Routes

Planner

Features

Updates

App

Get the App

Gatehouse

Gatehouse

Highlight • Historical Site

Gatehouse

Recommended by 99 hikers out of 100

This Highlight is in a protected area

Please check local regulations for:

Vlaams Natuurreservaat Herkenrode

Save

Location: South Limburg, Flanders, Belgium

Save

See hikes here

Take Me There

Routes here

Best Hikes to Gatehouse

4.5

(29)

295

hikers

1. Herkenrode Abbey Site – Herkenrode Abbey Mill loop from Stokrooie

4.75km

01:12

10m

Easy hike. Great for any fitness level. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Easy

4.5

(48)

430

hikers

2. View of Herkenrode Abbey – Herkenrode Abbey site loop from Stokrooie

4.25km

01:04

10m

Easy hike. Great for any fitness level. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Easy

4.1

(29)

231

hikers

3. The Infirmary building from 1658 – Herkenrode Abbey Mill loop from Stokrooie

9.54km

02:25

20m

Moderate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

Navigate

Send to Phone

Save

Moderate

Tips

VISITFLANDERS

June 20, 2022

The abbey was completely sealed off from the outside world by moats and walls. This gatehouse was the only entrance to the domain. The low door meant that whoever entered here had to bow their heads in reverence.

Bread was distributed here at the gate to the needy in the region every day. The striking building itself was built around 1531 and is now one of the oldest in this location.

The domain was completely self-sufficient, everything needed here was grown and manufactured locally. On the left you can see the huge farm buildings with stables for the cattle and a large tithe barn for storing the harvest.

Would you like to learn more about the history of the abbey? Then visit the visitor and experience center with an extensive and exciting exhibition.

Translated by Google •

Dominiek Van Dooren

May 19, 2025

The Herkenrode Gatehouse, along with the gatehouse, is a defining building of the former Herkenrode Abbey.

This building, dating from 1531, built during the reign of Abbess Mechtildis de Lechy and bearing a coat of arms on the rear facade, marks the end of a long avenue bordered by a double row of trees. The construction of the E313 motorway in 1960 bisected this avenue, interrupting the approach to the building.

It is a late-Gothic building of three bays and two stories under two intersecting slate-clad gable roofs, with a pear-shaped spire at the intersection. The building is constructed of brick, with limestone used for the window frames and marlstone for the moldings and cornerstones. The entire structure is reinforced with wrought-iron, S-shaped wall anchors. Furthermore, the building has a brick base with a limestone bevel. The cornices and cornices are made of marlstone.
(Wikipedia)

Translated by Google •

July 31, 2024

The main entrance to the abbey is located to the south of the complex. It is a late Gothic gatehouse, built in 1531 by order of Abbess Mechtildis of Lechy. There are two storeys under two intersecting slate saddle roofs with a spire with a pear-shaped crowning at the intersection, dated 1531 (coat of arms on the rear facade) and restored in 1907 (architect G. Rypens) and 1973.

Inventory of Immovable Heritage: Herkenrode Abbey, id.erfgoed.net/erfgoedobjecten/22246

Translated by Google •

Details

Informations

Elevation 30 m

Weather

Friday 19 December

8°C

1°C

46 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 8.0 km/h

Most visited during

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

See hikes here

Take Me There

Location: South Limburg, Flanders, Belgium

Other Popular Places to Check Out

Stokrooi voetweg

Heideherstelgebied

Entrance to Circuit Zolder

Beaver Lodge (Beverburcht) – Vlaams Natuurreservaat Herkenrode

Vogelkijkhut Groot Wijven

De Wijers Wildlife and Bird Paradise

Sluis, Demer & Tuilterdemer

Natuurreservaat De Platwijers-Wijvenheide

Entrance and Information Boards, Natuurreservaat Tannenmoor

Herkenrode Abbey Mill

View of the Field in Vlaams Natuurreservaat Platwijers

Scenic Pond

Gatehouse

1. Herkenrode Abbey Site – Herkenrode Abbey Mill loop from Stokrooie

2. View of Herkenrode Abbey – Herkenrode Abbey site loop from Stokrooie

3. The Infirmary building from 1658 – Herkenrode Abbey Mill loop from Stokrooie

Other Popular Places to Check Out

We value your privacy ⛰️

We value your privacy ⛰️