Büllingen Pfarrkirche
Photo: D. Ketz, CC BY, East Belgium
Bütgenbach Brücke
Photo: D. Ketz, CC BY, East Belgium
See Bütgenbach
Photo: D. Ketz, CC BY, East Belgium
The Memorial Loop is a 96-km hiking loop that was opened in 2015. It passes many important battlefield and points of historical interest along the German-Belgian border, and joins up with other hiking trails in the municipalities of Büllingen, Bütgenbach und Waimes on the Belgian side of the border and Hellenthal and Monschau on the German side.
difficult
Distance 96.2 km
Duration29:18 h
Ascent1,447 m
Descent1,447 m
Highest point695 m
Lowest point400 m
Along the way, you will find a total of 30 information signs providing information in four languages about the war history of this area, like the Battle of the Bulge, Schmuggel, the Siegfried Line and many other topics. The picture that emerges is that for centuries, this region has been a flashpoint of history, and a place where borders have come and gone. And of course, it has also been the site of some of the bloodiest battles in the history of war. The boundary stones, bunkers and memorials all bear witness to this.
But this hike will also introduce you to the fascinating and varied landscape of the Eifel-Ardennes region. Although these border towns do belong to one country or the other, the hiker comes away from the Memorial Loop having seen the close cultural connections and brotherhood that unites these people to this day.
Author’s recommendation
Obviously, for most hikers 96 km would be an ambitious effort for a single day. Officially, the loop is broken up into six stages. With a little planning, however, one can break it up into several day hikes of 10-25 km each. The whole loop is marked (look for the “dove of peace” icon), so it is easy to find your way back to it at any point.
The loop takes hikers from Monschau via Küchelscheid, Botrange, Sourbrodt, Ovifat, Robertville, Bütgenbach, Krinkelt, Rocherath and Hellenthal, through the Eifel National Park via Höfen, and then back to Monschau. It can easily be broken up into six stages.
Note
all notes on protected areas
Public transport
Public-transport-friendly
Can be reached by train and bus.
By train to Eupen, and from there the bus to Monschau and Kalterherberg.
A 1:40,000-scale hiking map with elevations, printed in four languages, is available from the East Belgium Tourist Office webshop or from the regional tourist information offices for a price of €2.50.
