Antitankgracht Walk

**A pretty and popular walk along the canals of Haacht. **

The 11.7 km walk begins in Wespelaar near the Arboretum. The first few minutes of the walk may appear urban, but you soon stroll by the open fields and forests of Haacht. It’s when you get to Wilde Heide that the walk is at its best. Here, you’ll head over to the canal. Most of the walking path from here is quite natural and covered in grass, so put those good walking shoes to work!

But it’s beautiful canals hold a historic secret. The Allied forces back in WWII built the canals to hold back the German tanks. It’s pretty hard to take a tank over a canal, you know? The tanks of that time couldn’t traverse the slopes. That’s why it’s called ‘Antitankgracht’ the anti tank ditch walk! There’s even still 48 world war bunkers along the canal - how many can you spot?

• The 11.7km trail is easy going enough for beginners. Terrain can be muddy at times, but it’s not difficult to trek.
• The route is also cyclist friendly!
• Fun fact: at its full length of 33km, the canal is the longest protected area of Flanders. It’s actually super important for nature here - birds and other animals use it for migration. Who would’ve guessed?