The best walks and hikes around Thimister-Clermont

A well-preserved tank stands here, a great memorial to WWII. The tank makes a great backdrop for a photo with a racing bike.

A welcome source for cooling off on hot days

In memory of the crew of the Short Stirling bomber that was shot down here on 12 June 1943 with eight crew members. Also note the military symbol which says "New Zealand Squadron" (part of the RAF) with the words Ake Ake Kia Kaha underneath. Aké! Aké! Kia Kaha E! was the marching song of the 28th (Māori) Battalion of the New Zealand Army.

As the name suggests, La Minerie was for centuries a village full of underground galleries where coal was extracted. These galleries also ran under other neighbouring villages such as Battice and Charneux. The topography reflects this: in Walloon, "engin" ("indjin") indicates that there were machines that were driven by the course of the Bèfve. They were used to remove water from the mine galleries. That was almost 350 years ago. In the forest of Clermont (which completely covered the small valley that you can see in front of you at the information board) many funnels still bear witness to these extractions.

The church, with a niche at the front with a statue of Saint-Gilles and his deer, was built in 1845. Here too, at the church, a beautiful memorial to the two world wars and next to the church a large farm/town house in castle style that today serves as a holiday home.

It is also called the Chapelle ‘ès trô’, after the place where it was built. Tradition has it that at the time, a statue of Notre-Dame des Anges was hung on a tree at this location. It attracted many believers who came to beg favours from the Mother of God. According to legend, the priest had the statue placed in his church, but every time it was moved, it returned to the maypole where the Virgin had apparently found her permanent home. So in 1691, a chapel was built on this site. In addition to two statues dedicated to Sainte-Brigide and Saint-Roch, visitors can discover several paintings. The chapel was completely restored in 1979. Its situation and the quality of its maintenance make it well worth a visit. Curiosity: to the left of the chapel, you can find a pole from the old coal mine of La Minerie. Source: https://www.paysdeherve.be/nl/attractions-musees/LOD-A0-002T-1KXS&type=11

Lovely spot on the Berwijn with a bench, spots where you can sometimes cross on foot, a small bridge and lots of bends on a big hill. On top of the hill is a small BBQ spot. The wide valley floor of the Berwijn forms the separation between two Maas terrace massifs, formed by erosion and deposits during the Pleistocene: the terraces between Maas and Berwijn with a height of 60 to 80 meters and the terraces between Berwijn and Voer at a height of 80 to 100 meters.

Here you cross a bailey bridge over the Bèfve into La Bèfve, where the famous de Bèfve family comes from. That may deserve some explanation. The small bailey bridge (pont Américain in French, Bailey was actually British) runs over the Bèfve, which is a tributary of the Berwinne (Berwijn), and therefore a tributary of the Meuse. But La Bèfve is also the name of the hamlet at the bridge that is part of Froidthier. And that family name? It is that of a renowned family of clockmakers (16th and 17th century), who found the means to increase the power of the cogs, which are so important in clock mechanisms. For example, they made the clock and the carillon of the Lisbon Cathedral, the bells of the Malmedy Abbey, the Saint Paul's Cathedral in Liège and the Saint Servais Church in Maastricht.