Wonderful cycling in the south of the Bruges countryside between fields, meadows, farmhouses, and numerous chapels. Some gentle hills add spice to this tour.

Text and photo Stan Verelst

The route

Meeting point at the Sint-Germanus Church on the Egemsdorpsplein in Egem (V). Departure with the church on your right towards KP 36. At the fork, turn left and then right into Tieltsevoetweg, a narrow asphalt road that turns into a church path. At the end, turn right. Ignore the road on the left and go straight past the entrance sign of Pittem to the fork with KP 36. Left towards KP 56. You cycle through a gently hilly landscape, past a tree with a beautiful treehouse up to a T-junction. Turn left past a white chapel and the farm 't Gaverleen and continue to the road Tielt - Egem. Cross this straight ahead. ● Ignore the Damstraat on the left and continue straight through Nachtegaalstraat. Where it becomes unpaved, turn right onto the concrete road. At the T-junction before a farm, turn left. Continue along Nachtegaalstraat to the end. Turn right. Ignore the Bergmolenweg directly on the left and continue straight to the T-junction with KP 56. Left towards KP 42 through Hoogserleistraat to the stop sign. Cross with a left-right bend and go straight through Vrouwenboomstraat. 'Love' is the toponym or the hamlet on the topographic map.

Amusing landscape

Ignore the road on the left and continue before the farm Berkenhof by turning right and cycling along a row of trees until you can turn left into Hulswallestraat. You pass an info board about 'Amusing Landscape', a Tielt agricultural cycling tour that draws attention to corn here. Continue straight ahead across the priority road and continue through Poelvoordestraat. At the T-junction, turn right, still cycling through Poelvoordestraat. ● At the fork at the triangular chapel, you arrive at KP 42. Left, towards KP 27. Then take the first road on the right, which is Motestraat, and follow this to the end. There, turn left and follow Waalbosstraat, passing a brick chapel (1947) next to a farm, until you reach a priority road. Cross this straight ahead and continue through Kleine Veldstraat. Follow this to KP 27. Turn left into Keukelstraat, towards KP 34. Ignore the Kortstraat on the left, pass the church of Sint-Jan, and then cross the small intersection at Volkscafé Vierwegen straight ahead. ● At the end of the agglomeration sign for Sint-Jan, continue through the open landscape to KP 34. Left towards KP 25 through Hoogweg. You pass greenhouses, individual buildings, and between meadows and fields. At the fork with the straight road leading to a dead end, follow Hoogweg right to the stop sign. Cross the road straight ahead and continue through Zandbergstraat. This becomes a one-way street and leads you to the church of Wingene. Turn right behind the church and then left into the one-way street. ● At the corner with Sfeercafé - Bistro Peetje Klakke, you arrive at KP 25. Turn right towards KP 50. You pass the church square and turn right at the priority road, towards Beernem. You pass OKay and the art academy of Wingene, then turn left into Leenmolenstraat and leave the village.

Fresh pork

After leaving the agglomeration sign of Wingene, the road narrows and you cycle again between fields and meadows. At the T-junction, turn right into Noordakkerstraat to KP 50. Left into Hertsbergeveldstraat, towards KP 22. Enjoy the open landscape and at the T with KP 22, turn right towards KP 11. ● Right after that, turn left at the road. Ignore all side roads and continue along this perfectly straight road to the T-junction with KP 11. Left towards KP 17. You reach a T-junction with an unpaved road on the right. Turn left over a narrow concrete road, passing Kortekeerskapel (1), next to the entrance to 't Vers Varkentje, a farm where you can buy fresh pork by order. After a left-right bend, you come to a priority road. ● Left and then right into Kortekeerstraat. You pass a nursery and turn right at the T-junction. You cycle along the edge of the forest to Kortrijksesteenweg. Cross this straight ahead with a left-right bend and continue your way through Vlasbloemstraat to KP 17. Straight ahead towards KP 6. ● Ignore Torendreef on the left and turn left at the next fork into Robaardstraat. At a T-junction with an unpaved road on the right, turn left and then immediately into the first road on the right. You continue through Robaardstraat. The road turns into an avenue and at the end, turn left and then right into Munkenstraat. This too is an avenue. On your right, you have a nice view of Raepenburg Castle (2).

Singing water mill

You pass by the entrance sign of Wingene and go straight ahead along the edge of the Lakebos forest. Ignore side roads and continue to the small intersection with KP 6. On the left corner stands a beautiful white chapel, on the right corner the café De Landsman with the message: 'If you never try, you'll never know'. It has been a café since 1902. Right into Landsmanstraat, towards KP 82. Ignore side roads and continue left into Kaleshoekstraat, passing the entrance sign of Ruddervoorde and then left into Watermolenstraat. ● You pass the Singing Water Mill (3), now a holiday home for groups, previously a turbine water mill. The building dates from 1821, and there was also a windmill on the roof earlier. You come to a priority road and follow it to the left. Then turn right into Sasputstraat and continue winding until KP 82. Left into Vannekensstraat, towards KP 12. At the end of the road, turn right and at the T-junction with an unpaved road on the right, turn left. ● You come to a wide priority road, cross this straight ahead and continue through Vrijgeweidstraat to KP 12. Straight ahead to KP 89, 300 m further. Again straight ahead towards KP 21 to a priority road. Cross this straight ahead and keep following Vrijgeweidstraat between fields, meadows, and farmhouses until you can turn left into Pincestraat. ● You pass the access road to Lindehoeve and continue until the first small intersection. Right into Hoogstraat. The landscape becomes gently hilly again and you return to the inhabited world.

Brick chapels

At an intersection, go straight into Driekavenstraat. Continue straight across the priority road. On the other side, it is still Driekavenstraat. To the right in the distance, you can already see the church of Zwevezele. At the stop sign with KP 21, go straight ahead towards KP 23. Then turn right into Ruddervoordestraat towards Zwevezele. You pass a brick chapel and the agglomeration sign of Zwevezele and turn right at the end of the road. ● Pass the church and go straight ahead with a left-right bend into Waldreeferstraat for local traffic. To enter the community park, turn right with the road and drive into a residential area. At the end, you come to Kasteelstraat, which you follow left to the stop sign. Left and a bit further with a sharp turn right over a wide concrete road with a separate bike path. After leaving the agglomeration sign of Zwevezele, turn left at the first road. This is Joostraat. ● You pass a brick chapel from 1881, pass a few large farmhouses, and turn left at the end of Joostraat; straight ahead it ends in a dead end. Follow Schaapbrugstraat until you reach the busy N50. Left and 100 m further right into Schoolstraat. To the right, you see the impressive transmitter mast (4) of Egem in the landscape. At the fork near a white farm, keep left, and at the T-junction, turn right until you reach the intersection with KP 23. ● Go straight ahead towards KP 36. Ignore the side roads and turn left at the T-junction with the paved road; on the right, it is unpaved. At the fork with a dead end, turn left, right, and continue along a chapel to the church of Egem.