The best walks and hikes around Saint-Sylvestre-Cappel

This chapel has a name for its patron saint that is literally on everyone's lips, yet few probably know the person behind it: The feast day of Saint Sylvester (San Silvestro) is on December 31st. He lived at the end of the third, beginning of the fourth century and was Bishop of Rome when Emperor Constantine, with the Edict of Milan – known as the “Edict of Tolerance” – recognized Christianity as a religion, and thus (at least temporarily) ended the time of bloody Christian persecution.

Beautiful view of Kassel and the Kasselberg (176 meters). The picturesque town was declared a 'Village préféré' by the French in 2018.

The Kasselberg (French: Mont Cassel) is a witness hill in the French Westhoek, in the French department of Noord. The hill is the highest in the Westhoek with 176 meters. The city of Kassel is located on top of the hill. The Kasselberg is part of the so-called central hill ridge in the West Flemish Hills, which also consists of the Watenberg, Wouwenberg, Katsberg, Boeschepeberg, Kokereelberg, Zwarteberg, Vidaigneberg, Baneberg, Rodeberg, Sulferberg, Goeberg, Scherpenberg, Monteberg, Kemmelberg and Letteberg. To the south of this hill ridge is the catchment area of the Leie, to the north of this hill ridge is the catchment area of the IJzer.

The church has a Romanesque base and a central apse dating back to the 13th century. The apse has a beautiful polygonal chevet, decorated with three Romanesque windows, cogs, columns and vegetal capitals. The original nave collapsed in the 18th century and was completely rebuilt in the 19th century. The nave opens onto six chapels decorated with altarpieces and statues. The church is known for the quality of its white marble lintel, which is decorated with a rose window and symbolically represents the evangelists: the lion of Saint Mark and the man of Saint Matthew.

The Notre-Dame-De-Grâce chapel is a building erected in 1895 in Sainte-Marie-Cappel by the Malfaison family to ward off bad luck following numerous deaths in the family, including the successive deaths of ten children and three adults. Despite this, one child and five adults died in the decade following the construction of the chapel.

Roadside chapel with a dilapidated interior.

This old village – it was first mentioned in 965 – at the foot of the Wouwenberg has about 550 inhabitants and feels like Bokrijk. It is considered one of the ten most beautiful French villages with some beautiful old buildings and remarkable half-timbered houses. Around the 'place Saint-Martin', located next to the cemetery, there are some traditional houses with roofs of glazed tiles. These buildings are interesting for the French-Flemish cultural heritage and give a good impression of the local architecture. With a substructure of red brick, walls of wood and loam (in visible half-timbered construction), decorative brickwork, shutters in cheerful colours, wall anchors and pavements of red bricks, the village has managed to retain its original atmosphere.

This old village – it was first mentioned in 965 – at the foot of the Wouwenberg has about 550 inhabitants and feels like Bokrijk. It is considered one of the ten most beautiful French villages with some beautiful old buildings and remarkable half-timbered houses.