Delightful cycling in German-speaking Belgium, on low-traffic roads, through forests and a gently rolling meadow landscape with beautiful vistas and a bit over the Vennbahn.

Text and photos Stan Verelst

The route

Meet at the Skihütte (V) with the Biermuseum of Rodt (Tomberg 77). Depart towards KP 165. At the roundabout, go straight (RD), take the second exit, and immediately after turn right (RA) onto the road that is not salted in winter. Cycle between the trees until the first small intersection. ● Turn right (RA) until you reach the junction with straight ahead and a rough road to the right. Here, cycle left (LA) until KP 165. Turn left (LA), towards KP 181, over a wide asphalt road, and at the first junction, just before the former customs house of Rodt, turn right (RA). You cycle on a road for local traffic and can enjoy beautiful vistas. ● After the urban area sign of Hinderhausen, continue over Justenberg. At the fork, turn right (RA) and continue down Albinusstraße until you reach Sankt-Albinus-Kirche. Turn left (LA) and just after KP 181, turn right (RA) towards KP 180, over Kretelsweg. ● At the fork keep right (RA) and cycle further between sparse buildings and past the end of the urban area sign of Hinderhausen. At the next fork, turn left (LA) along the edge of the forest. To the left, you get a beautiful view. You pass a small sign for Kapellen and at the next T-junction, turn left (LA). ● Where the road dead-ends straight ahead, turn right (RA) twice in a row and then continue along the edge of the forest. Then head into the woods. At a junction with an information board about hiking possibilities, go straight (RD). At the next four-way junction, where there is a gate to the right, turn left (LA) and continue through the forest until KP 180. Here as well, there is a sign with information about the hiking and cycling network. Go straight (RD), towards KP 179. As you exit the forest, it continues rolling over an open landscape with beautiful vistas.

Small lake

Ignore the side roads and turn left (LA) after the first house. Cross the little bridge and cycle past the urban area sign of Maldingen and Sankt-Johanneskirche until you reach the priority road. Cross it with a right-left bend straight ahead and continue down Paul-Gérardy-Straße. ● At the T-junction, with a field cross on the opposite side, turn right (RA) and at the first junction go straight (RD). You cycle past the end of the urban area sign of Maldingen and further between meadows, a bit of forest, and the open landscape until you reach another road. ● Turn left (LA) and again at the next fork turn left (LA), towards Espeler and Oudler. Continue until KP 179, at Sankt-Martinuskirche. Go straight (RD), towards KP 178, through Martinusstraße, a wide asphalt road with sparse buildings, and then through the open meadow landscape. At the first junction, turn diagonally left (LA). Bescheid is the narrow asphalt road that runs through the gently rolling meadow landscape. ● Ignore all side roads. To the left, you see Thommerweiher (1), a small lake, and then you arrive on another road. Turn left (LA) through Weiherstraße. You can already see the white church of Thommen standing tall. At KP 178, go straight (RD), towards KP 170. Now you start a challenging climb, along the urban area sign of Thommen until KP 170, with a field cross on the corner. ● Continue straight (RD) through Tumbastraße until you reach KP 177 at the Remaclus-Kirche de Thommen. Turn right (RA), towards KP 171. At the fork after Zum Spitzenhaus, turn left (LA).

Over the Ulf

You climb to a triangular square with a cross under three linden trees. Cycle right (RA) along the square, towards Oudler. You get to descend for quite a while, through the green landscape with beautiful vistas. ● You cycle between a few traffic calming bumps and past the soccer fields of Rapid Oudler and continue descending until you reach the Pfarrkirche of Oudler on the Luxemburger Straße from Sankt-Vith to Luxembourg. Turn right (RA), until KP 171, opposite restaurant Le Jardin. Go straight (RD) towards KP 172. You cycle past café Lentzen-Backes mit Automatische Kegelbahn, Friterie Chez Willy, and cross the Ulf. ● Then turn left (LA) onto Im Born and immediately after turn left (LA) onto Bahnhofstraße. Climb around the bend to the former station (2) of Oudler, with interesting information boards about the Vennbahn, now RAVeL Ligne 47. Follow it left (LA), towards Burg-Reuland. ● You cycle over a small bridge and under a stone bridge and then get a nice view of the Ulf valley on the left. From the next bridge, you can see the village of Lascheid on the right. Further on, you cross a road and keep cycling straight (RD) over the Vennbahn, which here is painted a bit green. ● On the left, you get a nice view of the castle (3) and the church of Burg-Reuland. At KP 172, leave the old railway bed to the left (LA), towards KP 174. You descend past a field cross, cross the Ulf over a small bridge and cycle through Peckeneck or Hof Zeyen, a former manor. After passing beneath it, turn right (RA) to Sankt-Stephanus-Kirche. Turn left (LA) towards Alster. At KP 174, opposite a house with photos from the past of villagers, turn left (LA) towards KP 173. Ignore a small street to the left with a triangular chapel on the corner and at the fork turn straight (RD) at hotel Burg-Hof. Continue uphill away from the village, over a narrow, winding asphalt road.

Halifax Memorial

At the small intersection with the mirror and the field cross under the linden trees, go straight (RD) past the urban area sign of Alster. You cycle between sparse buildings and past the white Sankt Quintinus Kapelle. At the next fork, cycle straight (RD), past the end of the urban area sign of Alster and further winding and rolling until you reach KP 173. Turn left (LA), with a beautiful view on your left, until you reach KP 158. Turn right (RA) towards KP 153, over a narrow asphalt road for foresters. Now follows a beautiful stretch through the woods. ● At an intersection of forest paths, go straight (RD). As you exit the forest, you can enjoy a nice panorama. You come into Braunlaufweg and dive down, past the urban area sign of Galhausen and on the right, a O.L.V. van Lourdes grot, hidden in the greenery. Then you cross the Braunlauf. On the right, up high, you can see the church of Galhausen. ● Continue until KP 153. Go straight (RD) towards KP 152. Climb past the end of the urban area sign of Galhausen and through the open landscape until you reach the road from Sankt-Vith to Luxembourg. Turn right (RA), towards Sankt-Vith and immediately after turn left (LA), onto the first street, towards the Halifax Memorial. At the four-way junction with this war monument, go straight (RD), over Zum Weißen Weg.

Wrapping up at the Biermuseum

You descend down to KP 152. On the right, you see an old railway viaduct. Go straight (RD) until the intersection with KP 166. Go straight (RD), past the Mutter-Gottes-Kirche of Neundorf, towards KP 169. You cycle past the end of the urban area sign of Neundorf and continue on RA, under the railway. On the other side, follow Weißstein left (LA). ● Ignore all side roads, enjoy the 360° panorama, and follow the winding road past the urban area sign of Rodt and further between sparse buildings. You will arrive at another road, turn left (LA) and at the next junction turn right (RA). At the end of the road, turn right (RA), until you reach the road Vielsalm - Sankt-Vith. Right (RA) until you can cycle left (LA) after the Pfarrkirche of Rodt, towards Nieder-Emmels. ● Climb past the end of the urban area sign of Rodt until you reach the roundabout on the road Vielsalm - Sankt-Vith. Go straight (RD), second exit, towards Emmels. At KP 169, just before the highway, turn left (LA), over Frodervenn, through the open landscape, until you reach KP 160. Turn left (LA), towards KP 165. At the T-junction, turn right (RA), along the edge of the forest. On the right, you see 5 wind turbines. Bend with the road to the left (LA) and continue through the forest until you reach the Biermuseum.