Circular starting from Nothomb

Chapels to explore in the villages of Parette and Nothomb, a state-owned nature reserve in the Nothomb Valley to cross, and border marker 151 to find in the middle of the woods: this is what’s on offer on this circular walk starting from the village of Nothomb.

Details

1326704
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 6.28 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 3h 35 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 830 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 830 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,529 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,020 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

Car park on Rue Nicolas Roeltgen between the very modern church (don’t look for a spire) in Nothomb and the school.

No signposting

(S/E) With your back to the church, walk up the street to the junction. Look out for the path with a red gate in front of the pedestrian crossing, to the right of the house opposite you. Cross at the pedestrian crossing and take the path. At the end of the path, turn left. Walk uphill to the Fork in the road, then take the road on the right, which quickly becomes a dirt track. Follow the Lamicht stream.

(1) At the fork in the road, turn right and continue until you reach the road. Cross carefully and carry on straight ahead. Ignore the path on the left before the bend and the next one too. Continue until you reach a fork in the road and turn right.

(2) Then take the path on the right, fords the stream (dry at the end of July 2018) and head uphill.

(3) At the next junction, head diagonally to the right. 800 metres further on, the path emerges from the woods, passes a house and joins the road. Turn left and walk a few dozen metres to see the Raveau Chapel. Retrace your steps and continue straight ahead. On your right, just before the junction with another road, look out for the Wilverts Chapel between two houses.

(4) At the junction with the other road, take a short detour to the right to see Thommes Chapel. Return the way you came and carry on straight ahead.

Blue Rectangle Signposting

(5) At the hiking sign just past No. 104, turn right. Walk along the meadows; the path curves sharply and enters the forest. Head downhill; at the crossroads, go straight on. At the next junction, continue straight on again. After just under 1 km, the path curves sharply to the right.

(6) Now is the time to pay attention: look out for the tree with the marker, stop and look down into the ravine – border marker 151 is there. It is over 1 metre high and bears the coats of arms of Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. At the moment, it isn’t really highlighted. ‘(A major update of points of interest is currently being carried out by the Val d’Attert Tourist Office).’
Continue down the slope and ignore the two paths branching off to your right, one after the other. Keep going along the main path.

(7) At the junction with information boards for the state nature reserve, carry on to your left. Walk downhill alongside the River Nothomb. 300 metres further down, cross the footbridge on your right if the ford is too deep. A hairpin bend in the path brings you back to your left. Walk to the clearing on your right.

(8) Turn right and take the brand-new wooden walkway crossing the River Nothomb and the State Nature Reserve. Climb the steps and turn left. Follow the forest path back up to the road.

(9) Cross the road carefully and take the path behind the bench. Follow the small Stations of the Cross path up to the Grande Croix de Mission, dating from 1949. Retrace your steps and take the road towards Nothomb.

Unmarked

At the fork in the road, keep to the left. Walk past the Zhalen Chapel, which is built into the wall of the old mill. Continue through the village; at the next junction, turn right.

(10) At the end of the street, next to the last house on your right, note the Bettendorf Chapel. Then carry on straight ahead and, at the Fork in the road, take the road on the left. Head up towards the church, turn right at the junction and head for the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 1,083 ft - Car park - Église de l'Exaltation de la Sainte-Croix (Nothomb)
  2. 1 : mi 0.7 - alt. 1,138 ft - Turn right
  3. 2 : mi 1.42 - alt. 1,250 ft - Path on the right
  4. 3 : mi 1.67 - alt. 1,476 ft - Path on the right
  5. 4 : mi 2.65 - alt. 1,499 ft - Turn right at the roundabout
  6. 5 : mi 2.86 - alt. 1,506 ft - Turn right after No. 104
  7. 6 : mi 3.89 - alt. 1,486 ft - Border marker in a ravine
  8. 7 : mi 4.69 - alt. 1,152 ft - Look out for the information boards for the nature reserve on the left
  9. 8 : mi 5.29 - alt. 1,076 ft - Entrance to the Nature Reserve - Nothomb (ruisseau) 6 affluent de l'Attert
  10. 9 : mi 5.83 - alt. 1,079 ft - In the village on the right
  11. 10 : mi 6.15 - alt. 1,033 ft - Crossroads and chapel
  12. S/E : mi 6.28 - alt. 1,083 ft - Church car park

Notes

There is no water on the route or in the villages.
If you come across any ceramics along the route, they are the work of Nadine Humblet
From October to December, please be aware of the hunting season dates

Worth a visit

During
In Parette:
Raveau Chapel: Our Lady of Lourdes
Wilverts Chapel: Notre-Dame du Sacré-Cœur
Thommes Chapel with the Pietà: this wayside shrine is exceptional. The Pietà is its main feature. Originally erected outdoors, it was probably incorporated into this chapel during the 20th century.

Boundary marker 151: one of the 287 markers that mark the border between Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. What is its origin? In 1815, the Congress of Vienna redrew the map of the states, and the present-day Province of Luxembourg, along with the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, became the personal property of William of Orange. However, following the revolution of 1830, the London Conference of 1939 separated populations that had lived together for six centuries:
- Walloon Luxembourg and the Arlon region remained part of Belgium,
- German-speaking Luxembourg became a new sovereign state: the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.
In 1843, the authorities decided to mark the boundary between the two states, and so 287 boundary stones were erected along the border between the two Luxembourgs. They are all numbered and bear the coats of arms of Belgium and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

The Nothomb Valley State Reserve: rising in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Nothomb (or Nothomberbaach) carves out a narrow north-south-facing valley, with steep slopes covered mainly by beech forests. On the narrow alluvial strip lie hay meadows, some more neglected than others, featuring a diverse range of summer flowers.

In Nothomb:
The Zahlen Chapel, dating from 1764. Dedicated to the Sacred Heart, it is said to protect the inhabitants from epidemics. It is built into the wall of the mill, which had existed since the 14th century as an oil mill (processing acorns, rapeseed, etc.) before becoming a flour mill in the 15th century. It ceased operations completely in 1927. The site has now been converted into private homes.

Bettendorf Chapel

Nearby

Arlon: its maitrank and chips with cheese sauce.
Orval: its abbey, its cheese and its beer.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 9 reviews

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

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, varied walk between woods and town, where you can admire beautiful architecture.

Not too difficult, except for one steep hill 😉👍

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Abel Xoone
Abel Xoone

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 10, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A beautiful walk along the water. For maximum effect, I recommend doing it around mid-May because that's when the broom is in bloom. A third of the way along the route, you'll have the pleasure of crossing a "sea of fire" as the broom is so thick and you walk through the middle of this lush vegetation. Magnificent.
On your return, check that you don't have any ticks, as they are common in the area. Long trousers are essential, even in very hot weather.

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albinetdenise.lejeune29
albinetdenise.lejeune29

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 23, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk with excellent commentary, a wonderful discovery. Thank you.

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Jean-Luc1012
Jean-Luc1012

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 07, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We discovered this route through this application. A wonderful discovery. We recommend both the application and the route.

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lazzerini
lazzerini

Hello Jim1106,

As noted in the description, the start of the hike is not marked.
Could this be what confused you?

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Jim1106
Jim1106

Overall rating : 2 / 5

Date of your route : May 03, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Ease of following the route : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Route interest : Not used / Not applicable
Very busy route : No

The signage was terrible, no way to
do the hike properly.

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wolwertzpaul
wolwertzpaul

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 19, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful route with stunning views. But you have to work for them, as there are some steep hills.

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lazzerini
lazzerini

There you go, all you had to do was ask... The ceramics were made by Nadine Humblet, who lives in the Attert region.

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elise_be
elise_be

Great :-) These are just extra incentives, but otherwise thank you for the map!

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lazzerini
lazzerini

Hello elise_be,

In 2018, when I first spotted this trail, there were no duckboards yet for walking around the nature reserve!
They have only been there since May 2020.

Thanks for the info
I'll go back there sometime as I love duckboards and will look for information about the sculptures.

Looking forward to it!

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elise_be
elise_be
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 27, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very nice walk. We just changed the end of the route to go through the wetland area of the national nature reserve, because the footbridge caught our eye!
It might be worth mentioning in the description the ceramic sculptures dotted along a few hundred metres of the route: they were cute, and it was fun to keep an eye out to find them all!
We hardly saw anyone else on the path.

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spatzy
spatzy

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 21, 2020
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Nice walk, but quite muddy in winter due to extensive forestry work.

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Guy Ney
Guy Ney

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 17, 2019
Reliability of the description : Not used / Not applicable
Ease of following the route : Not used / Not applicable
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good

The section in the Nothomb Valley is very beautiful up to Parette. After that, you can hear the N4. In addition, forestry work has severely damaged the path. Slippery descent in the mud. We did the route in reverse. 15.06.2019

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