3 beautiful hills in La Doyenne

Liège-Bastogne-Liège marks the end of a Spring filled with Classics. The oldest among all Classics takes on 11 hills. 2 weeks ago, we went to explore our 3 favourite hills.

Côte de Wanne opens the final of La Doyenne. With 90km to go, the riders start a 3.6km climb. They quickly leave Grand-Halleux behind and start this unpredictable climb. Steep sections, downhill, false flat, the Wanne has it all! The view at the beginning of the climb is very nice, but does another small village pop up in front of you? The steepest parts are coming up! If you’re not a KOM-hunter, stop at the T-junction just before the forest. Turn around and enjoy the view. The forest is not very steep and the switchback is always a good place for some great photos!

Maybe the most beautiful climb in the area. You climb from Ruy to Andrimont, but then you are only halfway! Col du Rosier climbs between the woods. When we explored it 2 weeks ago, it had unexpectedly snowed. The view was magical. Do not miss the legendary U-turn. When you round the first part, you can already see the end of the second part, but still, the percentage go smoothly towards 10%. Have you overestimated yourself? Then there will be another 3 difficult kilometres ahead of you… Shortly after the U-turn, you come across another village, where you see the beautiful, old houses of Andrimont. Don’t quit now, because the slope will ease a bit pretty soon. Make no mistake! The road still goes up for another 2km, but you have already survived the steepest parts!

The Redoute reminds us of those chalked 'Gilbert's kilometres on end. Lines of fans along the way (except for 2020 and 2021 of course ...). Passing the Redoute a week before LBL? Then you see dozens of mobile homes parked. So many families who want to experience the passage live. The secretive profile of the Redoute also contributes to that magical feeling. Many only remember the super steep part where the road bends, until they climb it themselves. The Redoute regularly climbs above 10%, even just before the top (the T-junction), the percentages run up to 13%. Auwch!