Tour of 'Aan de Vrenen'

In this Belgian region you can cycle wonderfully through the green landscape. There are cozy little villages in the area where you will be welcomed in a friendly manner. These often have a rich history, such as the lovely Helchteren. The oldest mention of this village appears in 1107, but at that time it was still called Haletra. The name refers to one or more of the following seven meanings: holy house or chalk house, barren region, hazel forest, holy tree, strip of land, wicker area and juniper area. The village is located on the Kempen Plateau and is 70 to 80 meters high. Helchteren has a number of forest and nature reserves, where estates lie like spots, but on the heathland there are also parts that have been cordoned off as military training grounds. The village of Ellikom is also worth mentioning. It is one of the oldest residential areas in the Limburg Kempen and the first mention dates from 1314, when the name was still written as"Elleken\\\". This indicates that the area was already inhabited by the Franks, because loosely translated it means "home of the people of Alja". Archaeological finds show that Ellikom was already inhabited in Roman times, and possibly even earlier.