 1.5 km walk to the pool without falling.  I decided I would have breakfast as planned and then give it a go.

It was magical walking through the dark, quiet streets at 7:30 am with snow still softly falling, and thankfully the sidewalks were okay to walk on. I got to the pool and paid for my swim and rented a towel, and ventured down to the dressing room.  One of the aspects of Icelandic swimming culture is that, since the pool water is geothermically heated and not treated with chlorine, it is essential that you wash thoroughly before putting your bathing suit on, and you are expected to do so.  Once I did that, and got my suit on, I headed out to the outdoor lap pool...and it was still dark and still snowing.   To this day, I still think back to how it felt to get into the warm, silky water and do my 40 lengths with the snow falling and the steam coming off the surface of the water.  It was an amazing experience.  After my laps, I installed myself in one of the hot pots (large hot tubs) and watched the sun start to gradually brighten the sky.  I was there for a good two hours and it was incredibly relaxing.

After the pool, I had several more hours before I had to get back on the bus to the airport, so I walked up to the main church and visited the interior, which was surprisingly plain and subdued and took the elevator up to the top and saw the sun rise even further over the city, which was beautiful.

  

Then I walked through the main shopping street (went in lots of cute little shops but did not buy anything as the myth that things in Iceland are expensive is actually true), visited the neighborhood where the city hall and government buildings were located, and treated myself to a hearty vegan lunch at Gardurinn.  Then I headed back to the waterfront for one last view of the mountains and the Sun Voyager before collecting my luggage at the hotel and posting myself at the bus stop for the airport shuttle.  I have never felt so relaxed and rejuvenated before a transatlantic flight before in my life.

How lucky I feel to have been able to experience this little taste of Iceland...  I would love to go back someday, preferably in the summer, to see some of the natural features of the island and get out of the city.  One thing is for sure -  I would certainly plan to swim again!