The Grandes Randonnées hiking trails normally run through the wild regions of Europe, but they sometimes have to pass through large cities.
The GR12 from Amsterdam to Paris takes an interesting route across Brussels, entering the city at the Atomium and leaving at Uccle-Calevoet. Designed to lead the long-distance hikers through green spaces and quiet neighbourhoods, it makes an interesting way to discover Brussels. The route is marked by little red and white markings painted on trees or attached to lamp posts.
Two other GR routes cross through Brussels: the GR 579 takes you from the Cathedral to the Abbaye du Rouge Cloître and on into the forest. And the GR126 runs across the city from Merchtem in the north to Boitsfort in the south.
Derek Blyth’s hidden secret of the day: Derek Blyth is the author of the bestselling “The 500 Hidden Secrets of Belgium”. He picks out one of his favourite hidden secrets for The Brussels Times every day.
