Discover historic Bergues and the Bois des Forts

An easy route in the heart of the city of Vauban and Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis.

Details

5312766
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 8.51 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 00 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 59 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 59 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 69 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 0 ft
  • ⚐ Country: France
  • ⚐ City: Bergues (59380)
  • ⚑
    Start/End: N 50.966637° / E 2.432461°
  • ❏
    IGN map(s): Ref. 2302O
  • Hour-by-hour weather

Photos

Description of the walk

Park in the livestock market car park, where parking is free.

(S/E) Walk down the square and turn left at the bronze Flemish Red cow.
Take Rue Maurice Cornette towards Cobergher College.
After the school and before the Cassel gate, take Chemin de la Nekerstoror on the right and follow it. Pass the tower at the end of the road, cross Rue de la Gare and go behind the Leclaire residence, a former barracks. Cross Rue de l'Arsenal and take the few steps opposite. Follow the path to Rue du Port.

(1) Cross it and take the street running alongside the Canal de Basse Colme. Turn right onto Chemin Guy de Dampierre to reach the former slaughterhouse.
Go up to the right of Place du Marché aux Fromages, following the inner canal. You will reach the crossroads at the small canal of Bras de Décharge de la Haute Colme.

(2) Cross the canal and continue straight ahead. At the end of the street, turn left and then immediately right into Rue du Mont de Piété. Pass in front of the museum. Turn left after the church and go up Rue de la Gare to Place Henri Billart. Turn right at the crossroads with the belfry. At this square, turn right towards the belfry.

(3) At the belfry, go straight ahead and take Rue du Collège, then Rue du Marché aux Chevaux.
At the end, turn left onto Rue des Postillons to reach the park entrance at Porte de Marbre.

(4) Go under the gate and walk up the path towards the former Saint-Winoc Abbey. Go around the Pointed Tower and the Square Tower, which houses the town's water tower, and walk back down the same path.
Before the marble tower, turn right, staying in the park, and follow the gravel path. Turn right to reach the end of the park. Cross Rue Félix Baert and go down the steps opposite. Then cross Avenue de la Liberté, continue through the park and pass the Bergues water treatment plant. You will reach the junction with Route d'Hondschoote.

(5) Cross the bridge and turn immediately left. Walk along the campsite, past the tennis courts and up the Bergues Canal. You will reach a designated area at the edge of the lake.

(6) Continue opposite, still following the canal. Reach the Allée du Golf crossroads at the entrance to the Bois des Forts.

(7) Follow cycle route 364 to the left until you reach Allée des Mésanges. At the end of this road, leave Bois des Forts by turning right.

(8) Walk a few metres and re-enter Bois des Forts via Allée des Éperviers, then cross the entire Bois des Forts to return to the crossroads at the entrance to the woods you passed on the way out.

(7) Return towards Bergues along the Bergues canal you took earlier until you reach the crossroads at the rest area.

(6) Turn left and follow the path around the lake. Pass under the Porte aux Boules and turn immediately left to return to the crossroads of the Route d'Hondschoote.

(5) Take the Route d'Hondschoote, at the Porte d'Hondschoote turn left into Rue du Coq then right into Rue des Capucins. Continue left into Rue Nationale to reach the crossroads with the belfry you passed on the way out.

(3) Take Rue Lamartine on the right, then Rue Maurice Cornette to return to the cattle market car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : mi 0 - alt. 10 ft - Livestock market square
  2. 1 : mi 0.58 - alt. 7 ft - Taverne Vauban and Bergues harbour - Canal de la Haute-Colme
  3. 2 : mi 0.95 - alt. 16 ft - Le Bruegel, the oldest house in Bergues
  4. 3 : mi 1.2 - alt. 16 ft - Belfry
  5. 4 : mi 1.43 - alt. 49 ft - Marble gate
  6. 5 : mi 2.08 - alt. 13 ft - Route d'Hondschoote
  7. 6 : mi 2.5 - alt. 10 ft - Facilities available - Canal de la Basse Colme
  8. 7 : mi 2.67 - alt. 10 ft - Entrance to the Bois des Forts - Canal de Bergues
  9. 8 : mi 4.78 - alt. 7 ft - Allée des Éperviers
  10. S/E : mi 8.51 - alt. 10 ft - Livestock market square

Notes

Picnics are possible at the Canal du Roy (2 tables seating 6).
There are numerous restaurants along the route.
Avoid Tuesdays as almost all shops are closed.

Worth a visit

Places to visit: the belfry, the Mont de Piété museum, the church
Magnificent market on Monday mornings, Place de la Marie, Place Henri Billart and Place Gambetta.
When you reach the old slaughterhouse, remember that this is where Dany Boon and Kad Merad relieved themselves.

Reviews and comments

4.6 / 5
Based on 7 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.6 / 5
gk
gk
• Edited:

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 03, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Today’s route included a few variations, the main one being a stretch along the Bergues Canal to Fort Vallières, where we joined the PR trail before continuing on the route. A lovely route through the forest, skirting the ponds, and a lovely visit to Bergues and its ramparts. Highly recommended, even in wet weather, which wasn’t the case this morning. Using GPS tracking in the Bois des Forts is strongly recommended given the large number of paths in this area.

Machine-translated

michel tout court
michel tout court

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 09, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A varied hike which, when combined with the ramparts hike, covers a total of 22 km. Highly recommended. Picnic facilities available at La Poste café for hikers

Machine-translated

PATRICK DK
PATRICK DK

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 01, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Poorly marked route and itinerary not always very clear.

Machine-translated

Jérôme 62930
Jérôme 62930

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 14, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Hike done as a couple, part of a series of 10 successive hikes in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region (all tracked on Visorando).
Without a doubt, this is the one we would rank second among the most beautiful.
Its charm lies not in the negligible elevation gain, but in discovering the town of Bergues and crossing the Bois des Forts forest.
This easy walk is sure to delight hikers. Be careful, you will see squirrels in the Bois des Forts. There are quite a few of them!
We completed it in 3 hours and 9 minutes, taking our time, especially to take photographs. We came across a few people, walkers and runners (in the Bois des Forts), but it wasn't crowded. It was a Thursday morning.
We would recommend this hike to anyone who wants to walk around Bergues.

Machine-translated

Vanderbeck Didier
Vanderbeck Didier

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 20, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely walk through the Bois des Forts and the charming, historic town of Bergues.
On the eve of Carnival, Sunday 19 March, the town was getting ready to party.
Along the ramparts built according to Vauban's plans, it is truly charming to hike along the various canals that serve as moats. Very romantic.

Machine-translated

FLORIESTJES
FLORIESTJES

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 04, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

I went on the walk with 12 people. We started in Coudekerque, at a car park near the Bois des Forts. It was interesting because we took our picnic break at the well-known Café de la Poste, featured in the film Welcome to the Sticks. A beautiful combination of nature and history.

Machine-translated

delph_d2312
delph_d2312

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 25, 2021
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Nice walk to visit the town, then the forest

Machine-translated

Other walks in the area

For more walks, use our search engine .

The GPS track and description are the property of this route's author. Please do not copy them without permission.