Easy hikes and walks in Bois De Malvin

Here, the river sets the rhythm. The Solières accompanies the walker through a haven of greenery where forest, rocks, small waterfalls, and more secret passages follow one another. Then, around the bend in the path, heritage invites itself into the scenery with the ancient traces of the valley and the ruins of Beaufort. A charming hike, where nature and history meet at every step.

A few minutes from Huy, the valley of Solières sometimes gives the impression of having left civilization behind. The path follows the stream, plunges into the woods, passes at the foot of limestone cliffs, and reveals a few almost forgotten curiosities here and there. Caves, old bridge, medieval remains... La Solières is a hike that doesn't seek to impress, but that largely rewards those who take the time to discover it.

The Solières valley is one of those places where you never really know what the next bend will reveal. A river winding through the woods, limestone rocks, mysterious caves, old paths and the remains of Beaufort castle… A concentration of nature and heritage in a surprisingly wild valley, on the outskirts of Huy. A magnificent discovery for hiking enthusiasts.

The Gîte «La Poudrerie» (also known as La Poudrerie de Lovegnée) is a unique, historic holiday home located in the deep, wooded valley of the river Solières. The name already reveals its history: "poudrerie" is the French word for gunpowder factory. What is now a peaceful holiday home was once the beating and dangerous heart of an industrial gunpowder production.

Although the bridge undoubtedly dates from Roman times, it is unclear how old the bridge exactly is. Anyway, old enough to have already suffered considerably from the ravages of time. In 1998 it was restored by the non-profit organization Huy Verte. In 2015, enthusiasts of these hiking trails sounded the alarm again, because the bridge was deteriorating further and threatened to collapse into the stream if nothing was done to reinforce it. After much insistence, the municipal authorities were finally convinced: they first had a stability study carried out by the company Greisch (which also designed the large Pater-Pire bridge over the Meuse in Ben-Ahin). In August 2024, the works finally began, so that hikers can now cross it safely and with peace of mind. source: lavenir.be

The first descriptions of this Trou Manto date back to 1833. The name refers to the prophetess Manto, daughter of Tiresias of Thebes, who was brought to Delphi after her birthplace was conquered by the Epigoni. From there she traveled to Asia Minor, where she married the Cretan Rhacius, with whom she had Mopsus, and founded a temple of Apollo in Claros. According to legend, she spent her last days in Italy. What the link between this cave and the legend from Greek antiquity is, is unclear. It is a fossil cave. In 1964, a narrow passage was made to the adjacent 'Grotte Sint-Etienne'. This junction is called the "birth" by speleologists. It is, along with the 10m deep shaft, the most difficult segment of the cave. The cave is not accessible to the public and has never been developed for tourism. Only with a membership card of the Belgian Speleological Union and a key can you access the limestone passages. To protect the site, it was decided to close the entrances with massive doors equipped with padlocks. However, as bats had been regularly present during their hibernation since 1970, the entrances to the two caves were only screened in 1990 to facilitate their entry and exit. Observations of these small mammals by NATAGORA led to the identification of several regionally endangered species, such as the lesser horseshoe bat and the Bechstein's bat. Vincent Poitier, a pioneer of the 4th Baden Powell unit of the Collegiate Church of Huy, organized several visits to the cave system together with scout leader Jean-Louis Cuvelier. Some entered through the Trou-Manto cave, while others, the more adventurous, went directly through the Trou St-Etienne cave. source: wikihuy.be

It is indeed picturesque, especially in summer, with a beautiful interplay of green tones from trees, grasses, and corn on the one hand, and golden yellow from grain (and dry grass) on the other.

Gîte La Poudrerie is the former home of the director of the Lovegnée gunpowder factory. (and not the former wine press of the Château d'Ahin, as incorrectly reported here; that is the nearby "Gîte de La Pressoir") This very remote site with a special geological nature was chosen during the Renaissance to build a powder factory there. This powder initially had a military purpose and was later used, until the middle of the 20th century, for quarrying limestone in the quarries of the Meuse valley. The manufacture of gunpowder is extremely dangerous, and so the valley was never built upon… which is why the site is now part of the "Natura 2000" project thanks to its ecological importance. The director's house, today a holiday residence for about 15 people, is a characteristic example of the bourgeois style of the 1930s. It is located in the heart of a deep and very wooded valley, barely 5 metres from a babbling stream that is constantly eroding the earth. Source: www.poudrerie.be/nl/poudrerie/