2007-10. Kayaking on the Lesse River, Belgium.

---o---

Saturday morning. We meet up with Etienne Grandchamps, president of Charleroi Kayaking club, who has graciously offered to take us on a day-trip down the Lesse River. Here I'm inflating the "hot dog".

 

Poul is getting instructions from Etienne on the intricacies of kayaking...

 

Underway. Anna is getting a ride with Etienne, while Poul has already reached the old railway bridge spanning the river. We are lucky, it is a gorgeous day.

 

Spectacular autumn colours and slowly flowing down a placid river, what more could you want?

 

Here Etienne shows us his kayak-polo prowess.

 

Anna getting a (free) ride with Etienne. Poul had to struggle a bit more to keep his kayak pointing in the right direction.

 

Geese on the river bank. Few people know it, but Belgian geese are actually carnivorous and several kayakers have been lost to them on the Lesse River. Well, maybe not.

 

In the last few million years, the Lesse has cut a furrow into the Belgian countryside. The river now flows in the bottom of a beautiful, lush valley.

 

Halfway from Houyet to Anseremme, and we stop for our lunch break. Poul pours a few hectoliters of water out of his kayak.

 

...After which he use his boy-scout skills to fry us some delicious Belgian sausages (merguez anyone?).

 

We found a fine little spot for lunch. The warm rays of sunlight turn the foilage into an explosion of green.

 

After the sausages Poul cooks up pasta, pre-boiled so it only needs a minute on the fire. Heated tuna & chili sauce accompanies the "penne" - it was prepared the day before so the flavours permeate the tomato sauce.

 

Time for a little rest after a meal like that...

 

Wet feet (and other parts of Krista) soak up the October sun.

 

Well-fed we hit the road river again. I get to try the one-man kayak and Poul is now on the "hot dog" with Krista, who takes pictures.

 

Swan floating in the darkness under the river bank.

 

As we go deeper into the gorge, vertical cliffs rise above us. This one is very popular with rock-climbers.

 

A white horse at one of the fords in the river. The water is very shallow at this time of year, in many places only a few decimeters deep.

 

Navigating a bend of the Lesse, we come upon an almost shocking sight: Walzin Castle. It literally stands above the river, the only sign of civilization for a good while, and what a sign!

 

Try to climb this cliff side, if you want to surprise the owner. No, it doesn't look easy.

 

This was also the place for the most exciting part of the trip, a small dam we had to cross. It does not look like much in the movie, but for kayaking first-timers it was quite impressive!

 

The castle is picture postcard perfect.

 

Only too quickly, the trip came to an end. We arrived at Anseremme just in time for the train back to Brussels.

It had been a wonderful journey, 21 kilometers covered in about 7 hours, all thanks to Etienne, who lent us kayaks and his time and guided us through this wonderful bit of Belgian nature. Merci beaucoup Etienne!

Here are yours truly (Søren) with Krista, my fiancée, Etienne, our guide, Anna and her husband Poul (my brother). What a great day it had been!

 

This is the Lesse River as it appears in Google Maps. Shown is the part we sailed, from Houyet in the lower right-hand corner to Anseremme upper-left.

 

Hope you enjoyed these pictures. Comments are very welcome, please write me here. There are more photos on my home page.

---o---