Blossom Hike Dentergem (25km)

The south of Limburg is well known for seeing blossoms in April, but did you know that they can also be seen in West-Flanders? Since this year the town of Dentergem is actively promoting blossom hikes on its territory. The weather for Saturday looks great, so let's check it out!

The hike will start in Deinze, a small city on the Scheldt that has a very good train connection to Brussels. In the first part of the hike we will walk along several canals till we reach Dentergem. Once there we will do part of the newly-created blossom trail. Several farms on the way actively promote the trail, so we might have the option to buy some local products. The trail ends in Markegem, where we have a beer in a bar in the middle of the fields. Afterwards we take a De Lijn bus to Waregem, where you have connecting trains to Brussels, with a change in Ghent or Kortrijk.

Important:

As the number of participants is limited, it is important that you manage your registration responsibly: only sign up if you really intend to come and cancel as soon as you know you can’t (this also goes for people on the waiting list!). We will try to keep close to an average speed of about 5 km/h. We will walk mainly on unpaved roads. I’ve not tested this track beforehand, so it’s possible that there are some mistakes in the planning.

●●You can find the track here:
https://loc.wiki/t/260606946?wa=sc
●●Meeting point:
We meet at 10h08 in Deinze (back side of the station). If you start from Brussels-South, you should take train IC 3631 direction Aalst & De Panne at 8h53. This is a direct train. If you miss this train, you can take another train ten minutes later, but then you have to switch in Ghent-Sint-Pieters. I live in Ghent, so I will jump on the train there. Let's try to meet in the first car of the train.

●● Train tickets:
Return ticket to Waregem should be ok, or two separate tickets Brussels-Deinze and Waregem-Brussels.

●● Back to Brussels:
In Dentergem we first take a De Lijn bus to Waregem. There is only one bus every two hours. We aim to make it for the 15h45 or 17h45 bus. On the bus you can buy a ticket with a debit card. The return journey to Brussels takes approx. 1h30 minutes.

●● Specifics:
Distance: ca 25km
Elevation gain: 14m
Net walking time: ca 5-6h
Weather forecast: Looks great for the moment.
In the unlikely case of too bad weather, we may cancel a hike, even few hours before the event. If this must happen, we will of course update the Meetup website and send out an email to those registered. So it is important to have access to either the meetup website or your emails.
●● What to bring:

• Comfortable hiking clothes &shoes
• rain gear (just in case)
• water + food for the breaks
• sun cream
• Compeed for blisters
• some small money for drinks

●● Basic rules:
Please RSVP only if you really intend to come. And if your plans change, update your RSVP asap, even hours before the walk. This is basic courtesy towards others. Repeated late cancellations are not well considered (at all). No-shows are even worse.
Do not show up for a hike unless you are on the “going” list. People with the "go-with-the-flow" label are only moved from the waitlist 24 hours before the hike. I give you the label "go-with-the-flow" if you did not show up in one of my hikes before, or if you canceled for one of these hikes less than 24 hours in advance without a good reason.
●● Acknowledgement of member responsibility and release of liability:
You are responsible for yourself and should be fit enough if you want to take part. As the participation in the events is strictly voluntary and you freely choose to join, it is the responsibility of individuals participating to ensure that they are fit enough and have adequate coverage to protect themselves. By signing up for this event, you agree to release the organisers from any responsibility and liability. Moreover, the organisers aren't tour operators, so they don't feel obliged to answer to every text message or email!