When the soils get sandy, I know I’m on home turf. De Kempense Heide, the heath of Taxandria, home, sweet home. I’m from a town called Mol. By all objective standards, it’s nothing special. There is nothing you can do or see in Mol that you can’t elsewhere, often much better. But it’s home and, hence, special, at the very least to me. And so I hope that everyone who ends up in Mol – on purpose or, more likely, by accident – has a good time. Here are some things to do in Mol, Belgium.
Hit the beach in Mol’s lake district
If there’s one thing that my home region is world-famous for, it’s sand, sand, sand.
Whilst digging a canal from Antwerp to Bocholt in the 19th century, workmen came across large amounts of white sand in Dessel, Mol and Lommel. They dumped it on the canal banks. When the Canal Service planted trees on the sand, none of them took root. A local entrepreneur, Antoon Van Eetvelde, kindly offered to remove the sand free of charge. Much to the delight of the Canal Service, who had no idea what to do with it.
The sand turned out to be quartz sand. Which, as I learned during high school geography classes, the Rhine had brought to Mol from the Alps ages ago. Yes, that same river that now flows a hundred kilometres further east and north. Earth is a wondrous place. The extremely pure quartz sand lent itself well to use in the glass industry. Van Eetvelde promptly founded a company for its extraction. More than a century and a half later, Sibelco, the present form of that company, is not only the largest landowner in Flanders but also a global player active in 31 countries. Not bad for something that started with a pile of sand that nobody wanted.
The sand extraction turned the landscape into Swiss cheese. Over time, Sibelco has opened up many of the former quarries for recreation. As they’re filled with water, lyrical souls baptised this Mol’s Lake District. At provincial domain Zilvermeer (silver lake), visitors can swim, row, sail or dive between the pine trees. It’s where I spent most of my summer afternoons, playing volleyball with my friends as an excuse to peek at girls that I fancied. When Anete first visited Zilvermeer, she finally understood why I never seemed impressed when we visited beaches in Indonesia. Mol’s sand is the whitest you can imagine. If you visualise palm trees instead of pines, you can find yourself in Seychelles.
Hiking in Mol
Look at satellite maps of Flanders and you’ll notice that De Kempen forms its greenest long. In this paradise for hikers, everyone can find something to enjoy. From short strolls to day hikes, Mol’s got it covered. The website Wandelknooppunt provides a good way to compile your own walk by connecting knots into a string or loop. Just jot down the numbers and find the corresponding signage in the landscape – that’s all you need to never get lost. The system originated from the coal mines in Limburg, where miners used it to memorise their route through the maze of underground corridors.
Ronde Put (round hole)
Religious and/or wealthy bastards have moulded this landscape into one of the most Scandinavian spots in Mol. The monks of the nearby Abbey of Postel drained the impassable swamps that stretched across the region and cut down the deciduous forests. This allowed the moors so typical of De Kempen to form. Later, landowners exploited swamps for peat extraction and nobles came to hunt. Even Prince Karel – who was Belgium’s regent for a while after King Leopold III had been naughty in WWII – owned a bird cabin here.
Now, the area around Ronde Put combines leftovers of all the aforementioned biotopes into a unique landscape – a patchwork of old pine forests, grasslands, wet and dry moors, sand drifts, alder carr and small-scale agricultural fields. A bird cabin still adorns the bank of the lake, although it is no longer royal property. Crawl in to observe a motley crew of water, prey, marsh and forest birds, butterflies and dragonflies.
A hike of about 10 kilometres starts from Postel Abbey. Follow knots 14 – 86 – 15 – 16 – 1 – 21 – 87 – 85 – 86 – 14.
Buitengoor
For scientists, this is a unique swamp and heathland area, with large numbers of rare species. For everyone else, it’s a great opportunity to take out the rubber boots for some splashing in the mud and balancing on wooden boardwalks. Arguably the swampiest place in Mol, this walk is aptly called the ‘rubber boot path’. Further on lie two other nature reserves, De Maat and Den Diel. Multiple hiking trails connect these nature reserves. For inspiration, check Natuurpunt. Within walking distance – but not on Mol territory – Pannenkoekenboot (pancake boat) floats at the intersection of three canals. Attention: with 285 different types of pancakes on the menu, this place attracts many children.
Put van ‘t Rauw (hole of Rauw)
Another lake created by sand extraction. In my childhood, I’ve looped it roughly a thousand times with various family members, as my grandmother lived in a street leading up to the lake. However inviting it may look on a hot summer day, swimming is not recommended. Once in a while, someone will ignore the prohibition signs and drown, usually because of the icy ground current. On the banks of the lake, ‘t Kristallijn regularly hosts art exhibitions, while the Quartz Experience Center relays the history of sand extraction in the region.
Galbergen + forests of Ginderbuiten
These are the woods and sand dunes of my childhood, where I built camps, lit fires with the scouts and dirtied myself so much that even the foamiest bath couldn’t get me clean. A piece of childhood nostalgia where the hiking is pleasant and where you can spot rabbits or deer.
Molderbroek
Even with the locals, this flood area for the Nete is relatively unknown as a place for walking. Undeservedly so: with a bit of luck, you can admire kingfishers from the boardwalks through swampy meadows and along the water.
Long-distance trail GR Rondom-Mol
Mol is, after Antwerp, the largest municipality in the province. That deserves its own long-distance trail (90 km) that leads walkers through the most beautiful places in the municipality.
Molse 60
A 60-kilometre hiking event through the Mol nature. Anete wrote a report about the one edition we participated in. We made it just over halfway.
Discover the local art scene
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, artists came from all over Flanders and the Netherlands to paint the pastoral landscapes, the heathland and the farming villages of Mol. They, in turn, invited artist friends. The School of Mol was born. Its most famous member, Jakob Smits from Rotterdam, was so impressed by Achterbos, one of Mol’s hamlets, that he spent the rest of his life in a simple farmhouse that he had bought for 2000 francs (50 euros). He lived in poverty, but his work – “simple, symbolic, poetic, and real”, in his own words – ended up in museums all over the country. After his death, a museum in his honour opened in the rectory of Sluis, where the work of other members of the School of Mol also adorns the walls.
Jakob Smits Museum is open Wednesday through Friday, 13-17 pm.
Pro tip from the locals: right opposite the Jakob Smits Museum, ‘t Voske (the little fox) is a cosy traditional pub with enamel billboards and yellowed photos on the walls, a warm stove and Guinness from the tap.
Cycle to the Abbey of Postel
The Abbey of Postel is the perfect semi-lazy day trip if you’re staying in the city centre. Jump on a bicycle, follow autumn-leafed tow-paths besides a narrow canal and peddle over leafy trails and past fields, until the abbey looms up large. First, light a candle in the chapel for a safe return. Then, walk around the botanical garden – you can still buy homemade remedies for any ailment, from a dry cough to haemorrhoids. When all that’s done, park your lazy ass in the bar or on the terrace for an abbey beer with a platter of cheese cubes.
Dating from 1138, the Abbey of Postel was located on a crossroads of medieval roads, giving it an important role in traveller hospitality and poverty reduction. One particular distribution of alms mobilised so many people that the poor began to plunder the abbey. Eventually, the monks became impoverished themselves (happens when you keep giving), to such an extent that in 1943 they had to sell their brewing kettles. Since 1960, the beer has been brewed in Opwijk, almost a hundred kilometres away. It doesn’t, however, change the taste. Today, a few dozen monks remain.
Other cycling options
Use the cycling knots system to make your own route. See ‘hiking in Mol’ for further explanations. A few interesting spots to take a pause from the saddle:
- The windmill of Ezaart. Nearby retro café Iet Anders (something else) offers a nice insight into the living rooms of our grannies. (between knots 05 and 56)
- The water mill in the city centre. (between knots 55 en 56)
- 15 Kapellekes, aka the fifteen little chapels. Our version of Jesus’ Way of the Cross, which also inspired the painters discussed above. (between knots 04 and 51)
- Sas 6, cosy old café next to the canal. (between knots 95 and 96)
- Breyskenshoeve, best farm ice cream next to the canal. (between knots 95 and 96)
Slow down by the river Nete
A long time ago, thousands of sheep grazed the moors of Mol. The wool industry arose around the river Nete. This still explains the somewhat elongated shape of the city centre, stretched out along the water in which the spinners washed the wool. Likewise, the inhabitants’ nickname – sopweikers or soapy water soakers – derived from that past.
The arrival of the steam engine sparked a sort of revolution in 1830 when poor spinners destroyed the spinning jennys and threw them into the water. At that time, a quarter of Mol’s population worked in the wool industry. After 1945, the wool factories disappeared, but the street plan is still chock-full of references to that time. In the 1990s, the cultural centre ‘t Getouw (the loom) was built on the site of the largest wool factory.
Nowadays, the Nete is the ideal place to take your sweetheart for a gentle stroll.
Admire the light procession
According to our tourism office, Mol is the “world capital of light processions”. When the days start to shorten, wagons decorated with lights depart on both sides of the railroad tracks. Throughout the year, a bunch of associations build these wagons in themes that pull you away into dream worlds, fairy tales, science fiction, and also sometimes current events.
The tradition has survived since 1886 when the first torchlight procession took place to liven up the funfair of Ginderbuiten. At that time, farmers in De Kempen didn’t harvest twice because of the poor and infertile soils, so the winter de-facto started in September. In order to mentally prepare for the dark winter, citizens went around with lanterns.
What once started with hollowed-out sugar beets with candles – as a child I carved one of those at school -, with torches and paper lanterns, was replaced first by incandescent lamps, then by high-tech, computer-controlled light sources. The original organisation splintered into two. But what has not changed are the children on the street enthusiastically swinging their light sabres.
The light procession in Rozenberg takes place on the second Saturday of September, the one in Ginderbuiten on the last.
Fly over Mol
At the Keiheuvel, a small airport for pleasure planes and gliders just over the border with Balen, you can experience your maiden flight. As a journalist, I once had that privilege. From the plane, I saw Mol’s lake district, the zinc factory where I filled my nostrils with rubbish during a student job, and lots of swimming pools and trampolines in backyards. The Keiheuvel also has a mini-golf, a sprawling playground and many hiking trails (including the Walk of the Year 2020).
Drinking beers (“tanken”) in Mol’s party street
The Corbiestraat is the longest bar in Mol, a succession of pubs and kebab shacks. My favourite alternative bar, Café De Perel, is long gone (perhaps because the owners are lying on their lazy backs on some paradise beach, with the amounts of money I regularly left there in my teens and twenties). Wassalon (laundry salon) fills that gap adequately. It is a good spot for “tanken” (fueling up) whilst listening to everything from Pixies to My Bloody Valentine.
Don’t say: “I’m a bit tired, I’m going home early tonight.”
Do say: “Drink a bit faster, this is not a library.”