The best road cycling routes around Tessenderlo

Black devils

The meadows along the roadside regularly flood here during wetter periods, making it a good place to spot water birds.

Webbekoms Broek is part of the Webbekomsbroek-Borchbeemden Flemish Nature Reserve, a contiguous area of 397 hectares managed by the Flemish Agency for Nature and Forests. This also includes the Diesters Broek, the Schaffens Broek, and the Borchbeemden: Rotbroek, Gorenbroek, and Sint-Jansberg. Several watercourses flow through the area. The most important of these is the Demer. The others are primarily its tributary, the Zwarte Beek, the Grote Leigracht, and the Leigracht. The Demer Valley has been plagued by floods for centuries. The most severe floods in recent history date back to 1998. There were also serious floods in Diest in 2008. To prevent severe water damage, retention basins and floodplains were installed. The Webbekoms Broek and its surroundings constitute a floodplain. In September 1998, a retention basin with a surface area of 144 hectares was put into operation in the Webbekoms Broek. The area can hold 3.5 million m³ of water. There is an inner basin and an outer basin. The inner basin is surrounded by dikes. The remainder forms the outer basin, which primarily functions as a nature reserve.

The Schulensmeer is the largest inland lake in Flanders. Numerous benches invite you to take a break.

The Bailey Bridge in Mol At the beginning of World War II, the bridges on the Kempen canals were blown up. With the liberation, the British built a temporary bridge in Mol, which still stands today. The bridge is a so-called Bailey bridge, named after its designer, R.C. Bailey. He developed this ingenious, modular bridge for military purposes. A Bailey bridge can be assembled without machinery, using only manpower. Such a bridge is actually only meant to be there for a short time, but in some places, such as in Mol, it remained. The pillars of the old bridge are still clearly visible.

Northeast of the Sint-Jansberg monastery complex on Schomstraat lies the Oude Pastorij farm, a U-shaped farm dating from the first half of the 19th century, with the open side of the yard facing the street. The brick buildings under gable roofs (Flemish pantiles), hipped on the side wings, are situated around a rectangular yard separated from the street by a long wall and several recent service buildings. The house is located in the center of the central wing, a double house of four bays and two stories on a raised ground floor with a pitched plinth. The rectangular windows have wooden lintels and painted sills, and the rectangular door has a wooden lintel. The house is flanked on both sides by slightly projecting stables of three bays each, with a modified layout. Spacious transverse barns are housed in the perpendicular wings, each of three bays and equipped with an anchored brick basket-arch gate. These volumes feature arched windows and rectangular doors beneath a wooden lintel. Inventory of Immovable Heritage: Carthusian Monastery of Sint-Jansberg and its surroundings, https://id.erfgoed.net/erfgoedobjecten/302683

The municipality of Zelem had three parsonages throughout its history. The first was, and still is, located on the Kolenberg and called "Hoeve Oude Pastorij," better known locally as the "Donkelhoeve." Between 1969 and 1972, this farm served as a filming location for the BRT serial "Wij, Heren van Zichem" (We, Lords of Zichem), stories about "De Witte van Sichem" (The White Man of Sichem) and "Het leven van Herman Coene" (The Life of Herman Coene), written by Ernest Claes. In those stories, the farm belonged to farmer Coene. In those days, the pastor's residence was always connected to a farm that provided the pastor with his daily necessities.

You feel the peace here, especially when you're on the other side and can admire the horses and sheep nearby in the beautiful open countryside. I'll definitely come back here for a walk. Wonderful 😎