Escapardenne Lee Trail - Stage 1

The starting point for the ESCAPARDENNE Lee TRAIL is the train station of the town of Ettelbruck. As the name suggests, Ettelbruck has strong connections with the bridge that crosses the Alzette over the ancient "Great Way" linking Luxembourg to Liege. The latter was probably also the crossing point of an old Roman road.

Erpeldange village is located on the floodplain of the Sauer and is closely linked. The stream has always formed an integral part of the daily life of Erpeldange's residents, imposing its constraints but at the same offering inhabitants numerous benefits. The Sauer: • supplied the hayfields with water and nutrients; • worked the water-mill, thus allowing the production of flour, oil and electricity (from 1921 onwards) • provided food for the village populations, namely through salmon fishing at the foot of the mill dam.

Despite the rather unpleasant sight and smell, it is also part of the scenery, human activity's mark on the landscape. The advantages of the waste treatment process used at Fridhaff are, on the one hand, a considerable reduction of the volume that goes in to landfill and on the other, an 80% reduction of the gas emissions given off during landfill operations.

The "Predigstuhl" (chair) viewpoint is one of the historic tourist attractions along the North path, as evidenced by the cast-iron sign, probably made at the beginning of the 20th Century.

Yet another new landscape element. Wind turbines are more and more present on the Ardennes plateau, proof of the transition from the oil era to that of renewable energy.

Large, busy roads are a part of the landscape that are often seen negatively However, modern roads are also elements that structure today's landscape, in the same way that rural roads did in the past. Furthermore, these allow you to get to the countryside: the large roads take us into a region and allow us to discover its features.

On approaching Michelau village, on leaving the wood, hikers get a magnificent view of medieval Boursheid castle.

The historic village of Michelau is protected from the floods of the Upper Sauer situated on a bulge in the riverbank created by an ancient fluvial terrace through which three streams run. At the foot of the village, the Upper Sauer valley widens and gives way to vast expanses of wet meadow. This implantation is probably the origin of the name of Michelau: Au or Aue meaning floodplain or meadows surrounded by water in German.

From Ettelbruck, Michelau is the first train station we find on the Northern railway line (towards Troisvierges and Gouvy), inaugurated in 1867. It contributed to the development of Michelau village.

The view from the top of the Gringlee opens up over one of the most beautiful stretches of the Sauer: the action of the water has deeply eroded and carved the rock.