Visit Clervaux
Tinneke, Dirk's mother, passed away early august and while we all know that no-one lives forever, it still came as a shock to us. She was still very young at heart and mind and also very much interested in all the things we did. Every single day, we had a FaceTime video call to catch up and when we were on a trip, she was our biggest fan. We had a shared photo album on iPhoto and whenever the iPad beeped, she was the first to give likes.
Upto the last moment, she was positive and her last words were "I had a good life, I am a happy person".
After the funeral, we decided to take a short break to clear our minds and to continue exactly the way how she wanted it to be. We took up an invitation of the tourist center of Clervaux to come and visit them.
As Clervaux promotes slow travel, we decided to travel by bicycle,
Going there
We planned our route using the cycle junctions by www.fietsnet.be.
These junctions were steering us via interesting places like the Hallerbos and the Memorial of the battle of Waterloo .
Our first stop was in Hoegaarden, visiting Santos Bike friends Jacinta and Frank (https://spinningsouth.com)
From Kortessem up to Maastricht, Roselien, Kaylie and Jan joined us to wave us out.
From Maastricht, we continued to Aachen, the startpoint of the Vennbahn.
The vennbahn is one of Europe's longest cycle paths on a disused railway track. It runs from Aachen, Germany to Troisvierges in the north of Luxembourg. 125 km's with a maximum inclination of 3 %.
We stayed in a hotel just after Aachen and then cycled the entire vennbahn in 1 day unto Troisvierges where we stayed at the local campsite.
Leaving Troisvierges, we cycled via the "Jardins A Suivre" cycle track to Munshausen where we had rendezvous at the Robbesscheier tourist office.
Hiking
The Clervaux area is a hiking and biking paradise. During our stay, we did a guided 15 km hike from The Rackesmillen in Enscherange to Clervaux. This hike is part of the 106 km Escapardenne-Eislek trail between Roche-en-Ardenne in Belgium and Kautenbach in Luxembourg, from where it continues another 53 km's via the Lee trail to Ettelbruck. Both trails are considered as some of the best in Europe
All hiking trails in Luxembourg are very well maintained and signposted.
We were lucky that 2 official hiking guides, Susan and Ralph, were accompanying us on this trail.
If you want to book your guides or need more info, the right place to start is the Visit Clervaux website.
Biking
The area has an abundance of mtb and road bike trails, all available via Komoot.
We cycled the loop from Enscherange to Kautenbach via the Eislek trail, passing Pintch and Lellingen, returning via Alscheid to Enscherange.
For more info, go to : https://www.visit-clervaux.lu/en/nature/biking
Art : The Family of Man
The Clervaux castle permanently hosts the photo exhibition "The Family of Man". It's the complete collection which was compiled for the Museum of Modern Art of New York in 1955. It consists out of 503 original black and white photographs by 273 photographers from 68 countries and has been granted UNESCO world heritage status.
A Must See when in Clervaux
Link to the exposition of 1955 : https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/2429
Art : Konschthaus op der Gare
(Arthouse near the trainstation)
Mireille and Guy have created a meeting place to make or visit art. When they are there, you are always welcome, even if it's only for a cup of coffee or tea. Guy is specialising in woodwork, drawings and relaxation techniques, Mireille is more in to paintings. They open up their space also for other artists who want to display their works.
With the renovation of the house, they have tried to maintain as much as possible of the existing atmosphere.
Heritage : The Clervaux Abbey
The Benedictine Abbey of Saint Mauritius was built in 1910 and there is a daily mass at 10am where the monks are chanting Gregorian. They also have a small shop where the monks also sell their homemade apple juice.
The church and crypt are open everyday. For visiting the inside of the abbey and the enormous bibliotheque, you need to make an appointment and it is only allowed for male visitors.
Heritage : The Rackesmillen
The Rackesmillen in Enscherange dates back to 1334 and is the oldest working watermill in Luxembourg. Full restoration is nearly finished and visitors will be able to see and feel how it was done in the good old days.
There is also a small hostel and local restaurant at the Rackesmillen.
Our 15 km hike to Clervaux started from here.
Eat & sleep
The Robbescheier, Munshausen
Besides a hostel and restaurant, the Nature Center Robbescheier has a lot more to offer. On the 6 hectares of the center, you can also experience the old method of weaving wool, learn about the profession of a blacksmith, visit the beehives, make candles, etc... You can also walk around the grounds and glass house of the biofarm where they grow all vegetables for the restaurants of the Robbescheier, Rackesmillen and Cornelyshaff.
For more info : https://www.visit-clervaux.lu/en/nature/nature-center-robbesscheier
The Rackesmillen, Enscherange
The Rackesmillen hostel and restaurant is just a few 100 meters from the Escapardennes-Eislek walking trail and the perfect stop for lunch or an overnight stay. Check beforehand if you can visit the old watermill.
For more info : https://en.rackesmillen.lu
The Cornelyshaf, Heinerscheid
The Cornelyshaf is a nice place for a stop when you are cycling the "Jardins a Suivre" cycle route from Troisvierges to Clervaux. It's also an ideal location for visiting the Our nature park and when you stay overnight, we recommend the beer tasting of the locally brewed beers.
For more info : https://en.cornelyshaff.lu
Campsite Reiler Weiler, Clervaux
Few years ago, we camped at the "Camping officiel de Clervaux" just next to the river Clerve. This time, we tried the Reiler Weiler campsite just outside the city.
As a surprise, we did not have to mount our own tent but were suggested to try out their new large safari tents.
For more info : https://reilerweier.lu
Koener Hotel, Clervaux
We also stayed in Clervaux city for one night when we visited the abbey, the museum in the Clervaux castle and the Arthouse. We were extremely lucky to get an upgrade and enjoyed the unexpected luxury.
Return Home
To return home, we cycled from Clervaux to Arlon in Belgium, where we took the train to Brussels.
