Cyclists will be able to fully enjoy the Belgian coast after a 425-kilometer trail all the way from the Dutch border to the French border was inaugurated on Sunday November 7th. Several mountain bike routes have been renovated in recent years along the coast and the West Flanders Tourist Board, Sport Vlaanderen and the coastal municipalities have linked them up to form a large, continuous network.
We are investing in sports’ infrastructure to make Flanders a more exercise-friendly region.
Ben Weyts, Flemish Minister of Sport
According to the Brussels Times, the coastal area is densely populated and has many protected natural areas, all of which makes it difficult to develop new routes with enough off-road kilometers.
Thanks to the cooperation between the Flemish sports administration, the provincial tourist board and the coastal municipalities, 178 kilometers of off-road routes were added to the existing ones. Flanders now has more than 7,000 kilometers of mountain bike routes.
A new route of 107 kilometers between De Panne, Koksijde, Nieuwpoort and Middelkerke has also been traced. It is meant to be more for the expert cyclists because it includes several technical passages. The network is accessible to everyone, from the amateur cyclist to the trained sportsman and woman.
