Gravel classics: Gent-Wevelgem

Ieper
gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (55)
Are you also looking forward to the spring classics each and every year? You've seen it all on your road bike? Why not try our gravel alternative.
Gent-Wevelgem is an international WorldTour cycling classic that attracts the best riders every year. The wind and the hills, with the notorious Kemmelberg, make the race hard. The race follows a unique route through the area that was the setting of the First World War. This is why the subtitle ‘In Flanders Fields’ was added to the classics name.
Our gravel alternative includes the Kemmelberg and Plugstreets, but also loads of unknown gravel and dirt roads in the beautiful Flanders Fields region. Drenched in history. We invited our friends at RAW Cycling Magazine to cover this route for us. This is how they experienced it. Recommended from the end of April until early October.

The route step by step

0KM

Start

Ieper
cycling Gent-Wevelgem (c) RAW cycling magazine (18)

Ready to roll

We gathered in the beautiful city of Ypres. After a good night of sleep and a hearty breakfast, it was time to put on our kit and head out there.

cycling Gent-Wevelgem (c) RAW cycling magazine (10)

Or do we grab some more food at the market before we leave?

The start location was the Grote Markt, and knowing that on Saturday mornings there is a local market, we got a last dose of sugar before the start.

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (4)
2KM

Leaving Ypres

We distanced ourselves from the city along a small path running parallel to the local canal. Immediately afterwards, we hit the first of the many open fields we would ride past during the day.

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (54)
gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (43)
20KM

Towards beautiful Westouter

The route headed in western direction until we reached the border with France.

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25KM

Our offroad alternative to Baneberg ain't exactly a walk in the park

From Westouter, we started a mellow climb that then turned into a technical trail to reach the top of the Banenberg. As we hit the tarmac again, we saw a dozen riders climbing the hill non-stop from the paved side, which is included in the Flandrien Challenge.

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We feel so tiny in this landscape

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (14)
27KM

A coffee stop before we continue

A coffee is all we wanted, but we saw “Dame Blanche” on the menu and we had to try it. Vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and
melted chocolate: a boost for the morale.

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (20)
45KM

An offroad approach to Kemmelberg

The Kemmelberg can be approached from several roads and, in our case, unpaved paths. The first half was a natural path with moderate gradients and a dense forest in front of us. “Where does the famous cobbled part start?”, we wondered.
We hit the section covered by the trees and, after turning right next to the French Cemetery & Ossuary, the wall appeared in front of us. Only two hundred meters separated us from the top. But that ramp, with a gradient well over 15%, was a hard one. Even with a gravel gear ratio.

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (49)
45KM
gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (52)
47KM
Heuvelland

A great cycling themed bar at the foot of the Kemmelberg. Perfect for your pre-ride coffee or post-ride beer. Or maybe try the local speciality: Picon.

This bar is owned by former amateur cyclist Pieter and is home to the cycling club 'De Vlammers'. Inside you'll find an original jersey of former Belgian Champion, Herman Van Springel. And they show all the cycling races on television.

Definitely worth a stop!

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (25)
52KM

On our way to Plugstreets

Once we resumed our ride, we were more than halfway back to Ypres. The area we were riding at that moment was near one of the frontlines of the war. In particular, we were looking forward to riding the different Plugstreets featured in this route, as we were aware of their meaning and the history behind them.

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55KM

Plugstreets

These gravel paths are spread a couple of kilometers north of the small village of Ploegsteert. They were named this way because the British soldiers based in the area were unable to pronounce the name of the village.


There are three Plugstreets (Hill 63, Christmas Truce, The Catacombs), each of them with their own share of wartime history. We briefly stopped at the Christmas Truce memorial. According to history, on December 24th, 1914, the Allied forces and the Germans put their attacks on hold to play a football match in no-man’s land.


The plugstreets were included for the first time in the Gent-Wevelgem parcours in 2017. We did them in the opposite order compared to the 2024 edition of the race.

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (31)
gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (58)
80KM

Palingbeek - don't look back now

As the sun kept shining hard, we appreciated taking shelter in the green 'De Palingbeek' domain. We entered the park along a cobbled road that we would follow for the next couple of kilometers. Once we reached the other side, we linked it with a couple of nice gravel paths.

gravel Gent Wevelgem (c) RAW Cycling Magazine (39)
90KM

Back in Ypres

While the Mening Gate was under renovation, we could still sense the historical importance of that landmark, with the poppy seed flowers and messages laying on the ground next to it.

We didn’t start in Ghent, and we didn’t finish in Wevelgem, but this off-road version of the professional race contains the main highlights and spices it with some varied gravel paths, turning it into the go-to route for anyone interested in the history behind the race.

91KM

Finish


READY TO GO?

So you’ve decided to tackle our gravel Gent-Wevelgem route? Get ready here!

cycling Gent-Wevelgem (c) RAW cycling magazine (12)
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It is the unofficial capital of Flanders Fields, site of numerous battles during the First World War. The “City of Peace” still commemorates these events daily, at the In Flanders Fields Museum and under its Menin Gate memorial.

Ypres

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