Home                                                 LAST UPDATE 05/11/2005

Birdy's spots: Playspots in and near Belgium.   

These are some spots we regularly visit.  There 's also some info we've gathered, especially some water levels.  But  don't spam me,  if they wouldn't turn out to be exact. If you 've got more detailed info, send me a mail.
Some of the spots, the big ones and the most constant ones, have been submitted at playak.com, so have a look. The others are smaller spots or they 're only seldom good. But if any of them turn out to be worthwhile, they will end up at playak.com someday.

!!!! Lots of the spots on this page are automatic weirs (automatic barrages - 'automatische klepstuwen') these spots can become dangerous and life threatening at certain levels. DO NOT ENTER them if you have not the proper knowledge on what you are doing. In any case, the info given on this page does not  assure the spot is safe. The author  is certainly not responsible if any of you, using this info, should screw up thoroughly. !!!!

Ardennes, Belgium

Ourthe from upstream going down :

Ourthe, La Roche :• Automatic weir downstream center. Gauge Ourthe in Hamoir good at 37m³(descending), mostly green, partly broken, at 40m³ totally green, forgiving small wave, enders are difficult, good for beginners. ( to low at 30m³-rising =>rappel) pic - report

Ourthe, Hotton : Automatic weir downstream center, mini-wave, gauge Ourthe Hamoir good 30m³(rising), also at 40m³, mostly green, partly broken, forgiving small wave, enders are difficult, good for beginners

Ourthe : Other weirs between La Roche and Hotton as Jupille, behind the church, a weir somewhere in the fields, the weir near the Hotton-rockclimbing-area.( to low at 30m³ -rising) But non of them are really good, at normal levels.

Ourthe, Barvaux :•• Automatic weir, 400m downstream brigde in center. If it's good lots of moves are possible. It can be a powerfull wave, mostly green, partly broken. But only a little eddy, so very difficult to get back on. Gauge Ourthe in Hamoir, good at 37m³(descending), too low at 30m³ -rising, also on playak.com

Ourthe, Tilff: 'Les Prés de Tilff'. Near the open air swimming pool. Small rapid, no playspot, used to be a slalom parcours, only good if the big automatic weir in the center of Tilff downstream the bridge is closed, mostly in dryer seasons. Then this rapid is good for teaching absolute beginners how to eddy in and out. Attention is has been 'buldozered' a couple of times, so maybe it changed. (Once at 94m3 in Angleur the big weir was open, so the rapid was dry. Once at 15m² in Angleur it was good for some beginners lessons.)

Ourthe, Embourg-Tilff:•• Tron chic. Automatic weir (near Embourg) between Tilff and Sauheid along the main road, cross the railroad to go to a kind of water-pump-cleaning station. Good at gauge Ourthe in Hamoir 30.5m³ or Angleur 77m³. Very small eddy, if you miss it, you have to carry back up. Followed  by some white water and a nice small but strong hole. pic1-pic2-pic3 When there's enough water, it's a breaking wave, any move is possible. If the water goes down it becomes green. When the water 's really low, the weir will go up and become dangerous. (Playak.com)

Ourthe, Mava, Sauheid-Angleur:••• Club Mava, summer playing, the hole becomes good when the water is low ( pics - report ) (Angleur 34 m³). In summer when the water is really low ( Angleur 15m³), the local club puts old doors near the drop, so they block the riverbed a bit and make the current stronger. In winter and wet periods, when there 's to much water,=Hamoir 30m³-rising or Angleur 77m³-rising, there will be a not-structured fast small wave with small stopper (playak.com)
There is a kayakclub, be polite and if you want to use their infrastucture, toilets, ...., ask it first, you're not a member. Perhaps go have a drink and sponsor them.

Ourthe, Liège/Luik : Near shopping center Bel Ile, great riverwide hole. The Ourthe and Vesdre should have some water, let's say at least over 60 m3 to even start thinking about it. Locals don't paddle here, they say the Vesdre is too poluted. Big eddy at river right. Upstream there is a big weir, when it's open at flood level, (Angleur 200m3) you get zambezi like waves, followed by a nasty artificial concrete boulder garden.

Lesse, Anseremme camping:  pic  smurfsurf ?

Lesse, list 2-spots,  the crocodile and the Virée du Gève, ... : winter fun, brrrbrrbrr

Meuse-valley (Belgium, Northern-France)

Semois, Boullion : weir in Boullion, has two possible spots, one drop good at medium low water, flushy cartwheel spot.

Semois, Hautes-Rivières (Fr): needs good waterlevel (This rapid is hard to find, which I haven't)

Meuse/Maas, Donchery-sur-Meuse (Fr): •••gauge Meuse, Dinant-Heer  min. 200m³ average(?), great green and broken wave, over 7 m wide lots of moves possible. At 155m³ ? small wave, small stopper, no spinning, just frontsurf(?) shallow.
Follow the highway from Sedan to Charlesvilles-Mézières, take exit Donchery, drive to the center, pics by Baudouin. Also on Playak.com

Meuse/Maas (Fr): Lots of others weirs around there, nice to go wavespotting, pick a wave, check it out and go on to another, sometimes you'll find a good one, sometimes you drive around a lot.

Veines de Glaire : still lookig for it.

Hoge Venen - Hautes Fagnes, East Belgium

Amblève, Fonds Des Quarreux:•• Only if the weir in Lorcé is overflowing, then gauge Martinrive 40m³ low but good to play, 50m³ high but good to paddle (It is not allowed to paddle there anymore, 2002)

Amblève, list 3-spot near Ligneville: winter fun, brrrbrrbrr, 'rouleau', hole,  shallow, great sidesurfing, 360°s

Amblève, weir near Stavelot near the end of the Eau Rouge : check it out, possibilities at the river left side when the gauge reaches 80 in Trois-Ponts, don't enter the 'rappel'.

Warche, rialroad viaduct ... and following waves and holes:•• Dam-regulated, big at 10m³, more chance of water during the week, competition last weekend of September. pic of the week, pic2, pic3

(Hoègne, road bridge from Sart (high water winterwave): nice little roller, Belleheid > 80cm, maybe when less??, also others spots as there is the giant-rock-360 spot, ...)

Rur, high water winter spots : There are lots of spots on the Rur between Kalterherberg and Monschau if there is water, definitely if there is lots of water like 75cm in Kalterherberg or 150cm in Monschau. There is a great wave somewhere halfway, stopper over 60cm high, 3meter wide, ... If there is 100cm in Monschau, then there is a great spot at the entry of the village, always lots of people watching.

South-Eifel  (Luxembourg, Germany)

Prüm, Wasserfälle, Irrel:••• playak.com

Enz, Neuerburg-Fall (no playspot but fall): (Pic:Birdy flies!) -  playak.com

Sure, Luxembourg ???

NRW, Germany

Ahr, Bad Neuenahr:•• playak.com

Erft, Neuss:••  pic1 - pic2 The pics were made at the bridge upstream when the right bank side was closed. (Also on playak.com)

Erft, Greveneboich, slalomkanaal: Birdy's loop, playak.com

Lenne, Hohenmlimburg :Pics on kanu-club-hohenlimburg

Northern-France

Somme, St-Valery-sur-Somme:••• tidal wave pics + pic - report, playak.com

Canche, Beaurainville : playak.com

Arras, slalom area (Arras - Base Nautique)

Somme, Picquigny : Slalom course, possible playspot at the start of the course where there is a barage (link local site).

Belgium coast

See, coastal surfing, (e.g. Blankenberge)

Flemmish Ardennes, Belgium

Zwalm, IJzerkotmolen : gauge Nederzwalm > 80 cm => Smurf-hole-riding

Zwalm, Biestmolen : gauge Nederzwalm > 70 cm => Smurf-surfing

Zwalm, Nederzwalm roadbridge hole-'wals' : gauge Nederzwalm > 100cm => Smurf-surfing

Zwalm, weirs : when the water is medium low then ... jump, jump, ...

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