Cycling along the paths of Thieu

Start from the car park at the Centre Sportif des Ascenseurs.

(S/E) On leaving the car park, turn left and then right onto the path leading up to the towpath of the old Canal du Centre. Continue along the towpath to the swing bridge located just before hydraulic lift number 3.

(1) Cross the canal via the bridge and turn left onto the towpath. Continue to the second drawbridge.

(2) Turn right onto Rue des Saules, then continue left onto Rue Jules André. At the junction with Rue Raymond Cordier, turn left towards Pont Cordier. Before the bridge, turn right towards the reception for the Strépy-Thieu funicular lift

(3) Cross the new canal via the funicular lift bridge and turn left to reach the roundabout. Take the second exit (Rue Raymond Cordier) and then the first right (Rue Colline Saint-Pierre). At the end of the street, turn left into Rue Sorgeon and then right into Rue du Château Saint-Pierre. At the junction, turn left into Rue des Marliers.

(4) At the crossroads, near the wayside shrine, continue straight on along Rue aux Lapins and turn right onto Rue Carrière des Hautbois. At the junction, turn left onto a country lane that runs alongside the meadows to reach Chaussée de Mons.

(5) Cross it and continue along the country lane, which will take you partly alongside the motorway.

(6) Once back on the Chaussée de Mons, continue straight on into Rue Chemin Blanc.
Cross Rue des Fours à Chaux, turning left then right to head down Rue du Trieu.

(7) Once past the Quinsac bridge, head up the towpath and turn left.

(8) When you reach the disused lock number 1, turn left onto Rue du Port de Plaisance to reach lift number 4.

(9) Turn right and go under the tunnel to reach the Sports Centre, the starting point of this walk (S/E).

(S) Bicycles can be hired here at the start

(1) Hydraulic lift number 3. The operation of this type of lift can be compared to that of a lever balance. The heavier pan descends and, via the lever arm, the second pan rises. In a hydraulic lift, the lever arm is replaced by pressurised water pipes. Environmentally friendly even before the term was coined, this type of lift uses only the force of water for its energy. The mechanism of lift number 3 is coupled to that of lift number 2, which has no engine room.

(2) Drawbridge. The correct term for this type of bridge is ‘lifting bridge’. A drawbridge refers to a structure used to protect access (e.g. a castle’s drawbridge).

(3) The Strépy-Thieu funicular lift enables boats to traverse the 73.15-metre drop in around ten minutes. Construction began in 1982. It was opened to traffic in 2002. It is a concrete colossus, 110 metres high, 130 metres long, 75 metres wide and weighing nearly 200,000 tonnes. Needless to say, with such dimensions and its two gondolas, it is the largest of its kind in the world. The Thieu Lift is a funicular-type lift, which means that the gondolas carrying the boats are suspended by cables and balanced by counterweights. The ascent itself takes around 7 minutes. However, the total journey time is 38 minutes (including the boats entering and exiting). This single structure now handles the elevation change that was previously managed by four hydraulic lifts and two locks.

(4) This wayside shrine was erected on the initiative of Father Vereycken. It was erected in early 1935. The cross is 10 m high and 3 m wide.

(6) In the building to the right of the path (Château Monoyer), a Landenian sandstone menhir dating from the time of Charlemagne was discovered in 1893, buried in the ground. It is 2.4 m high. This menhir will never be excavated.

(7) Quisac Bridge. Quinsac-Village is a commune in the Gironde department, situated some fifteen kilometres south of Bordeaux in the famous wine-growing region of ‘Entre-deux-Mers’ and the ‘Premières Côtes de Bordeaux’. The twinning between Roeulx and Quinsac dates back to 1962.

(8) Lock number 1. This disused lock used to connect the leat of lift 4 with the upstream section of the Canal du Centre. With the commissioning of the new Canal du Centre, it was abandoned. A marina has been established on the upper leat.

(9) Hydraulic lift number 4. The last in a series of four lifts designed to overcome a 73-metre drop in elevation. These lifts are still in operation for the passage of pleasure boats. The lifting mechanism uses hydraulic power exclusively.