Tour 1: border triangle
- Length: 29.3 kilometres
- Uphill: 476 metres in altitude
- Pure travelling time: 2:30 hours
- Difficulty: Easy
Tour description
The Aachen Forest, known as "Öcher Bösch" in the local dialect, is the home turf of the locals. This is because the trails start right outside the city gates. The route takes you along forest paths and many fun sections of trail criss-crossing the Bösch. At kilometre 9 you reach the Dreiländereck, where there is an opportunity for a detour to the bike park (a few 100 metres). The observation tower offers the only panoramic view on the route. A detour to Belgium follows, then a long path leads directly along the border line to the former Westwall. At kilometre 19.8, you pass a war memorial where dozens of anti-tank barriers from the Second World War still lie in the forest.
Starting point: At the Bike Components bike shop in Aachen city centre (Neupforte 2d)
Highlights: The trail section at kilometre 5.2 winds downhill through gnarled trees and the big trail finale from kilometre 22 to the city limits.
Key points: No difficulties worth mentioning in terms of driving technique
Retreat: Waldrestaurant Gut Entenpfuhl (at km 15.9 follow the asphalt path straight ahead for 600 metres)
Tour 2: Dutch mountains
- Length: 55.8 kilometres
- Uphill: 855 metres in altitude
- Pure travelling time: 3:30 hours
- Difficulty: Medium
Tour description
No, Holland is not completely flat! At the southern tip, the land of windmills has managed to get hold of a mountain range by the skin of its teeth, which culminates at 323 metres at the Vaalserberg. From the border triangle, the tour follows the mini-mountain range westwards on flowing forest trails. Around the village of Epen, the wide, green landscape with grazing cows and farms is almost reminiscent of the Allgäu. The route here swings through the hills on countless trails. After a loop around Epen and Mechelen, you approach the Vaalserberg again. The route then follows the Belgian border back across the border triangle to Aachen.
Starting point: At the Bike Components bike shop in Aachen city centre (Neupforte 2d)
Highlights: Trail sections on the Vaalserberg along the Belgian border and the loop around Epen
Key points: No difficulties worth mentioning in terms of driving technique
Retreat: At kilometre 42, a stop at the Boscafé is a must. The rustic inn with its panoramic terrace is considered Holland's only mountain hut - and is usually very busy.
Tour 3: Eifelsteig
- Length: 58.6 kilometres
- Uphill: 460 metres in altitude
- Pure travelling time: 4 hours
- Difficulty: Easy
Tour description
The Eifelsteig is a 313 kilometre long-distance hiking trail between Kornelimünster and Trier. The tour leads across the northern foothills of the Eifel. To roll in, you follow the route of the disused Vennbahn railway up to kilometre 30, which leads into the mountains as a cycle path with a very moderate gradient. The turning point is the village of Roetgen. Fortunately, from now on it is (almost) all downhill. At the start, the Eifelsteig leads through the typical high moorland landscape of the Eifel and Hohes Venn, where you can look forward to a few trail branches. In Kornelimünster, it is worth taking a walk through the town centre with its historic buildings. At the end, return to Aachen along the old railway line.
Starting point: At the Bike Components bike shop in Aachen city centre (Neupforte 2d)
Highlights: The wooden footbridges at kilometre 34 through the raised bog
Key points: Apart from a long flight of steps towards the end of the Eifelsteig, there are no technical difficulties. Take care on the wooden footbridges in wet conditions!
Retreat: If you are already here, a must: Belgian fries in one of the snack bars at the border (follow the railway line at km 31 to the border).
Information about the Aachen region
The city
Germany's westernmost city is located directly in the border triangle where the borders of Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium meet. In addition to the 250,000 inhabitants of Aachen, there are over 50,000 students at the Technical University. The Romans played a major role in the founding of the city, settling around the beginning of our era near the warm springs that bubble up from the earth on the northern edge of the Eifel. To this day, Aachen is a recognised thermal spa town and can even call itself a "spa".
Arrival
Aachen can be reached quickly from Cologne via the A4 motorway heading west. From the Ruhr area, the A46 and A44 motorways lead towards Aachen. The main railway connection also runs via Cologne. Public buses run within the city, or you can take a bicycle. The distances are manageable. The cycle bus is an interesting alternative for bike tours in the Eifel (to Monschau or Simmerath, Sundays and public holidays from March to October). Distance from Cologne 70 km, from Dortmund 150 km and from Frankfurt/M. 260 km.
The bike area
Aachen lies at an altitude of 175 metres, embraced to the south by the 360-metre-high Aachen Forest. 200 metres in altitude, which the Aachen locals like to push away on their after-work laps. To the west, the Aachen Forest continues with the ridge of the Vaalserberg. At 323 metres, this is the highest mountain in the Netherlands (mainland), apart from the 877-metre-high volcano Mount Scenery in the Netherlands Antilles. The Vaalserberg is also home to the border triangle with its border obelisk and observation tower. Many kilometres of fun trails stretch along the border from here. Mostly flowing forest trails, garnished with the odd root passage. Further to the south and south-east of Aachen, the High Fens and the Eifel are further touring areas for locals. The High Fens are largely located on Belgian territory. In the Eifel, the small town of Monschau (40 km) is recommended as a starting point for tours. From there, the wildly winding Rur valley and its dam are tempting.
Accommodation
You can stay overnight in Aachen for every budget. There are youth hostels and hotels in every category. An overview can be found on the tourism association's website.
Tip: Innside Aachen, Sandkaulstraße 20, Tel. 0241/510370, melia.com. This modern city hotel is just a few minutes' walk from Aachen's market square. The highlight is the Sky Lounge restaurant on the roof terrace with a great view over the city centre.
Bike shop
Bike Components, Neupforte 2d in Aachen, Tel. 02405/450045, bike-components.de. The modern shop is an institution in Aachen! Tip: Every year in September, the crew organises the BC Testival in the border triangle. A perfect opportunity to get to know the locals and test bikes.
Bike park & riding technique
Just a few hundred metres from the border triangle, the trails of the official bike park wind their way through the Aachen forest. There are seven trails of varying degrees of difficulty, with and without obstacles, as well as a practice course. For legal reasons, the park can only be used by club members. Alternatively, you can purchase a guest card for 12 euros, which can be booked on site using a smartphone and QR code. Dirt bikers will also find a pump track at the children's and youth centre in Aachen. All information can be found on the website of the local club Geländefahrrad Aachen: gelaendefahrrad-aachen.de
Riding technique courses and guided tours
Mirijam Buhr and Margit Walmrath, info: bikeschule-aachen.de
Map
Compass map 3324 "Aachen/Dreiländereck", scale 1:70000
General information
Aachen Tourist Info, Friedrich-Wilhelm-Platz, 52062 Aachen, phone 0241/1802950, aachen-tourismus.de
Aachen scene highlights
Food and drink
Numerous cafés await you in Aachen's pedestrianised zone. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, you can also stroll through the weekly market. If you take a look in the shop windows around the cathedral, you will inevitably come across what is probably Aachen's biggest culinary celebrity: Printen. This is a type of gingerbread that is mainly sold in the form of small bars, with or without chocolate icing. There are also herbal varieties that are used to flavour hearty sauces in regional cuisine. We tried out these addresses:
Am Knipp: probably the oldest traditional restaurant in Aachen. You can enjoy regional dishes among all kinds of antiques and bric-a-brac. With beer garden! Bergdriesch 3, Tel. 0241/33168, amknipp.de
Homeburgers: spectacular burgers with a US flavour. Nobody gets up hungry here! Komphausbadstr. 25, Tel. 0241/99775463, homeburgers.de
Fritwerk: Star chefs are said to have been brought to their knees by these deep-fried jacket potatoes. Speciality: Canadian-style poutine (fries with various toppings). Holzgraben 4, frittenwerk.com
... and afterwards
The party epicentre of the student city is located in the Pontviertel, north of the old town. One pub follows the next along Pontstrasse and Milchstrasse. The Tangente, for example, has cult status, where a DJ plays every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 9 pm. The Freiraum club is well worth a visit. On two levels, there's black music upstairs and electronica beats downstairs. The Molkerei and the alternative-inspired Café Kittel are also popular with locals. Asian food at Mama & Papa Tai. And if it's getting late again, grab a snack at Kathy's Frietnesse!
The report: Aachen region - boundless trail fun
It is always very entertaining to watch tourists in a selfie frenzy. The virus has long since infected people's egos everywhere and around the world. Social media platforms are overflowing with self-portraits. Me in front of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Me in the beer garden next to the giant schnitzel. Or just me: Me in three countries at the same time. Admittedly, this constellation of borderlines is not to be found on every corner. And especially not as easily accessible as on the Vaalserberg near Aachen. And okay, the border triangle is the region's premium sensation. That's why we stand dutifully in the queue with our bikes and watch the people in front of us being silly. Maybe we can still learn something. Or the people behind us! Thanks to the wheelbases of our bikes, it's possible to cross national borders without having to do any major gymnastics such as flickflack or splits. Markus and Thorsten are in Germany and the Netherlands at the same time, Mirijam and Tim are half in Germany and half in Belgium. Unfortunately, there's not enough space for Robin and he has to stay at home behind the border stone. Bad luck!
So, that's enough of the nonsense. We're not here for popular entertainment, but to explore the local trails. And they are also an attraction. Or at least an "Amüsemang", as they call a great pleasure in the local dialect Öcher Platt. "Let's make a detour to the bike park before we continue the tour," suggests Mirijam and pedals off. We are travelling through the Aachen Forest, known by the locals as Öcher Bösch, on the ridge of which the border lines run. Almost inevitably, the locals make a flying visit to their neighbours somewhere on every trail loop. Usually completely unnoticed. After a few metres, we arrive at the wooden tower that serves as the starting ramp for the park's two main trails. Opened in 2013, bikers can now test their skills on five trails that have been built. A success for the efforts of the local association Geländefahrrad Aachen, in which Mirijam and Tim are heavily involved. As a typical recreational area in a large city, the Öcher Bösch naturally harbours a certain potential for conflict between the usual suspects, mainly bikers and pedestrians. "We've already achieved a lot, which we're proud of," says Mirijam, who runs a bike school alongside her work for the association. "But we have to be very careful on the paths outside the park." Mirijam also knows that plans are already being made to signpost MTB tours in the Aachen region. Following the example of the Dutch, who have already marked out many hiking trails for bikers on the back of the Vaalserberg. Perhaps because it is their only and therefore much-loved mountain?
Aachen: the MTB territory of the Bike Components employees
But before we set off for the dizzying heights of the Dutch Alps (irony mode off), we explore a few "Öcher" trail delicacies. Markus and Thorsten in particular, both employees of the nationally renowned Aachen bike shop Bike Components, are equipped with extremely research-ready enduro bikes for the mission. True to the motto: you never know where an undiscovered trail might suddenly branch off. We follow the whimsical root paths along the Belgian border. Near the former Köpfchen customs office, we are reminded of times when even the thought of an open border between the two countries was a criminal offence. Dozens of anti-tank barriers lie scattered in the forest, concrete pyramids, each the size of a washing machine. It is one of many memorials along the Westwall, which was built in the Second World War to defend Germany. Formerly a bulwark of madness over 600 kilometres long, it is now being reclaimed by nature, block by block. At the Pelzerturm, whose foundations can only be guessed at today, we reach the highest point of the city forest, 358 metres above sea level. The last trail down into Aachen's student quarter gets the suspension forks pumping again. Thorsten still remembers the city's bike pioneers who used to fly over jumps with names like "Koffer" (suitcase) and "Handtasche" (handbag), which were still illegal back then. The trail ends very close to the student neighbourhood, where Markus guides us directly to one of the lively street bars. These are the advantages of an urban bike area.
The next day. The Dutch mountains are Robin's favourite area. Yes, really: mountains! A narrow border corridor between Belgium and Germany ensures that the 323 metre high Vaalserberg is still on Dutch territory by the skin of its teeth. At least one corner of its summit is. When I meet my two guides, I can't help but grin. Robin, a passionate gravel biker in Lycra on his purist hardtail, next to Markus in a baggy outfit with a fat enduro bike. Is it really the same route that the two of them have in mind? It remains exciting. Once again we pass the border triangle at the start, but today we quickly ride past the tourist hustle and bustle and straight into the trail paradise.
Heading to Alpe d'Huez in the Netherlands with momentum
Along the border, this time the dividing line between Belgium and the Netherlands, we work our way westwards over the ridge. Metres of altitude and trails in Holland? My head says: "That can't be right." My legs reply: "Damn, shift into a lower gear at last." Robin, who is very familiar with the racing scene, provides me with information. "The epicentre of the Dutch mountain bike scene is located around the village of Epen," explains the local. "The Amstel Gold Race road classic is often decided on the Kruisberg and Camerig ramps." The notorious stretches are so steep that some riders simply fall off their bikes if they haven't changed gear in time. This doesn't happen to us, but some of the trails do provide surprises. They swing through the hills seemingly harmlessly at first, only to unpack the hammer around the next corner. Marvellous. The open landscape with lush green meadows and black and white chequered cows even reminds us a little of the Allgäu.
On the way back, we head back up the Camerig with a vengeance, like the Dutch Alpe d'Huez. And I'm not joking, as Robin and Markus assure me. We take a break at the legendary Boscafé in a small forest clearing. Reason enough for a final selfie in front of the only mountain hut in Holland.
