At three locations along the Ypres Salient you can explore the landscape of 100 years ago via entry points. At each of these free entry points you will find an interesting film about the local war story, information panels and a walking leaflet.
From each entry point several loop-shaped hiking trails depart through the fascinating, often authentic war landscapes. If you want to visit several sites, it is best to take a whole day.
Entry Point North
Walking brochure Entry Point North9.2 Mb(pdf)
Hoeve Klein Zwaanhof
1/4 - 15/11: open from 10h-17h45
16/11 - 31/3: open from 10am-4:45pm
The northern entry point serves the front arch from the Ypres-Yser Canal, in Boezinge. The location is the former home of the reconstruction farmstead Klein Zwaanhof along Kleine Poezelstraat. This farmstead was located roughly in the middle of the northern part of the front arc. A free app offers a wealth of historical information as you explore this piece of much-discussed landscape.
Three topics are covered at the entry point:
1. The formation and evolution of the front lines.
A film shows the war events through historical footage, the formation of the front lines in the area and attention to the relics, monuments and cemeteries still present. Finally, you get concrete information about the walking routes from the entry point through the war zone.
2. The archaeology of war
More than 200 bodies of fallen soldiers and thousands of archaeological finds were recovered during the development of the industrial site. At the educational site Yorkshire Trench & Dugout (250 meters from the entry point), an authentic trench and its surroundings, with underground shelters, were restored. In the farm itself, one of the earliest German bunkers (Fortin 17) is being reconstructed. An overview of the sites of all bodies, materials and photos of recent archaeological investigations in the immediate vicinity illustrate how important this northern battlefield was
3. The poets of the Salient
The testimony of poets and writers is very important for anyone who wants to delve into the events of the war. Famous poets such as Ernst Jünger (D), Francis Ledwidge (IRE), Edmund Blunden (GB), John McCrae (Can), Robert d'Humières (F), Hed Wynn and David Jones (Wales) are given their place in this front area. During the walking tour to Yorkshire Trench you will meet their portraits and quotes from their work.
Entry Point East
Walking brochure Entry Point East7.5 Mb(pdf)
Located next to the Hooge Crater Museum
permanently accessible
This explains the eastern part of the Ypres Arch, on both sides of the Menin Road, from the Zonnebeekseweg to Hill 62. The Hooge Crater Museum, housed in a memorial chapel, is right next to the rebuilt castle Kasteelhof 't Hooghe, and opposite the impressive British cemetery Hooge Crater Cemetery. From here, a number of walking loops take you to Bellewaerde Ridge (2.5 km), Hill 62 (6 km) and Sanctuary Wood (8 km).
Two themes are covered at the entry point.
1. The formation of the front and events to the east of the Ypres Salient.
A film with unique historical footage shows how the unique, still intact landscape relics on the hill 'Bellewaarde Ridge' came about, and illustrates the chaotic front formation in the area, highlighting all relics, monuments and cemeteries.
2. The castle parks of the Ypres arc.
Before the war, the outlying area around Ypres was dotted with 45 castles and mansions surrounded by beautiful parks. During the war, almost all of these were destroyed. Today, many traces can still be found, although very different in nature. These traces are indicated through a number of information panels about the castle parks, before the war, during the destruction and today. With a clear walking map and a leaflet, you can discover it all for yourself.
Entry Point South
Walking brochure Entry Point South7.1 Mb(pdf)
Provincial Domain De Palingbeek
permanently accessible
The entry point is the gateway to the unique war landscape "The Bluff", the Mill Forest, and the famous Hill 60 site, the Caterpillar crater site (domain De Vierlingen), the beautiful Larch Wood Cemetery and surroundings. Here you get information about the entire southern part of the front arc, from Hill 60 (Wervikstraat Zillebeke) to Sint-Elooi.
Two topics are covered at the entry point.
1. The formation and evolution of the Southern Salient.
A film illustrates, based on archive footage, how the bucolic landscape in the southern Ypres Salient was transformed into one of the most dramatic war landscapes in our country, with many, large and small craters and the typical small cemeteries. From here, you are invited to explore the unique witness area through various hiking trails.
2. The underground war
Between Bellewaarde and Sint-Elooi lie numerous relics of the mine war that was fought there between 1915 and 1917. These include the sites of Sint-Elooi, The Bluff, The Caterpillar, Hill 60, Sanctuary Wood, Hoge and Bellewaerde. Through the film and the information panels, the visitor gets more interpretation of this spectacular warfare, which was so typical of the First World War.
