Don’t look for a spire at the starting point. The spire of the Church of the Nativity of Our Lady burnt down in 1881 and was never rebuilt. Nevertheless, the church is an impressive building. The people of Kapellen thought big when it was built in 1879; it can accommodate around 850 worshippers. It is not without reason that it is sometimes called the Cathedral of the Hageland.
White for pears, pink for apples
But the real spectacle isn’t inside; it’s outside. As soon as you leave the ‘cathedral’ behind, you weave your way between the houses along a narrow footpath into the countryside, straight through the fruit orchards. To the left and right, a gently undulating ribbon of orchards stretches out. In the right season, the budding blossoms create a wonderfully poetic spectacle: pear trees with delicate, white petals and apple trees with rosy clusters. Bees buzz from flower to flower, as if they can’t decide where to start first. Winter seems to have been forgotten here for weeks now.
You walk on like this for quite some time, alternating between unpaved paths and narrow concrete tracks, but always with the same familiar sights: fields, fruit trees and solitary farmhouses. And even when the blossoms have faded, the landscape remains stunningly beautiful. You might already spot tall stacks of crates. It is in these crates that the seasonal workers gather the harvest at the end of summer.
Tienen–Aarschot Tram
Past the Krimmelbos, you walk up Tramstraat. It’s almost hard to believe that a tram once chugged its way through the open Hageland countryside here, but between 1897 and 1957 it ran along precisely this route between Tienen and Aarschot. Meanwhile, Ravot play farm – children’s parties on the farm, how brilliant! – takes you right to the edge of Glabbeek.
On the Venusberg, a little further on, legend has it that the goddess Venus was worshipped. Pepin of Landen is even said to have built a temple there. Whether superstition or reality, it lends this little corner of the Hageland a delightful touch of mystique.
Not long after, the grand ‘cathedral’ of Kapellen comes into view once more. You’re almost there, so take a moment to enjoy the tranquillity and the colours of this beautiful part of the Hageland.
