The 6 Most Amazing Peaks around Deûlémont

Nice climb over the cobblestones for those who regularly ride their racing bike. Be careful when descending over this road surface.

Strategic hill called Hill 60 in the First World War.

Historical information: About 2,500 years ago, a Celtic community belonging to the Hallstatt culture settled on the Kemmelberg. The Celts built a fortress and maintained a trading relationship with the Romans. During the First World War, the Kemmelberg was a strategic point and was heavily fought over by the warring parties. During the spring offensive of 1918, German troops under General Friedrich Bertram Sixt von Armin took possession of the Kemmelberg on April 25. The next day a French counterattack took place, but the German troops advanced as far as the Dikkebusvijver. On April 29, the German advance was halted and the fighting continued until the end of July 1918. On September 5, the Kemmelberg was recaptured by the Allied troops with the help of the Americans. After the fighting, the hill was bare and was replanted with deciduous tree species. Archaeological excavations were carried out from the 1960s onwards. On the western flank there is a French mass grave containing the remains of more than 5,000 French soldiers who died in the First World War. At the top is a memorial column, the Monument Aux Soldats Français, erected in 1932 and inaugurated by General Lacappelle. The column is 17 meters high and depicts the Roman goddess of victory Victoria. The monument is called "Monument Aux Soldats Francais" and is popularly called "The Angel". The column was originally 18 meters high, on top of the column was a laurel wreath with a French soldier's helmet on top, which disappeared after a lightning strike in the 1970s. On the southern edge is the Kemmel command bunker, a former Cold War command bunker of the Belgian army, which has been used as a war museum since the end of October 2009.

A small piece of battlefield which again only demonstrates the injustice and senselessness of war

This site is perhaps the most important war site from the period 1915 - 1917 in Flanders. The artificial hill is still largely preserved in its authentic condition with shell pits, mine craters and remains of bunkers. The mound was formed by the accumulation of excavated earth during the construction of the railway bed. In 1914, German troops captured the hill from the French. The British take over the sector and the underground battle begins. It is probably here that the first British deep mine was detonated on February 17, 1915. During the next underground action on April 17, 1915, the hill fell into British hands. The underground warfare lasted until early June 1917 (Third Battle of Ypres). Many soldiers who worked and fought in the dark tunnels also died there and are still buried nameless in the clay. Hill 60 is a cemetery without gravestones. Also notice the MEMORIAL TREES in the landscape. I call these trees “Frontline Trees”. These elms are placed in a metal tree basket with a blue or red color on the top edge. The Blue refer to the Anglo-French Front Line. The Red refer to the German Front Line. This way you can determine how close the front lines were to each other. A place to muse.

Top location at 156 meters altitude

Run-up to the ascent of the Kemmelberg

Nice climb, not too steep and along the vineyard. You can also start the ascent of the Kemmelberg from the Monteberg.