Bellecourt Branch

This branch of the canal was called the “shore of Mariemont” or also “the shore of Bellecourt”.
A canal branch line allowed boats to dock at the Mariemont and Bascoup coal docks in order to stock up on coal.
Some 12,000 tonnes of coal were loaded there daily. This shore was inaugurated in 1844 by King Leopold I.
On one of the three docks, loading was done by hand; on the other two, it was done using a huge steam traveling crane.
A railway line was also created in 1844 by the Mariemont charcoal company.
After the total cessation of coal mining, the branch line was abandoned.
In 1969, the ADEPS "La Marlette" center was built here, at the junction of the Brussels-Charleroi canal, in order to restore the site to an active life.
Today, this center can accommodate 120 trainees in its premises, to practice rowing, sailing and kayaking.
The ADEPS center welcomes a few thousand young and old alike every year, keen on water and field sports.
On the other hand, the Bellecourt branch has become a boat cemetery.
In 2001, the ministers in charge of tourism and public works approved the upgrading of under-exploited tourist sites.
Thus, the La Marlette site in Seneffe, at the junction of the Bellecourt shore, has benefited from investments from the MET, the Directorate General of Waterways, the Commissariat Général du Tourisme and the municipality of Seneffe, in order to create a marina. After more than 2 years of work and waiting, the port and the harbor master's office were inaugurated in April 2008. The harbor master's office, designed in wood, has three modules: the first for the reception and registration of boaters, the second for their rest and the third for the toilets.

The marina is equipped with electricity and drinking water terminals that boaters can operate using a computer-controlled key card. The banks of the Bellecourt branch canal have been cleaned up, reinforced and fitted with lighting poles.

Thanks to this marina, Seneffe hopes to boost its tourism and attract more boaters. (canaletpaysages.be/la-branche-de-bellecourt-canal-charleroi-bruxelles)

Really not easy to park ... Lots of prohibitions