Kids on Tour - Boundary hedges and dragon's teeth

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Kids on Tour - Boundary hedges and dragon's teeth

Hiking Trail · Raeren

Responsible for this content
East Belgium Tourist Agency

Kids on Tour - Auf den Spuren alter Grenzen
Photo: Benno Hermes, CC BY-SA, East Belgium Tourist Agency

Borderlands where smugglers played cat and mouse

easy

Distance 6.3 km

1:35 h

61 m

60 m

296 m

246 m

This walk begins at the border crossing at Köpfchen. Here you can stand with one foot in Belgium and the other in Germany. The former customs house is where travellers used to have to show their passports before they were allowed to cross the border. Cars were often searched by the border police, because a lot of smuggling was going on. Now the customs house is a centre for art and culture.

The walk around the Köpfchen border crossing is hilly and for the most part passes through woods. You cross borders several times, often without realizing. One of these is the Aachener Landgraben, an earth rampart lined with ditches that once marked the boundary of the city of Aachen. You can still see the remains of the old beech hedge that crowned the top of the ramparts. In the past, the few openings through the hedge were controlled by border guards and blocked off with wooden beams at night. In the last third of the walk, which takes you back to the German border, you will come across a mass of stones called “dragon’s teeth” – because that’s what they look like. They were designed to stop tanks from passing through here during the Second World War. Today they have become a refuge for plants and animals – and they are a good place for children to hide as well!

Author’s recommendation

More information under: www.ostbelgien.eu/en/walking/walking-with-kids

The brochure is only available in German, French and Dutch.

Author

Tourismusagenturagentur Ostbelgien

Update: August 03, 2023

Difficulty

easy

Technique

Stamina

Experience

Landscape

Highest point

296 m

Lowest point

246 m

Best time of year

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Track types

Dirt road

0.5 km

Forested/wild trail

0.3 km

Unknown

5.6 km

Show elevation profile

Safety information

Somewhat suited for prams

Tips and hints

East Belgium Tourist Agency

Hauptstraße 54

4780 St.Vith

Tel. +32 80 22 76 64

info@ostbelgien.eu

www.ostbelgien.eu

Start

N68 Eynatten > Aachen | Parking at the border crossing "Köpfchen" GPS: 50.724594, 6.089911

Coordinates:

50.724595, 6.089769

DMS

50°43'28.5"N 6°05'23.2"E

UTM

32U 294601 5623239

w3w

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Destination

N68 Eynatten > Aachen | Parking at the border crossing "Köpfchen" GPS: 50.724594, 6.089911

Public transport

Public-transport-friendly

By train: www.belgiantrain.be

By bus: www.letec.be

Parking

Parking at the border crossing "Köpfchen"

Coordinates

50.724595, 6.089769

DMS

50°43'28.5"N 6°05'23.2"E

UTM

32U 294601 5623239

w3w

///kingpin.bared.discouraged

Get there by train, car, bike, or on foot!

Equipment

Make sure to wear hiking shoes and clothes according to the weather.

Similar routes nearby

Göhl valley route Via Gulia - source of the Göhl - Kelmis
Pleasure tour 22 – A walk for the soul
Göhl valley route Via Gulia - Kelmis - Gulpen
Pleasure tour 19 – Meadow trails
Industrial Heritage Trail Kelmis

These suggestions were generated by our system

Difficulty

easy

Distance

6.3 km

Duration

1:35 h

Ascent

61 m

Descent

60 m

Highest point

296 m

Lowest point

246 m

Public-transport-friendly Round trip Family-friendly Cultural/historical interest Suitable for strollers

Statistics

Waypoints

Tips

Content
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Features

Maps and trails

3 Waypoints

3 Waypoints

Distance km

Duration : h

Ascent m

Descent m

Highest point m

Lowest point m

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