Hockai-Fagne du Fraineu-Baraque Michel-Hoëgne-Hockai 26 km

Beautiful hike in the High Fens/Hautes Fagnes/Hohes Venn nature reserve between Hockai and Baraque Michel. The hike offers fens, woods, waterfalls, streams, boardwalks, wide views, ancient border stones, rocks and much more. The hike is on mostly unpaved forest tracks, paths, and boardwalks. The paths can be on rocky uneven terrain with tree roots, and sometimes muddy underground, and waterproof hiking shoes are highly recommended. You can find something to eat or drink on Baraque Michel and in Hockai. At the start there is parking along the road.
From the start at the church in Hockai you walk through the eastern part of the village and then into the woods in the direction of the Lonlou area. In the woods, the path turns muddy. You make a small detour to the Croix Delvoie with an ancient Prussian border stone, and then return to the path taking you to Fagne de Lonlou. After a while you turn right towards the Fagne de Fraineu, a beautiful fen with wide views in the direction of Francorchamps. You cross this fen on boardwalks and arrive to the Tros Marets river. You walk parallel to the stream on a small muddy path until you get to another path taking you back across the fen between the Fagne de Fraineu and Fagne de Setai. At the other side you cross woods and then descend to the Hoëgne River. You follow this river upstream on a small and sometimes muddy path besides the winding river. The river is a confluence of the Ruisseau de Polleur and Ruisseau de la Baraque, and you soon pass the confluence and continue upstream along the Polleur, partly on a broader track. A smaller track takes you to a bridge across the Polleur and you then continue to a forest road crossing the Polleur again at a shelter. Here you steeply climb a rocky hill to a path which follows the Polleur valley between fir trees, roots and rocks. Some cables are provided at points the path takes you close to the steep rock face. After a while you get close to the Polleur on muddy paths with occasional boardwalks. You keep following the Polleur on the Fagne de Polleur. The boardwalks take you close to Mont Rigi. You cross the N68 somewhat west of Mont Rigi on your way to the les Wés fen. Here you have wide views across Fagne Wallonne, Fagne des Deux-Séries and the Helle valley. You walk to a path on the former Prussian-Belgian border, and from there on that path to Baraque Michel, passing a Prussian-Belgian border stone and the Croix du Prieur. On the Baraque Michel, there is a popular restaurant, another border stone, a monument to Albert Bonjean and a chapel. From here you take an elevated path through the Fagne Herbôfaye, passing several border markers. The path continues as La Vêcquée, an old Gallo-Roman road and border of the prince-bishopric of Liège, and more recent between Prussia and Belgium. The straight path takes you in the direction of Hockai, and passes several border markers and the Croix des Fiancés. After almost 4 km on the path you turn right on a forest road taking you in the direction of Belleheid. From this forest road you takes paths taking you down into the Hoëgne valley past the Belvédère de la Hoëgne. When you arrive to the river, you follow the popular path upstream past several bridges and waterfalls until you get to the bridge across the river where La Vêcquée crosses it. You ascend a bit and then follow the recently paved RAVeL cycling path back into Hockai where you started your walk.