Through the Lommel Sahara

During the walk you will be rewarded with a magnificent view of the Lommel Sahara. The origin of this area lies with the zinc factory of Lommel-Werkhuizen, which, due to its toxic exhalations, made all plant growth in an area of more than 300 ha impossible from 1902 onwards. The lake was created by sand extraction between 1920 and 1925. After the 2nd world war, the area was restricted by the planting of coniferous trees. There is now a protected nature reserve of 192 ha.

1. Appointment at the spacious parking next to the pool and in front of the playground. Step left between the pool and the Sovereign by New Buy. Beyond the youth classrooms, the concrete road turns into a sandy path. You walk over the Klagloop and at the fork after a right turn you take left. You pass the sign 'Dogs on a leash', follow the soft dirt road and after a short climb you are rewarded with a magnificent view of the Lommel Sahara, a 193 ha nature reserve. The ponds were created by sand extraction. By the end of the forties, the desert was about 500 ha in size. Descend the slope diagonally to the right and climb the last dune in front of the forest that grows against the pond. Here you will find road signs. The red triangle will guide you for a long time. You continue to a wooden fence, which you follow to the right. Behind it is a nature reserve that you can view from a bird watching wall. Keep following the fence. The road rises gently and you walk between two ponds to a wide dirt road. Turn right and take the first path on the left.
2. You arrive at the graceful suspension bridge over the Kempisch Kanaal, also called Maas-Scheldekanaal. Cross the bridge, take the forest path straight on the other side and descend the steep slope along the stairs. You end up on a wide forest road and cross it to follow a narrow path straight ahead. You still follow the red triangle, but where it goes straight ahead, you take the soft sandy path through the Blekerheide on the left. Ignore a path on the right and continue straight ahead on the dirt road. After a while, you step along the edge of a forest. A little further on you turn right with the sandy path and you come to a T. Left. Ignore the dirt road before the edge of the forest on the right and turn left. You step next to a fence with a large building behind it. At the quadruple jump, turn right and continue to follow the closure. You now walk 2 km straight without caring about side paths. At the end of the forest you keep walking straight ahead and you have a beautiful view over the Riebosserheide on the right, largely cultivated. Just before the next forest, turn right at a crossroads. Follow the wide sandy road or the cycle path along the edge of the forest and the Riebosserheide. Here you will find the red triangle and also indications to walking junction 24. Continue straight on until border marker 194. Just past it, at junction 24, turn left, towards junction 25. The GR 561 and a number of cycling routes pass by here. You can walk along the concrete bike lane or through the soft sand. On the right you have the Bergeikse Heide, on the left mostly forest.
3. At the intersection at walking junction 25, turn left, towards junction 28. Choose the winding paved bike path or the straight sandy forest path and walk almost to the canal. Take a left and cross the bridge after a bend. You have now walked 11 km, for a sanitary stop follow the road (+/- 400 m) to the intersection of the canals in one of the catering establishments. Once over the bridge you descend behind the bunker to the towpath and follow it to the right, towards Lommel. You walk under a natural gas pipeline. Immediately after it there is a small swinging bowl in the canal. Here on the right, take the asphalt road that turns away from the canal and then the first road on the left, which turns sharply back. After a few hundred meters, the asphalt stops and you continue on a wide concrete bike path. You turn with the bike path to the right and on the next quadrangle, where the bike path turns left, you step straight through a unique landscape with lots of moss. At a fork with a small building on the right, keep walking straight ahead and at the next intersection you turn left. Continue straight until you reach a concrete bike path. Turn left here and turn right 100 m further. You are back at the pond in the Sahara. Walk up to the shore and follow it to the right. Walk up to the information pole that you already saw at the beginning of the walk and that is clearly visible against the edge of the forest. Cross the dune to the right and you are back on your starting route. So you follow the soft dirt road and at the meadow you turn right, back to the starting place.