Station walker Zoniënwoud (Groenendaal - La Hulpe)

From Groenendaal station to La Hulpe station through the Sonian Forest , partly recognized as a UNESCO world heritage site.

From the start we follow the local GR , indicated by the yellow/red lines , and we dive into the Sonian Forest. We follow the ridge into a forest valley and arrive at the remains of the Priory and the castle of Groenendaal on the Kloosterweg.

From the St. Kornelius Chapel we walk past some ponds. After the Ganzepoot pond we take the Preumontpad and we arrive in a piece of forest where in the spring the bluebells cover the ground with a blue carpet. We now climb along a beautiful meandering stream and walk through the Joseph Zwaenepoel forest reserve , a unique piece of forest that is on the prestigious UNESCO World Heritage List.

When we reach Lorrainedreef, we take the GR 126 Membre-sur-Semois - Brussegem on the left. Here and there there is a bench to rest. At the end we take the Puntgeveldreef on the left and after a few hundred meters we take the Wildetijmweg on the right. This takes us on the other side of the R0, in the Raafeikenweg . At the end, turn right onto Jozefienendreef until about a kilometer further on, we turn left onto Chemin Parmentier . To our right is the Ticton Forest Reserve, also on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

We enter the Domaine Régional Solvay . At the Etang de la Ferme we walk up and back to take a look at the 36m high Obelisk with sun. On the other side of the pond we arrive at La Taverne de l'homme Bleu , where the museum of the Tolon foundation is also located. A snack and/or a drink is available here 7 days a week from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

We turn further left onto a narrow path uphill to admire the Chateau La Hulpe in all its glory. We do not take the main path but a smaller path behind the castle to the Etang de la Longue Queue . On the other side we see the staircase of 140 steps that leads to a viewpoint with a slope of 30°.

At the end of the pond we take the left of the 2 parallel paths that lead to the exit of the domain.

Once out of the domain we turn left and at the roundabout we turn right. Here are the buildings of SWIFT, the world leader in financial transactions ...

We are now in La Hulpe. We reach the station, our final destination, along the stream l'Argenteuil and the pond Le Grand Etang .