Majestic lakes, ponds teeming with fish, rivers, swimming places and streams: the Ardennes lack nothing to attract and delight lovers of water-based activities.
Slipping their moorings and hauling in their jibs, devotees of sailing know very well that the Vieilles Forges and Bairon lakes are not just for Sunday trippers and that they offer plenty of thrills for experienced sailors. To be sure the water is usually calm, but there are always windy gusts to delight racing boats and windsurfers.
If you feel you have in you something of the pioneer, set off on an expedition like a North American trapper. On the banks of the Semoy push your canoe out into the water and paddle round the bends. You will almost certainly come across an angler flyfishing for trout.
Looking for less sport and more peace and quiet? Moor by one of the swimming spots: the lakeside beaches offer a host of opportunities for a quiet swim and a long session of doing nothing very much at all.
To explore the majestic landscapes of the Meuse valley in peace and independently, take a relaxing break for a few days, a weekend or a full week on one of the riverboats which you can hire without having to take out a special licence.