Gentse Feesten Special (Landegem to Ghent - 24km + city walk)
Details
Next weekend is the last weekend of "Gentse Feesten", the yearly 10-day festivities in Ghent. I am organizing a hike that starts in Landegem and ends in Ghent, with afterwards an optional visit of the festivities.
We will start early in Landegem. The trail leads us through the "Oude Kalevallei", which is a well-known hiking trail. After lunch we will walk through the "Bourgoyen" nature reserve with a couple of natural lakes and lots of birds. The trail finishes in the city center of Ghent, close to the railway station of Gent-Sint-Pieters, which has direct trains to Brussels.
●●You can find the gpx track here:
https://loc.wiki/t/275222393?wa=sc
https://www.komoot.com/nl-nl/tour/3128229356?share_token=aWzQ7NsNGXBSjQhG8Izb4G8CTu2ots9VZgJEs7SwVQAsplgOmk&ref=wtd&t_s=referral&t_cid=route_share&t_ref_username=1675214225643
●●Information about Gentse Feesten can be found here:
https://gentsefeesten.stad.gent/en
●●Meeting point:
We meet at 9h53 in Landegem (on the platform). If you start from Brussels-Central, you should take train IC 530 to Ostend at 8h56. In Ghent-Sint-Pieters you have 12 minutes to switch to train L580 in direction Zeeebrugge Strand at 9h43. I am starting from Ghent, so I will meet you on the second train. Let's try to find each other in the first carriage of the train.
●● Back to Brussels:
From Gent-Sint-Pieters you have two trains per hour to Brussels.
●● Specifics:
Distance: ca 24km
Elevation gain: a few bridges
Net walking time: ca 6h
Weather forecast: Not too hot and small chance of rain.
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 website and/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. 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!