The best hiking routes in Parc naturel régional Scarpe-Escaut

Parc naturel r gional Scarpe-Escaut is a low-lying, highly modified landscape on the French-Belgian border, shaped by its industrial past and river valleys. Unlike typical dry forests, this park is defined by its dampness, featuring a mix of marshy plains, canals, and broad deciduous woodlands. You will walk through a patchwork of reclaimed mining areas, where former slag heaps have been colonized by birch trees, contrasting with the flat, wet meadows of the Scarpe and Escaut valleys.

Underfoot, the terrain varies from paved towpaths and firm agricultural tracks to soft, muddy paths through alluvial forests and damp peat bogs. In the wetter sections, wooden boardwalks help you cross the marshiest ground. The landscape is flat to gently undulating, with the only real elevation coming from the steep, dark slopes of the old slag heaps, which now serve as vantage points over the surrounding plains.

In late spring, particularly around May, the damp woodlands are filled with fresh green foliage, while the marshy ditches and ponds are active with birdlife. This is a working, inhabited countryside where quiet nature reserves sit directly alongside small villages and active farmland. While the main lakeside paths and former mining sites near towns attract local walkers, the deeper forest tracks and quiet canal banks remain peaceful.