The ship lifts of the Centrum Canal

A walk between the La Louviére (Sud) station and Havré with the theme - the Centre Canal. We start with the old Centre Canal and its historical boat lifts, before heading towards the new Centre Canal and the highest boat lift in Europe at Strépy-Bracquegnies. We conclude with the protected nature area of Thieu, the forest of Beaulieu, the Notre Dame de Bon Vouloir chapel and the castle ruins of Havré.

Region Centre - Centre

'Centre' or Centrum - a region located in the province of Hainaut between Mons and Charleroi, which at the beginning of the 20th century, along with the Borinage, formed one of the most important coal mining regions of Wallonia. This area was named 'Centre' because it is between the coal basins of the Borinage around Mons and 'The Black Land' around Charleroi. After the establishment of various coal mines, important roads, kilometers of railways, and a canal, this rural area gradually took on an industrial appearance.

A region that at first glance does not invite walking, you might think, but we want to refute that today with a beautiful mapped-out walk from point A - La Louvière (Sud) to point B - Havré.

La Louvière Sud and the old mine tips: 0km - 4.5km

We start from the La Louvière - Sud station, which has a direct connection to Havré - unlike the La Louvière - Centre station. When we exit the La Louvière - Sud station, we take the old coal site of Sart-Longchamps 3, before tackling the climb of the steeper Sart-Longchamps 2 tip. After these tips and neighborhoods with workers' houses, we arrive at 'Eglise du Voeu à Saint-Antoine de Padoue'. A church dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua that leads us to the next workers' neighborhood - Cité Du Nouveau Monde.

We chose a difficult passage through the tip of Saint-Hubert/Sainte-Marie, but due to the dense vegetation and piles of debris, this is not advisable. We have adjusted our route through some low-traffic streets, including Chemin Des Diables, Rue D'Houdeng, Rue de la Paix, and Rue Du Tir that brings us to today's main destination.

Canal du Centre Historique in Houdeng-Aimeries: 4.5km - 7km

Canal Du Centre Historique or the 20km long historical Centre Canal, which has since been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Started with this extensive work in 1888, the canal was only completed in 1917. This canal formed an important connection between the large industrial basins of the Borinage and Charleroi, with the Hainaut Plateau as an obstacle. This plateau, with a height difference of about 70 meters, could be crossed by inland vessels, via the four hydraulic boat lifts and 2 locks. Since 2002, this historical canal is only used for pleasure boating or you can explore this beautiful piece of history along the car-free towpath between La Louvière and Ghislage.

We continue to follow this quiet canal area towards Ghislage to see the charming Saint-Jean-Baptiste church right next to this canal at Houdeng-Aimeries - a subdivision of La Louvière. The old canal, the picturesque church with the village center, and the historic drawbridge of Houdeng-Aimeries are exactly a flashback to the beginning of the 20th century.

Strépy-Bracquegnies & the new Strépy-Thieu Boat Lift: 7km - 10km

This flashback feeling is intensified when you reach the constructions of the old boat lifts n°2 & n°3. Designed by the Brit Edwin Clark, these four boat lifts each overcome a height difference of about 17m, to guide inland ships in steps since 1917 over this higher Hainaut Plateau.

We continue to follow this old canal until we reach the next subdivision of La Louvière - Strépy-Bracquegnies. A municipality that like many villages in this Centre region, is the home of the folk tradition Carnival and its 'Gilles'. An orange-throwing carnival participant who owes his origin to this region, and where the neighboring Carnival of Binche has even been classified as a UNESCO World Heritage site, just like the Carnival of Aalst.

On March 20, 2022, the Carnival of Strépy-Bracquegnies unfortunately made the news. This was after a vehicle drove at very high speed into these starting revellers in the morning and resulted in the heavy toll of 10 injured and 6 dead.

We leave this historic canal for a moment to walk through the Vieille Place of Strépy-Bracquegnies and Rue Luminaire to step onto the new Centre Canal and particularly its boat lift of Strépy-Thieu. Construction began in 1982 and was inaugurated in 2002, this double boat lift on the new Centre Canal is the highest boat lift in the world - since 2016 the highest boat lift in Europe. In 7 minutes of descent, this new boat lift replaces the 4 old boat lifts and 2 locks of the historical canal. Moreover, the new Strépy-Thieu boat lift is also classified as a World Heritage site and can lift ships of 1350 tons over a height of 73m. This with a total weight between 7200 and 8400 tons per boat.

You can understand why this impressive building, 117m high, 81m wide, and 135m long, is needed...

Although this project (like the boat lift of Ronquieres) is seen as 'Grand Useless Works of Belgium'. This due to the opening of the new canal with modern boat lift, when Belgian coal mines systematically closed, and the main purpose of this lift and new canal was.

Thieu and the historic boat lift n°4: 10km - 13km

After a short unexpected snow shower and having admired this mighty structure enough from a wind-free angle, we choose the higher MTB path further to Thieu along this new Centre Canal. A man-made artificial relief area, where this path provides an overview of the immense excavations that this project has brought.

Arriving in Thieu or 'place in the hills' - a subdivision of Le Roeulx, which perhaps has suffered the most of all villages due to the construction of this new canal. Not only were many homes expropriated and destroyed, but the entire center underwent a true transformation. The former town hall was approximately under the current canal bridge and this village was forever split in two.

We take this canal bridge over the new Centre Canal and the stream 'Le Thirieu du Luc'. One last glance at the old boat lift n°4 and we take the marina to start the climb towards an isolated hilltop between the new and the old Centre Canal. This hill provides a magnificent view over the new canal with the imposing Strépy boat lift, the old boat lift n°4, and the village center Thieu with its marina.

The marshes of Thieu-Havré: 13km - 15km

When we descend again to the banks of the new canal, we take a dead-end street that stops at the old canal, where we can cross via an old lock. Further on is the stream La Haine - a tributary of the Scheldt, which formed the historical boundary between Brabant and Hainaut. We take a narrow footbridge over this river to reach GR412 - Sentier des Terrils.

We continue following this GR to reach the nature reserve of Thieu-Havré after a railway bridge. This nature area of 30 ha is locally known as “Les près à Thî” and is the habitat for numerous rare and endangered animals such as the crested newt, the common toad, the agile frog, the Eurasian teal, the tufted duck, the bluethroat, the muskrat, and the blue-winged grasshopper. You can find a birdwatching hut that is limited access or take the nice path / GR412 through this green oasis towards the next municipality on our mapped route.

Boussoit and Bois Du Rapois: 15km - 19km

Boussoit or Boussoit-sur-Haine - a subdivision of the city of La Louvière, which owes its name to 'the place where boxwood grows'. This village not only harbors boxwood but also a unique medieval hospital or the Hôtel-Dieu de Saint-Julien. After a small exploration in the Sainte Marie Madeleine church, we move on to the forest of Beaulieu or Bois du Rapois.

This large forest between Boussoit, Havré, and the hamlet Beaulieu harbors the castle of Beaulieu, the tip and old coal mine of Beaulieu, which unfortunately are not accessible. However, we get the chance to create a green connection from Boussoit via the edge of this forest to Havré.

Castle of Havré: 19km - 24.4km

Arriving in Havré - which can be translated as refuge - however, owes its origin to 'Hopland' or 'Newly reclaimed land'. This municipality on the border of the Borinage with Centre is a place where population has long resided. Not only have many remains been found from the Paleolithic and Neolithic period. Excavations were done of a Gallo-Roman settlement, a necropolis, and Merovingian graves. A municipality with an even richer history since the Middle Ages, thanks to the Castle of Havré.

Before we head towards this castle, we take a rural path through the valley of Rau de Dordogne. This stream that will flow into the Scheldt via La Haine (and not via Dordogne), takes us through rolling grasslands to the Chapelle de Notre Dame de Bon Vouloir or the chapel of Our Lady of Good Will. A gothic chapel from 1631 that we exit again via a beautiful avenue of lime trees or GR 412 - Sentier des Terrils.

We cross the Rau de Dordogne again to hike to the castle ruins of Havré, but due to a local Christmas market, there are particularly many people and we cannot optimally explore this property, unfortunately.

This castle was built around 1226 by the workers of the Countship of Flanders and Hainaut right next to the boundary river of its time - La Haine. After several families have lived there, such as Ida of Bergen, Engelbert of Edingen, and Philip II of Croy. Philip II, a general of Emperor Charles V, stayed there with his family and descendants between 1423 and 1792. During the French invasion, this castle was sold as national property. The Croy family bought this estate back but ultimately let it fall into ruin until it collapsed in 1930. An NGO had the castle partially restored in 1978 and today allows events such as a Christmas market, other events, or weddings.

A beautiful setting that we leave behind and continue to follow GR412 along the river La Haine towards the endpoint or the station of Havré