Anlier Forest in the south of Belgium is one of the country’s largest forests. Here are seven walking routes through the forest.
Deep into the Ardennes, between Martelange and Habay-la-Neuve in the province of Luxemburg, is the huge 7000-hectare Anlier Forest, one of the biggest forests in Belgium. Its northern slopes reach an altitude of 517 metres and are drained by the tributary streams of the River Sûre, which flows into Germany as the Sauer and eventually into the Moselle. The forest is so vast that parts of it are virtually unexplored. Living in its deeper recesses are deer, wild boar, badgers, foxes and wildcats. The otter is apparently making a comeback in the region. Beavers have also been re-introduced into these river systems. Visit the area in the summer and look for rare breeding birds such as great grey shrikes, red-backed shrikes, and the specialty of the region: black storks.
Where to walk in Anlier Forest
The Anlier Forest tourist agency suggests seven circular walks in different areas of the forest. I have tried a couple of them but not all of them. They all look interesting and are of varied lengths between 8 km and 21 km. Unfortunately, I find their website quite frustrating. Some pages seem to have no content, and the download clicks for the GPX routes don’t seem to work. Therefore I provide downloadable maps of the seven walks in Anlier Forest below, and you can download the GPX tracks from RouteYou.
Heinstert 8k
Download as a PDF. GPX track from RouteYou.
Fauvillers 12 km
Download as a PDF; GPX track from RouteYou.
Heinstert 14 km
Download map as a PDF and the GPX track from RouteYou.
Habay-la-Neuve 15 km
Download map as a PDF and the GPX track from RouteYou.
Fauvillers 16 km
Download as a PDF; GPX track from RouteYou.
Marbehan 18 km
Download map as a PDF; get GPX track from RouteYou.
Martelange 21 km
Download map as a PDF; get the GPX track from RouteYou.
So these should be enough to keep you busy for a few trips to Anlier Forest. As always, any questions and just drop me a line. And to get more ideas of walks in Belgium, subscribe to Discovering Belgium by adding your email below:
We did the 16km Fauvillers route last week and it was beautiful! Because of the snow and melting water it wasn’t very easy, but we enjoyed it a lot. And being far from the High Fens, it was very quiet. As an extra, we even saw some deer.
Anyway, thanks for the tip on the Anlier forest, because I never heard of it before.
Thanks for the positive feedback Geert, and I’m pleased to see you forged through the floodwaters like a true adventurer! Looking forward to your next trek!