The Legends Trail (1)

The Meuse comes up against three huge rocks. It’s an amazing sight, providing a vision of another country. So it’s hardly surprising that few people went there: it was said that the devil held diabolic meetings there…

The Celtic soul endures in the Ardenne… They say that these quartzite rocks may be the Cyclopean remains of a huge, ruined castle. Not true at all! Although this chaotic rock formation is perfectly natural, from prehistoric times it served as a bivouac. These days it is above all one of the loveliest spots in the region. Walking here, you can smell sulphur. A diabolical pact is said to have been made between a lord greedy for power and the devil himself. The former was to obtain a huge castle, the latter the soul of the lord, if the lord managed to complete the castle before the cock crowed. Just as he was setting the last stone of the building, the cock crowed, signalling the dawn. Too late! Out of fury, Satan destroyed the castle he had just built, sending huge blocks of stone hurtling down the mountainside to the bed of the Semoy river.

The Ardenne is dotted with real or imaginary traces of the four rebellious brothers. What does it matter if the Geste took place in Montauban, Dinant or Bogny-sur-Meuse, the forest of the Ardenne was in fact to be their only refuge. In Bogny, the rocky ridge, set in stone, evokes the speed of the four brothers, fleeing the anger of Charlemagne. This outstanding site is accessible via a path through the wood leading to a panorama dominated by the statue of the four brothers, sought throughout Europe by Charlemagne’s army.

14 place d'Armes 08230 Rocroi Tél. : +33 (0)3 24 54 20 06 www.otrocroi.com

65 quai Edgar Quinet 08500 Revin tél. : +33 (0)3 24 42 92 42 www.valdardennetourisme.com

Place Jean-Baptiste Clément 08800 Monthermé Tél. : +33 (0)3 24 54 46 73 www.meuse-semoy-tourisme.com

Explore the places where the fairy Oriande is said to have given Maugis the sword, Flamberge, and the horse, Bayard.

The forest protects the site of Montauban, the product of wonderful nature and a story. It was the refuge of four famous brothers who dared stand up to the authority of the Emperor Charlemagne. The four sons of Aymon, Allard, Renaud, Guichard and Richard, mounted the horse Bayard, a gift from their cousin Maugis, a vengeful magician in quest of justice. In fact, his own father had been assassinated on the orders of Charlemagne. An epic story traversing the whole of the Ardennes ensued.

Even though the castle today bears little resemblance to that of 1096, it is well worth visiting as the presence of Duke Godfrey can still be sensed: a strange feeling pervades you as you stroll through the ruins, as if the shadow of this great leader of the first crusade could appear in the knight’s’ room or the spiral stairs at any moment… Within the castle walls, the sense of wonder continues when birds of prey rise up from the ruins and perform a heavenly ballet. This show brings to mind an age-old hunting technique: falconry.

At the dawn of a new day in September, on Mont de Zatrou: the wisps of mist rise and fall in the Semois valley. These hangings, light as silk, take on human form in the popular imagination: the fairies are born. A few hundred metres from the beauty spot, the village of Les Hayons is blessed by fairies. Legend has it these ethereal beings protected the local people for centuries, before being betrayed by them. At the Fairies’ Farm, Marie-Laure Alff has recreated the enchanted world of these creatures, forming the heavenly beings by hand. With the soul of an artist, Marie-Laure paints as well. “I love painting nature: it’s present all around us. The Semois is the least populated region of Belgium. I work in shades of blue, at dusk, when the fairies appear. From Mont de Zatrou, which I have sketched, I can imagine flying like a fairy…”.

Botassart, a village near Bouillon, is the scene of one of the loveliest, most majestic panoramas in the Ardennes. Here, the Semois makes the most of the relief, constantly winding back and forth. The loop it forms in Botassart is so tight that an island is born in the heart of this green ocean, creating the formidable tomb of a giant said to have been struck down here.