Day 1: Amblève
If one likes snow hiking as well as packrafting, it can be a tough choice on days that offer good conditions for both, unless one tries to combine these activities in one single day trip… With the latter in mind, Tom and I settle for another tour of the Amblève river, composed of a hike from Cheneux to Stavelot across a plateau at around 500 m a.s.l. where we will hopefully find a decent snow cover, and a descent of the river Amblève from Stavelot back to Cheneux via Coo.
The weather is foggy, temperature is -5°C, and the time is 9:30 am when we leave the car behind at the take-out in Cheneux. We first follow a narrow trail along the river and then hike up to the villages of La Gleize and Roanne. After Roanne we enter the forest and snow thickens substantially while we continue to climb up the plateau. There is little wind, spruce trees are nicely decorated with snow and we hence quite enjoy the experience. At the end of the plateau, a relatively quick and steep descent towards Stavelot follows, while sun starts peeping though low clouds.
We arrive at the Stavelot put-in around 12:30 pm, enjoy our picnic at a WWII armored vehicle and start preparing for the river descent, while temperature rises to -1°C. The river descent is scenic and fun as always with several rapids, especially in the upper part.
In Coo, we portage around the 15 m waterfall, and then continue to Cheneux, where we arrive at 3:30 pm, after a tour of 28.5 km in all. This is definitely the quickest I have ever completed this Amblève tour, although it has to be admitted that the hiking route via La Gleize & Roanne is quite a bit shorter and less strenuous than the usual one via the water reservoirs at the other side of the valley. In the past I already recuperated 2 stray paddles from Amblève and this time I pick up an insulated cooler bag from a tree branch and leave it at the take-out. Hopefully someone will dispose of it properly.
(Stavelot: 14.5 m3/s)
Report > Belgium 2023: Ardennes
Day 2: Basse Lesse
While driving up to the Ardennes, Tom and I rethink plans when rain is forecast to persist for the better of the day in most river basins. Our original idea was to packraft the Our river in the very east of the country, but taking the forecast into account, we instead settle for the lower Lesse river, in the west of the Ardennes.
We put in well after 10 am and quickly paddle the stretch to Gendron. Right after Gendron, we make a short stop for pictures and then continue onwards. We pass the rocks of Aiguilles de Chaleux and paddle below the picturesque Walzin castle. The weir after the castle is easily jumped and somewhat further the slide at Pont à Lesse is also quickly taken care of.
We eventually arrive in Anseremme, take out, have a bite and pack up. As we hike towards the Freyr rocks after lunch, sun becomes more prominent. It’s a steep climb up the rocks, but we are rewarded with a couple of surprisingly impressive panoramas of the Meuse river valley and the castle of Freyr at the other side of the river. After the rocks, we hike over the plateau in a more or less straight line to Gendron.
Via a slippery and muddy descent through the woods, we arrive back at the river Lesse, cross the bridge to Gendron a while later, and eventually take the train back to Houyet. In the end, it was a good decision to choose the Lesse region for our tour today. We met no rain after putting in Houyet and enjoyed nice sunny spells in the afternoon with a temperature rising to 6°C. In all, we travelled close to 33 km by packraft and on foot.
(Gendron: 16 m3/s)
Report > Belgium 2023: Ardennes
Filip H.A. Claeys 