1. The Big Oak Walk
Your walk - 12.7 km
A beautiful sunken road sets the tone at the start of this fairy-tale-like forest walk. Admire mysterious wooden tree sculptures and the thickest oaks you’ve ever seen. The oldest is more than 300 years old and can be found along the … Dikke Eikdreef. Relax and reflect at the In de Molen tavern, at junction 700.
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Your Walking Forest
The Mollendaalbos is a beautiful part of the larger Meerdaalwoud and Heverleebos, which together cover 2,050 hectares. It’s full of playful roe deer, paths that wind deep into the rolling hills of the forest, and stately, straight avenues.
Getting Started
The walk starts and ends at De Borre cultural center, Speelpleinstraat 10, Bierbeek.
Your Stay
The intimate B&B Miranoza —an award-winning architect-designed home—is literally nestled among the trees of the Meerdaalwoud in Blanden. Total tranquility, just twenty minutes from Leuven.
2. Schone-Eik Walk
Your hike - 7.9 km
A journey to the ancient heart of the Sonian Forest, the Joseph Zwaenepoel Forest Reserve, which has been recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2017. The pedunculate oak after which this walk is named is 40 meters tall and sprouted in the 17th century! Can you find the oak?
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Your Walking Forest
The Sonian Forest is unique—and not just because this 4,421 ha forest is the largest beech forest in the country. But mainly because it has remained forested since the Ice Age! Literally a primeval forest.
On the way
The walk starts and ends at Groenendaal Castle, Duboislaan 1, Hoeilaart. Follow the wooden posts marked with red bands.
Your Stay
B&B Hippo-Droom in Hoeilaart is a beautifully restored Belle Époque villa in the heart of the Sonian Forest. Each room features a cozy, contemporary decor with a nod to nature and the region.
3. Norbertine Walk
Your walk - 9.3 km
The Norbertines chose the most beautiful landscape to build their abbey, nestled among the trees and heathland of Averbode. The walk takes you past Mariapark, with its Seven Sorrows of Our Lady, before you can breathe in the sweet scent of pine on the Weefberg. Afterward, relax at Het Moment with an Averbode, the abbey’s beer.
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Your walking forest
In Averbode Bos & Heide, vast forests alternate with ponds, marshes, heathland, and nutrient-poor grasslands. The Corsican pines were planted at the request of the noble de Merode family, who engaged in forestry operations there after Belgian independence.
On the trail
The walk starts and ends at Het Moment, Herseltsebaan 2, Averbode.
Your Stay
Villa Chill is a 5-star vacation home within walking distance of the beautiful Averbode Abbey. It features four bedrooms and a large 37-are garden that even includes its own private forest.
4. Roeselberg Walk
Your walk - 6.9 km
After visiting the 17th-century Roeselberg Chapel, you’ll walk through the lush and beautiful Walenbos forest, then head past the edge of the woods to admire the Hageland slopes and views of the village of Houwaart.
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Your Hiking Forest
The Walenbos is one of the largest alder swamp forests in Flanders and a true natural treasure. Vast, wild, wet, and inhospitable. Don’t forget your boots!
On the trail
The walk starts and ends at the Roeselberg Chapel, Stokskesstraat, Sint-Joris-Winge.
Your stay
You can choose between the Provençal, modern, or rustic room at B&B Silentium. It’s always wonderfully quiet there on the edge of the Walenbos.
5. Five Oaks Hike
Your walk - 9.2 km
You’ll walk beneath the tall canopies of graceful beech and oak trees to the “Five Oaks” intersection. You only need to look around for a moment to see where that name comes from. In the fall, the American oaks along Prosperdreef turn beautiful shades of red.
Tip: Take a moment to relax at Brasserie 500, located at your starting and ending point.
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Your walking forest
The old oaks of Heverleebos make way in the arboretum for as many as 300 different species of trees and shrubs. The centerpiece is the millennium tree, a Japanese zelkova, a relative of the elms that are nearly extinct in our region.
On the way
The walk starts and ends at Arboretum Heverleebos, Naamsesteenweg 500, Heverlee.
Your stay
Bibois is a stylish hotel, situated right between the Meerdaal Forest and Heverleebos. It features a trendy bistro where you can unwind after your fall hike.