Start from the outstanding Provincial Domain Château d’Hélécine and enjoy a circular 9 km walk through nearby villages and fields.
This was my first visit to the Château d’Hélécine and I was pleasantly surprised. It’s definitely a place to visit again. Located just off junction 26 of the E40, south of Tienen and north of Hannut, the castle lies in a 28-hectare park with lakes, children’s playgrounds, a miniature golf course and various animals such as deer, swans, geese, peacocks and goats. There’s also an attractive Pop-Up bar with a terrace facing the lake. Entry is free and it’s open all-year-round. It would be a great place to take the children or grandchildren.
So where are the photos, you ask? A good question. Unfortunately I chose the dullest, cloudiest, mistiest Saturday morning that Belgium has ever experienced. It was also very cold, barely registering above zero degrees Celsius. So I had a quick glance around the domain before speeding off (in an attempt to get warm) on a 9 km hike that I had planned.
I highly recommend the walk. It goes up on the plateau overlooking Hélécine and through the villages of Neerheylissem and Hampteau before circling back to the château. You can save/print the map below, or get the GPX track from my RouteYou page. There’s plenty of car parking space at the château. Opheylissem Carrefour seems to be the closest bus stop; it’s only a short walk away from the château.
However, as you’ve probably guessed, you’re not going to see any breathtaking pictures of the scenery, because most of them look like this:
So you’ll just have to take my word for it – that this is definitely a walk worth doing. You could combine it with a visit to the Château d’Hélécine. Thankfully by the time I had completed my walk, the sun had just begun to peek through the mist and I was able to take a few photos:
A word of warning. I notice that some walks in the neighbourhood that you can find online will take you from the château or bring you back to it by suggesting you walk along the N64. Please do not follow these directions. The N64 is a busy road that’s unpleasant and unsafe to walk along. I do not understand why anyone would suggest walking along it, even for a short distance. Much better to cross it, as I indicate on my map.
My second recommendation is to choose a better day than I did. If you do, please take some nice photos and send them to me so I can add them here! Thanks!
I’m glad by the end of the walk, the sun finally came out and cast a beautiful light on the Château d’Hélécine and its immediate surroundings. I would do this walk just to see the château alone. This is among the things that I miss the most about Europe — there are many beautiful buildings like this tucked away in the middle of something.
Thanks Bama, yes I agree, and Belgium in particular has a lot of these “secret” or lesser known places, tucked quietly out of the way, waiting to be explored.
The Chateau is beautiful!
I will revisit it when the weather and I have warmed up!
Prachtig om daar rond te kuieren!
Ja, hoewel de grootte van de parkeerplaatsen doet vermoeden dat veel mensen het bezoeken bij mooi weer!
In de zomer springkastelen …
Hello Denzil -15C here this morning. The chateau has an unusual dome, almost as if they’d finished the building, and then decided to add an astronomical observatory. Have you been inside? Thank you, RPT
No Robert I haven’t, this was my first time here. It’s certainly a place to revisit and explore in more detail.
Sure, it looks to be quite the grand place to revisit, on a nicer day.
Ik passeerde al 3 keer aan het kasteel (oude SGR Hageland, nieuwe GRP 127 Brabant-Wallon en GR 128) en vond het telkens een aangename plek om te toeven (én te wandelen) 🙂 – Looks like a nice walk, something to keep in mind.
Ik denk dat de GRP 127 Brabant-Wallon een hele mooie wandeling zou zijn om te doen. Het is zo’n mooie streek om te wandelen.
Not my kind of weather for a walk or hike, but the chateau is an unexpected surprise in the landscape. Very grand.
Exactly what i was thinking!
The photos you did get at the end are simply lovely. I can see why you would like to return another day.
It is odd isn’t it how some official maps and walking guides take people onto main roads when there are much better alternatives. Here in Portugal their strange habit is to finish with the steepest section rather than doing the walk the other way round!
Yes, in these cases it seemed to be a case of “let’s get back to the start in the fastest way possible!”
Bizarre!