In recent days, the last section of the Ravel de l'Ourthe between Liège and Hamoir has finally been completed.
The last section which posed a problem represents 450 meters between Comblain-la-Tour and Fairon. In 2009, it was the only section that had not obtained planning permission, for reasons linked to nature conservation. The site is in fact home to wall lizards, a protected species, present in the scree of the old Chimont quarry, which borders the Ravel at this location.
It has been almost 5 years since crossing a Natura 2000 zone posed a problem.
The project studies to comply with the requirements of the DNF, the Nature and Forestry Department, took time.
Ultimately, the project for a footbridge around a hundred meters long was chosen. Special feature: it is specially designed to respect local fauna and flora. The walkway is at a height of between 30 and 90 cm from the ground. It is placed on screws and studs buried in the ground, to minimize the impact on local biodiversity. The rest of the section, i.e. 350 meters, was made of concrete.
The completion of this section is welcomed with relief by the mayor of Hamoir, Patrick Lecerf.
"The Ravel de l'Ourthe now makes it possible to connect Liège to Hamoir, on its own site. This represents around forty km dedicated to gentle transport... Of course, this should encourage the passage of tourists into the valley, but first, this will improve mobility and safety of travel between the different entities of the municipality, villages which have been landlocked until now", underlines Patrick Lecerf, the mayor of Hamoir
The completion of all the arrangements necessary for the complete Ravel crossing of the Hamoir territory will ultimately have taken... around twenty years!
To go beyond Hamoir, that is to say towards Durbuy, then La Roche, there are still some difficult sections, which will undoubtedly take a few more years before being finalized.