From Château d’Herbeumont to the Libaipire viewpoint

Car park for several vehicles at the foot of the ruins of Herbeumont Castle.

No signposting

(S/E) Head up to the castle ruins. Walk around the ramparts to enjoy superb views. Exit the same way you came in and, as soon as you reach the end of the bridge, turn right. Go through the gate leading down into the moat. Walk along the left-hand side of the ruins and head back up to the gap in the fence.

(1) Go through it and turn left. Take the path leading down at the foot of the cliffs. You’ll soon spot the gate in the fence on your left. Don’t walk all the way down the hill on that side. Go through the gate and continue down to the right, on the other side of the fence. Ignore the path on your left and carry on down to the road.

(2) Turn left and then right. Walk along the road for about 200 m and look out for the path on your left before the junction with the N884.

(3) Follow the path uphill, join the RAVeL and continue to the right. Cross the bridge over the road and, further on, the Herbeumont Viaduct, also known as the Conques Viaduct. Walk to a junction.

(4) Turn left. You’ll return via the right-hand side. Walk for 1.3 km along this main path to the closed Sainte-Cécile tunnel.

(5) Take the path up to your left; this continues to the right. Walk over the tunnel entrance. At the Fork in the road, keep to your left and join a wider forest track. Continue to the left and walk down to a wide forest track.

(6) Turn right. Walk for about 700 m and turn onto the path on your left before reaching the road. Head downhill, skirting the marshy meadows between the two Conques ponds, and follow the path to the A-road. Cross with care and take the path opposite through the ferns. Follow the path uphill.

^GR® signposting

At the wide path, turn left. At the Fork in the road, continue left and head down towards the Grotte des Moines. Carry on until you reach a junction on your left.

(7) Turn left and head downhill. Continue along the path, following the Semois. The path becomes a wide track until you reach a junction with a track suitable for vehicles.

(8) Head straight on along the grassy track towards the 17th-century redoubt. Follow signpost 20-21. Walk past hunting blind 21 and step over the ditch. Discover the Redoute des Mauleus, marked by posts. Retrace your steps and rejoin the track on the right. Follow the Semois for about 3.3 km until you reach the road.

(9) Walk straight on along the uphill road for 200 m until you reach the marker post on your left indicating the start of the path. Turn left and head up to Le Castelain. On your left, you’ll find the viewpoint. Retrace your steps and continue up the path. At the Fork in the road, take the left-hand path. Join a path on your right and continue to the left for just over 200 m until you reach a grassy path on your right.

(10) Turn here; there is a^GR® cross on the tree trunk at the entrance. ,

Unmarked

The path turns sharply to the left. Follow this path until you join another path, which you follow straight on until you reach the road.

(11) Turn right. Walk carefully along the road until you reach the^first forest track on your left. Enter the Florenville Communal Wood. On your left, look out for the other side of the Sainte-Cécile tunnel, visible between the trees and further down below. Cross over the channelled Relogne Stream and ignore the grassy path immediately after on your right. The path curves in an S-shape. Carry on and, further on, cross a stream (dry in June 2022) and continue along the main path until you reach the N884.

(12) Turn left and walk carefully along the road until you reach^{the first} forest track on your right. Turn right and enter the Bois de Sainte-Cécile, part of the Bois Communal de Florenville. At the Fork in the road, turn left. Continue along this forest track for about 600 m until you come to another track (not shown on maps).

(13) Turn left. At the corner of the fence, take the path on the left. Follow the large vertical red and white rectangles on the trees if the path does not seem clearly marked. Look out for the grassy clearing on your right and walk alongside it. Pass hunting post 17, then 18. Just before the road, turn right onto the clearly marked path. Walk downhill until you reach a crossroads.

^GR® signposting

(14) Carry on straight ahead. At the three-way junction (not shown on maps), continue straight ahead. Pass a shelter and arrive at the Libaipire viewpoint. View of Herbeumont Castle, your starting point, and view of the Tombeau du Chevalier, a wooded headland.

(15) Return to the path running behind the shelter. On the climb, take the path on the left.^Second Libaipire viewpoint. At the Fork in the road, continue to the left and walk to^{the third} grassy clearing, with a wooden stake stuck in the middle of the grass on your left.

Unmarked

(16) Take the path branching off to the left in front of this stake, leaving the signposted route behind. Descend along the well-marked path (shown on OSM and OSM Trails, but not on IGN) for 600 m until you reach a wide forest track.

(17) Continue to the right. At the grassy crossroads, carry on straight ahead. The track turns to the right. You’ll come to a clearing set up as a viewpoint overlooking the castle, its mill and the viaduct. You passed this way on the way out and will pass it again on the way back. Walk to the fork in the road immediately after the viewpoint.

(18) Take the path leading down to your left.

^GR® signposting

Walk down the path and, a few metres before the road, turn right onto a path.

No signposting

(19) Follow the path – which is fairly easy to follow – running parallel to the road, then slightly uphill, until you reach a track. Turn right and head uphill until you reach a grassy path on your left. Turn left and return to the junction from the outward journey.

(4) Turn left. Cross the viaduct again and continue along the RAVeL until you reach the path you took on the way there, on your left after the bridge over the road.

(3) Head downhill and rejoin the road on the right. At the T-junction, turn right. Walk past the Saint-Roch Chapel. A little further on, turn left and return to the castle car park (S/E).

At (5) – a steep but short climb – and at the Castelain viewpoint after (9).
Benches: at the Grotte des Moines before (7), at Castelain after (9), at (15), and at (19).
Picnic table: at the Conques viaduct, along the Semois, 600m before (9).
Shelter: at (15).
Muddy in places following periods of rain.
From October to December, please be aware of the hunting season dates

During
Ruins of Herbeumont Castle: built in 1268. It was destroyed in 1657 by French troops on the orders of Louis XIV.

Conques Viaduct: recently renovated. 45 m high. Built by the Germans during the First World War.

Sainte-Cécile Tunnel: 1,500 metres long, closed in 2004 due to the risk of collapse. Used for the Bertrix–Carignan railway line.

Grotte des Moines: developed by the Benedictines in 1923.

The Mauleus Redoubt, dating from the 17th century and marked by posts: Overlooking the Semois, this former watchpost was one of twenty-eight redoubts built along the Semois by Louis XIV. This rudimentary structure, flanked by a rampart, was surrounded by a moat. A simple yet effective defensive system. This garrison was manned by a dozen men.

Castelain Viewpoint.

Libaipire Viewpoint: View of the ruins of Herbeumont Castle and the Chevalier’s Tomb, a wooded peninsula nestled within a bend in the River Semois.

Saint Roch Chapel: A listed 17th-century chapel built in response to a plague epidemic.

Nearby
Bouillon Castle.
The Street Arts Festival in Chassepierre in August.