Tongerlo in Limburg

Tongerlo in Limburg - not to be confused with the Antwerp abbey village of the same name - lies in the transition between the Kempen plateau and the Maasvlakte. A few streams are rolling in at a considerable speed. The water mill along the way is therefore kept running without any problem. You continue walking through a vast agricultural land of lonely farms, large fields and winding lanes that you only have to share with a tractor or the many cyclists. Note: No sanitary stop possible on the entire route.

1. With the entrance of St. Peter's Church (15th century) on your left, walk towards cycle junction no. 12. In the bend in front of you is the house where writer Jaak Langens lived (A lion from the Kempen, Rosse Lei...). Just before that, take Kerkhofstraat on the right. Cross an intersection and follow at the fork with a crucifix on the right. You walk on a narrow asphalt road through the fields. In the distance you can see the church of 't Hasselt.
2. Step over the Kanielstraatbeek, walk past some farms and turn right at the T-junction. Take the first path on the left, Straterhof, a gravelly grass path that turns into a grass path. Carefully cross the Bree–Kinrooi road and follow the Houterweg. At farm Houterhof, take the field road on the right (just before the silo of the farm). You walk through an impressive agricultural landscape. You come to a wider gravel road that you continue to follow straight ahead. Where the gravel road turns right, you step straight ahead on a narrow field road. Don't worry about side paths, cross a narrow asphalt road and walk until you reach another field road. Turn right here and choose on the Y-junction on the left. You come to an asphalt road and follow it to the left. Step past the Kievithoeve and follow the straight road for more than 3 km. You pass a lane with a rest bench and cross the Horstgaterbeek. The stream runs for a while next to the road. If she turns to the right, next to a private road, turn left with the asphalt road and continue walking through the forest. On a sign you can read that you are on the Beerseleerdijk, which turns into the Groot Broekstraat.
3. You are now in Kinrooi and walk past a restored farmhouse from 1877. A little further you cross the Nieuwbeek and you are in a beautiful spot. Right in front of you, a bridge over the Abeek and on the other side a chapel with a bell tower. To the left of the chapel, 200 m away, the Woutershof, a former castle farm, now a holiday center of the VVKSM, the scouts. Before the bridge on the left, there is an access to the 110 ha nature reserve Urlobroek. Only accessible during the weekend. But, our tour turns right before the bridge. The road splits. On the right, the road is private, so choose the left and continue to follow the Abeek. Ignore a bridge on the left and turn a few hundred meters further with the, now asphalted road to the right. You walk along the edge of the forest and ignore all the side roads until you reach a crossroads, with a chapel under the trees. You come from the Broekstraat and follow the Belestraat on the right. Ignore a street on the left and continue walking until you come back to the Bree–Kinrooi road. Cross it and follow the Diekerstraat until a fork at the white Holy Rita Chapel.
4. Take the Groenstraat on the right. The road makes a left turn and an unpaved path is added. You continue to follow the asphalted road and walk straight ahead at the first quadrangle. The dwarsstraat is also called Groenstraat. Furthermore, ignore all side streets and after you have left the Veestraat on the right, you step past the Nysenhoeve. Just before the next farm, with a horse pasture with wooden fence, take the first field road on the left. You meander around a dilapidated farmhouse and cross the Itterbeek. From the bridge you have a beautiful view of the church of Tongerlo. Then take the first side road on the right. Follow this wider field road, which turns into an asphalt road to the end. Turn right, direction church. Just before you enter the village center you come to the mill house (1735) and the Galdermansmolen, a water mill from 1770. The mill is of the underlay type, the water pushes against the wheel at the bottom. Leave the Beekstraat and follow the Solterweg to the church. The west tower with thick walls of marl and bluestone dates from 1408 and dominates the area.