Houffalize - "parel van de Ardennen", they call it, "the pearl of the Ardennes". And it truly is a beauty (even in the pissing rain). The town has a great vibe, from the minute you enter the village, you see mountainbikers everywhere, gearing up or heaving a post ride frietje.
It is the mekka of Belgian mountainbiking: 6 tracks covering over a 160km:
1. Yellow - 18km - easy
2. Blue - 27km - medium difficulty
3. Red - 35km - difficult and technical
4. Red - 40km - difficult and no so technical
5. Blue - 28km - medium difficulty, smooth ride
6. Green - 21km - difficult and technical
Make sure you pick up a map at the tourist office. All tracks start in the little square in front of it. Double check that your preferred route is open (routes can be closed due to hunting - schedule available at... the tourist office of course). Due to the limited access to the different tracks, we did a combination of the yellow and red 4 track. Route was extremely heavy because of the rain and the tones of mud, but a fantastic ride! One down side following your ride: there's nowhere to rinse off your bike. We improvised and cleaned our bikes in the river. Good tip: easy acces behind hotel du Commerce.
Houffalize also hosts a stage within the World Cup Mountainbiking -
http://www.houffalize-worldcup.be/2010.
Other interesting annual events are the 24h of Tavigny-Houffalize and the Houffa Marathon. We'll be competing in the marathon: Jen goes for the 30km, Bert's doing the 75km!
http://www.houffamarathon.be.
Will ya take the challenge??
... Til the next ride!
On the 5th of December, we'll be attending the E.O.F.T. - the European Outdoor Film Tour.
