The best city hikes and walks around Maaseik

Facade chapels were erected for various reasons. The main reason was to protect the property and its inhabitants. Other reasons included gratitude (for healing, safe return home, or surviving a plague epidemic) and devotion to a saint. A final reason was the necessity to allow a procession to take place.

In this place formerly stood the dye tower. Originally there was no city gate here. It was built at the end of the 16th century at the current Stationswal; due to fire hazard, the linen dyeing had been housed here. A glass window provides a glimpse into the remains of the old tower.

Landewald Janssen, a Franciscan Friar Minor, was an adept naturalist in various fields. His numerous publications, including those in De Wielewaal, Natura-Limburg, and in publications of the Limburgs Landschap, dealt with plants, mushrooms, mosses, lichens, insects, and, not least, birds. As a follower of the teachings of Francis of Assisi, he celebrated nature and creation in his lyrical poems, which appeared in various collections. He founded several important Limburg "Ornithological Study Centers," including Wijvenheide, Terlaemen, Kolberg, Ter Donk, Platwijers, Meylandt-Obbeek-Stabroek, Kelchterhoef, and Herkenrodebossen. Thanks to Landewald Janssen's work, these areas received the highest level of protection under the regional plan. Since then, they have partially or largely evolved into fully-fledged nature reserves. Janssen was also the founder of the Limburg Nature Conservation Action (NAL), along with fellow conservationists Gust Claes and René Neven. He would later oversee the protection of the Berkenbosbeek and Galgenberg streams (Heusden-Zolder). Source: https://www.provinciaalnatuurcentrum.be/files/Kennisbank/Avifauna-preview-spreads.pdf

The Vulex lake has been given a fitting new purpose with the successful Terhills Cablepark: here you can (learn to) wakeboard or waterski in a safe and fun way. More info: https://www.terhillscablepark.be/

At the edge of the Meuse Valley, where nature and recreation converge, lies the Maasmechelen water park and water-skiing lake: a vibrant place where relaxation, sport, and landscape converge. This area forms a captivating contrast to the tranquil slag heaps and vast natural areas in the surrounding area and demonstrates how the former industrial landscape has been repurposed as a recreational hub. The water-skiing lake originated from old gravel pits that dominated the view along the Meuse River for decades. After the industrial activities ceased, these lakes were given a new purpose. What was once an excavated lunar landscape gradually transformed into a clear lake with recreational facilities surrounded by greenery and open space. This repurposing fits perfectly within the broader narrative of the region: an area that has reinvented itself from economic exploitation to nature, relaxation, and experience.

A small town with a beautiful market square and delicious pancakes ;) A border town right on the Meuse River. Definitely worth a quick stop!

In addition to a place of solace, designed by Ferm, there is also a modern chapel with a cast iron cross from the second half of the 19th century with a painted crucifix next to it, between three pollard willows. The cross has the figures of Harlindis and Relindis at the bottom. It was placed here by Gadiot, owner of the Herenlaak farm, at the beginning of his fields. The chapel was built later as a thank you for the preservation of the village during WWII.

The only remaining mortuary of all the Limburg mines is located on the Zolder mine site. Unfortunately, fatal accidents occurred regularly during mining. This former mortuary was used to store the body of a deceased employee before it could be released for autopsy and burial. When a body was stored in the mortuary, the light was always turned on. This way, the miners knew that one of their comrades had died. A scene created by artist Stefan Elsen is depicted on the back wall of the mortuary. The art installation against the wall of the mortuary consists of a white block of Carrara marble that suggests the table on which the bodies were laid out. The floating body above it gives the impression that it is slowly rising or descending. That hanging body consists of small mirrors. After all, every miner used to have a mirror in his wardrobe, in which he could see whether his face was clean enough to return to his family or loved one. Hundreds of miners (930 in all the Limburg mines) have died in an industrial accident in the mine and have no longer been able to look in a mirror...