Round Balen

On the border of the Belgian provinces of Limburg and Antwerp you drive through a quiet and gently sloping area in which villages, stream valleys and extensive forests alternate. 

Just after your departure you cross the Albert Canal and drive through the forests around the Kepkensberg, a witness hill 43 meters high. A little later you cycle through the Kleine Laak valley. The stream meanders here carefree through the land. In the valley you will find alder forests, sedges, reed grass and honeysuckle.

Between Tessenderlo and Vorst you drive through the Grote Laak valley, an area where you see reed thickets, wet meadows and swamp forests. A little further on between Vorst and Eindhout you cycle again through the Kleine Laak valley. In this small-scale landscape you will still find some old hedgerows along the grazing meadows.

Via the towns of Zittaart and Meerhout you drive through a rural area towards the Dessel-Kwaadmechelen Canal, one of the seven Kempen Canals. You can fully enjoy the peace and quiet here and the surroundings intersected by many ditches and waterways.

Just before Leopoldsburg the route bends again, back towards the starting point. You cross the Gerheser forests, whose origins go back about 10,000 years. You mainly see sandy soils and dunes covered with pine forests. If you look closely, you will also discover old remains of heath and fen. These valuable places, which are connected by light-filled avenues, ensure that rare animals such as the wood cricket and nightjar feel at home in this unique nature reserve.