The best dog-friendly hikes and walks in Bellebroek En Dendermeersen Tussen Oudegem En Wieze

If you cross over here you enter Bellebroek :)

Unfortunately we didn't find this miniature village

Little scientific research has been done on the origins of the parish and the construction history of the church. According to J. De Brouwer, the name of the patron saint, Saint Salvator, indicates a very old age, dating back to the beginning of Christianization in the 6th-7th century and is unique in the Land van Aast. The mention of the church of the Holy Savior in the Vita Gudulae or biography of Saint Gudula (° 644, † 712) where the saint came to pray daily, two miles from her home, the castle of Hamme-Herdersem, could possibly refer to the church of Wieze. The first clear evidence of the existence of the church can be found in a document from 1105 in which Bishop Odo of Cambrai transferred several churches, including that of Wieze, to the newly founded abbey of Affligem, which thereby acquired the right of patronage and a share of the tithe. Originally it was probably a domain church founded by the local lord. (Inventory of Immovable Heritage)

Boardwalks are fun to walk on, but can be slippery. Be careful in rainy weather!

This work of art by Thijs Van der Linden tells the story of the origins of the well-known “Dikke Eik” (fat oak) from the village square in Wieze, which was once planted on the corner of 4 roads to indicate the access road to the now disappeared wooden corn mill. Planting different types of wood in the immediate vicinity of a mill to incorporate them was also common at the time. This oak could therefore have been planted there to be used as the sails of the mill. On the way to this mill there is also a miller’s chapel, which was once erected to pray for a good harvest. At the bottom of this work of art there is a miller’s stone that can also be used as a bench. In this concrete form, oak branches have been worked vertically into it as filling, which will decay over time. A random summer oak has been planted in the centre of this miller’s stone, onto which branches of the “Dikke Eik” will be grafted at a later stage. The tree itself is surrounded by a steel construction in which the miller's chapel and the disappeared mill are depicted. This work is located on a walking path towards the village and therefore the Oude Eik van Wieze from where the story will hopefully be told further by the local population and passers-by. (Thijs Van der Linden)

When it rains, the area between the electric fence is very swampy. It is then not accessible by bicycle. The north-south section is also quite dangerous when not mowed. Very tall nettles and grass and halfway up a smooth wooden slab that lies almost invisible on the path. A crash is guaranteed with a bicycle.

Nice to know: about a kilometer further on, on the Aartstraat, at number 14, there is a mini replica (but still about one and a half meters (?) high).

The Wieze Bridge used to be more to the north over the now disappeared Sas van Wieze. This lock was built in 1768-1769 on the straightened Dender. In 1866 a wooden drawbridge was built over the lock. The SAS remained active until 1947. The current fixed girder bridge was built in 1972. The old drawbridge at the lock lost its function and was renovated in 1976 at the initiative of the Davidsfonds van Herdersem. its current location. Source: Wikipedia