Discover Forrieres: Landscapes, Stone and Trails

Forrieres combines a distinctive landscape setting with traces from many centuries. The village lies at the transition between the major geological regions of Famenne and the Ardennes, while the Lhomme flows through Forrières. This creates an interesting mix of landscapes, local history and trails for planning your trip, allowing you to focus on different themes: discover megalithic remains, historic chapels or a marked hiking and mountain biking route.

Between Famenne and the Ardennes

The location between Famenne and the Ardennes is a good starting point for experiencing Forrieres not merely as a place name, but as a landscape area. The course of the Lhomme is also part of the village’s distinctive character. The village square was created from a former marshland, which was converted into a park where water is ever-present. The river’s history also reaches back to the 16th century: at that time, the Lhomme contributed to the establishment of a fulling mill and an oil mill in Forrières.

Another visible reminder of the village’s history is the numerous stones that recall the former importance of quarrying and stoneworking. If you are travelling with children, you can use details like these to explore a site not only through dates, but also through tangible materials and traces in the village. This makes the exploration more varied, without requiring you to structure the day around a single attraction.

Megalithic History at Les Pierres du Diable

West of the village of Forrières, Les Pierres du Diable are located in the area of Inzomet. The site is classified as a megalithic monument and dates from 2500 to 1500 BC. The remains of a protohistoric megalithic structure have survived. At the stones, an educational information panel in French and Dutch explains the history of the site and its stones.

Les Pierres du Diable is therefore well suited as a specific cultural destination for a trip in which landscapes and the past belong together. When choosing a holiday apartment or holiday home, it can be useful to consider your preferred day trips and travel pace: some days can be devoted to cultural experiences, while others can focus on a route or on taking in the landscape at a more leisurely pace.

Chapels, Crossroads and Historic Trails

The Chapelle Saint Roch stands in the centre of Forrières Saint Martin at a crossroads of the roads to Wavreille, Lesterny, Eccourt and Notre Dame. The Chapelle de Cocher dates from 1850 and stands on a hill at a crossroads of dry, stony paths. One of these paths leads to the Neuve Fontaine landscape, while the other leads to Rochefort. These local details show how closely religious buildings, routes and perceptions of the landscape can be connected, without implying any particular route for your stay.

The marked NG07 Promenade de Cocher hiking route also takes in several cultural points of interest: it passes Château Vallez as well as Ferme Saint-Monon. The NG09 Promenade de la Hagette hiking route is connected with Forrières. This gives you various options when planning: you can focus a day more strongly on physical activity or combine historic sites with impressions of the landscape.

A Route for Hikers and Mountain Bikers

Those who want to explore Forrieres actively will find the VTT 2 mountain bike route in addition to the hiking options. It is connected with Forrières and is 19.5 km long. This specific route length is helpful when planning your day, without automatically saying anything about the duration, difficulty or course of individual sections. When choosing your accommodation, therefore, the main consideration is which experiences you want to put at the centre of your trip and how much space you want to give to culture, hiking or mountain biking.

Forrieres as a Starting Point for Planning Your Trip

Forrieres thus offers several clearly distinct ways to explore the area: you can learn about the megalithic stones of Les Pierres du Diable, discover the chapels and historic route connections, or incorporate the marked trails into your travel plans. Suitable accommodation primarily supports the way you want to structure your days.

For further comparison, you can also visit the pages on Ambly and Grune.

For the overall travel overview: Nassogne.