Achouffe and the Martin Moulin Stream

Starting from Achouffe, discover the valley of the Ruisseau de Martin Moulin. The route follows forest paths and trails, ending with your feet in the water, and sometimes mud, on the path along the stream at the Moulin de Wihogne.

Details

216746
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 5.44 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 604 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 597 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,411 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,043 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

Car park opposite the shop selling Achouffe brewery products.

(S/A) With your back to the car park, turn right and walk up the street.

Red Rectangle signposting

After crossing the bridge, take the path on your right that runs behind a fence. Enter the woodland and follow the stream. Pass by the hamlet of Les Coulous, a former crossing point to the other bank; as the bridge had to be demolished, the crossing has been moved further on. Continue along the path until you reach the new crossing point.

No Markings

(1) Cross the bridge. Turn left onto the path running alongside the Ruisseau de Martin Moulin. When you reach the junction with the Ruisseau de Belle Meuse, take the path leading uphill on your right. At the top, ignore the path leading downhill and carry on straight ahead. When you reach a new path, take it to the left. Ignore the path leading downhill on your left and continue along the wider one. A path joins yours from the left.

(2) At a place called Les Brulés in Le Grand Saut, take the path leading uphill on your right. Go round the rock on the left. The path descends, then climbs again and runs alongside meadows. It splits and then rejoins at a viewpoint overlooking the valley. Follow the path right next to the viewpoint, which descends quite steeply before climbing again to a forest track. Follow this to the left for a few metres.

(3) Turn right straight away. Walk past the hamlet of Hangar Bâti and follow the wire fence. The path leads onto a wide stony track, which you follow to the left. Leave the woods. Ignore the path lined with fir trees on your right. Continue through fields and meadows. The path turns into a concrete slab before joining the road. On your left you will see the Jean Nicolas chapel.

(4) Cross the road carefully and head across the meadow. Walk along the left-hand side of the remains of the old fence. Follow it down to the road below. Then turn right to head down to the river, ignoring the paths branching off to your right.

(5) Do not cross the bridge; instead, take the path on your left. Follow the Ruisseau du Chevrai until you pass the next bridge. There you will see tree trunks gnawed by beavers and a dam across the stream.

Blue-White-Blue signposting

(6) Head up the path and stay on it for 3 km, continuing straight on at all junctions until you enter the forest.

(7) At the crossroads, take the path leading down to your left. Be careful – the descent is quite steep. At the bottom, turn right towards the Moulin de Wilogne.

(8) Before the bridge, take the path towards Achouffe. Follow the stream. Ford the tributary. Ignore the path leading uphill on your right and continue as close to the stream as possible.

(9) At a place called Pré de Chouffe, turn right and then left. Enter the village. Walk past the brewery. Follow the path behind Saint-Joseph’s Chapel and return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 1,070 ft - Car park opposite the Achouffe brewery.
  2. 1 : mi 0.53 - alt. 1,083 ft - Bridge - Martin-Moulin (ruisseau) - Affluent de l'Ourthe orientale
  3. 2 : mi 1.29 - alt. 1,224 ft - Brulé au grand saut
  4. 3 : mi 1.7 - alt. 1,230 ft - Immediately on the right - Belle-Meuse (ruisseau) - Affluent du ruisseau de Martin-Moulin
  5. 4 : mi 2.68 - alt. 1,286 ft - At the road opposite, follow the old fence
  6. 5 : mi 3.01 - alt. 1,178 ft - Stream
  7. 6 : mi 3.09 - alt. 1,207 ft - Beaver bridge and dam
  8. 7 : mi 3.93 - alt. 1,283 ft - Path leading down to the left
  9. 8 : mi 4.08 - alt. 1,217 ft - Wilogne Mill
  10. 9 : mi 5.21 - alt. 1,119 ft - Pré de Chouffe
  11. S/E : mi 5.44 - alt. 1,070 ft - Car park opposite the Achouffe brewery

Notes

Sturdy, waterproof footwear.
Very muddy and wet sections.
No drinking water along the route, but refreshments are available on arrival.
From October to December, please check for hunting dates
Following reports that a large part of the original walk now passed through a quiet zone, this has been corrected. There is no longer any need to take into account forum posts dated before 19/09/20.

Worth a visit

Along the way
Beaver dams and traces of tree felling at (6)
Martin Moulin Stream Valley

Nearby
La Chouffe Brewery in Achouffe.
Houtopia for children in Houffalize.
In Nadrin: Le Cheslé: a Celtic oppidum with reconstructed ramparts; and La Cresse aux Chevaux: a rocky ridge blocking the course of the River Ourthe for 1,400 metres. A series of rocks forming an almost vertical wall. Dizzying cliffs.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 11 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.4 / 5
Route interest
5 / 5
steckelmacher
steckelmacher

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful route, sometimes a little steep.
Best done in dry weather as it can quickly become slippery and muddy.

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Robyns Stéphane
Robyns Stéphane

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 08, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

In point 1, the last three lines are confusing. Fortunately, we saw the sign saying "les brûlés au grand Sart" (the burnt ones at Grand Sart) and not "saut" (jump).
At point 6, we are far from 3 km.
At point 8, we tried to follow the blue-white-blue signs, but there were no clearly defined paths.
Distance 10.2 km, elevation gain 876 m with Instinct Esports and Garmin Etouch 25 devices

Hike with printed documents only

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Bruxeleer
Bruxeleer
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 30, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely walk that I highly recommend. We went in the middle of December, the day after it had rained, and the paths were very muddy. For those who don't like that, be warned!

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Ancal
Ancal

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 19, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very beautiful hike with some difficulties passing along the stream after three weeks of rain in July, but enjoyable nonetheless.

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virgule
virgule

Translation:

A very pleasant but sometimes difficult walk, suitable for children (aged 10 and 12).
I really enjoyed it, thank you very much!

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Dries
Dries

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 17, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very beautiful and sometimes challenging walk, done with the children (aged 10 and 12).
We thoroughly enjoyed it, thank you very much!

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Nathber
Nathber

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 12, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Magnificent, but for experienced hikers. Beautiful slopes, thank you for sharing, I enjoyed it.

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albinetdenise.lejeune29
albinetdenise.lejeune29

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 30, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A superb walk, as other hikers have noted. A small note: at point 4, you must continue 50 metres towards the Jean Nicolas chapel before following the hedge on the right between two fields.

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Nestor Juliet
Nestor Juliet

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 18, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Great! Very well written, clear and precise.
Very beautiful and varied route, very little road, just 300 m there and 300 m back
Great because the route allows you to avoid the crowds that follow one of the four classic routes starting from the village
You walk a lot along the stream, brilliant!
Thank you 😎

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lazzerini
lazzerini

Hello Marcovdh67,

It's a shame you had to end your trip early.
For my part, I've included a link in the practical information section to check the hunting dates. (The word "hunting" in blue is the link.)
The difficulty is generated by the Visorando website based on the mileage and elevation gain.
I have therefore changed it to "moderate" as all the reviews agree, but we will have to wait for a moderator to approve it before it takes effect.
Cheers

Best regards

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Marcovdh67
Marcovdh67

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 28, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Unfortunately, we couldn't complete the entire walk (blocked by a hunt in progress). As it was shorter than expected, we fell back on the brewery shop where we bought a few beers. I agree with some of the reviews below: the walk is described as easy, but I would describe it as moderate or even difficult because there is a really steep climb... The first part we did was splendid.

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virgule
virgule

Absolutely. I'm a big fan of post-hike beer.

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lazzerini
lazzerini

Hello Virgule,
We don't necessarily want to rub salt in the wound, but it's true that I, for one, am not complaining
You are much less fortunate, it's true.
But I also read that you're a connoisseur... of La Chouffe
Are you a beer lover?

In any case, good luck to all French hikers.

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virgule
virgule

Happy are those who can stroll around and drink a little "Chouffe" beer when they arrive.

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Bigben69
Bigben69

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 07, 2020
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Described as easy, but includes a steep climb with a very high gradient on a steep path (not recommended for those with heart conditions... 😁) and several flooded sections when following the river, requiring you to climb up and then down to get around them, which is very slippery. I would therefore describe this superb hike as moderately difficult in places!

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