Le Chemin de la Liberté (The Freedom Trail) ®
A 68 km hike in the Bastogne region connecting villages and Second World War memorial sites, the Freedom Trail is a GTA route devised by the Maison de la Randonnée in 2022.
The circuit starts at Mardasson. It crosses the communes of Vaux-sur-Sûre, Sainte-Ode and Bertogne to return to Bastogne, while linking the many memorials erected in tribute to the soldiers and civilians who died during the Second World War. The Freedom Trail invites you to dwell on the past in a region that was known at the time as the site of the Battle of the Bulge, where some of the conflict’s fiercest fighting took place.
On foot or by mountain bike!
This hiking route is also accessible for mountain biking.
The route is marked with the yellow and white signposts of the GTA, starting from the Bastogne War Museum.
Important: it is not possible to bivouac en route because of the absence of campsites and the fact that wild camping is prohibited.
Ascent: 1403 metres
Map and guide route
The Maison de la Randonnée advises you to take the following with you:
- an IGN map, scale 1/25 000 ;
- a GTA guide route available in French, Dutch and English in which 22 sites, vectors of memory, are highlighted.
IVV stamping
The route is recognised as a permanent circuit (IVV-FFBMP) by the International Federation of Popular Sports and by the Belgian Francophone Federation of Popular Walks.
Every walker can have their walking book stamped by the FFBMP Walking Club at the headquarters of the Maison de la Randonnée – GTA Belgium in Sprimont (route des Courts Champs 4, 6680 Sainte-Ode). For more information, contact +32 475 61 15 06
Liberation Route Europe
This path is part of the Liberation Route Europe, a certified Cultural Route of the Council of Europe.
