3-B Gravel Route 63

After a hearty breakfast buffet, we set off from Bütgenbach at 10am. The children are fed and we have decided to go cycling this weekend.

We leave Bütgenbach and the GPS device guides us along quiet roads and beautiful gravel paths with the occasional single trail. Our first stop after 20 kilometres is Peak Beer, a brewery where you can enjoy delicious food and a brewery whose beer can be bought in many local shops.

We arrived at Peak Beer just before midday and stayed there for an hour: we fuelled up on vitamin D on the large terrace with a view of the high fens and enjoyed Liège boulettes with fries. Not exactly sports food, but delicious 😊!

The landscape changes from Peak Beer onwards. The picturesque gives way to a rugged Ardennes landscape: forests and impressive views. We make a short detour to the beautiful Bayehon waterfall, which is full of water this spring.

We climb up to Xhoffraix with its beautiful beech hedges, ride to Mont Spinette and from there descend to Malmedy. The wide gravel roads are steep in places (fortunately not so steep that we have to get out of the saddle 😊). Good brakes are a must.

I ride a hardtail mountain bike, my husband a gravel bike. We both ride with tubeless tyres with a coarse tread. My husband has wide 45 mm tyres. That proves to be a good choice. Some of the roads are adventurous and muddy. We prefer the luxury of carefree cycling to lower rolling resistance and faster cycling. We are in no hurry.

After a huge descent through impressive nature and the Trois Marets mountain stream, we suddenly end up on the N68 between Mont Rigi and Malmedy. Despite our fat tyres, we quickly cover the 2 km on this national road: it’s downhill to the beautiful chapel of Bévercé. Then follows a stretch of idyllic ‘urban gravel’ behind the Malmedy industrial estate. Nature and city come together here. The lively Warche drowns everything out. We reach Malmedy via Outrelepont. Cross the natural stone bridge and turn left to reach the park next to Malmedy Cathedral via the paths around the remarkable cemetery.

We have now covered 33 kilometres, which means that the next stop, the Bellevaux brasserie, is just around the corner. To get there, we have to climb back up from the Warche valley and then descend to Bellevaux. Our efforts are once again rewarded with a breathtaking view and the brasserie in Bellevaux has a super cosy terrace. Smaller than the one at Peak Beer. Very different, but just as beautiful! We marvelled at the brewery’s kettles and, after a snack and a drink, made our way to Ligneuville. We are pleasantly surprised by the many single trails. Although the grass is lush in places, there are no significant obstacles such as stones and roots on these narrow paths: we often ride on compacted earth. I have to mention the Route Napoléon: Napoleon is said to have marched here with his army. Fiction? The fact is that we have now reached an area where the Ardennes offensive raged with full force. In Thirimont, you can see references to the Second World War everywhere: Hill 551, monument to the 30th Division.

We continue to follow the GPS track and find ourselves back in the hedgerow and meadow landscape so typical of Bütgenbach and the surrounding area. After a nice ride on the RAVeL, shortly after the former railway station of Weismes, we climb up to Gueuzaine. From there, the route is more or less flat except for the last ascent to the centre of Bütgenbach.

We have timed everything very well. Because we arrive in Bütgenbach at 5.30 pm and treat ourselves – finally! – tasting at the local microbrewery, which has already won numerous World Beer Awards.

At BrewTous’, we end this 3-B-Gravel tour in style: in a cosy bar with a beer! We passed three breweries in three B-towns (Botrange, Bellevaux and Bütgenbach). And we covered 3 x 21 kilometres. Another gravel round is on the programme tomorrow. The Gravel North Route. First we eat and enjoy the flashbacks of today’s beautiful tour.