4.8 km | 5.8 km-effort
On the Lesse riverbanks, near the ford called “Petit-Hy”, you can see a flat, horizontally-placed stone. This 9th century wheelwright's stone was used until 1950 as a work surface for traditionally-made wheels for stagecoaches, carriages, carts, wheelbarrows and even cannon carriages. A skilled worker, known as the wheelwright would put a wooden wheel, made by a carpenter, on top of the stone. In the meantime, the steel band that was going to be used to circle the wheel was heated until it was red hot. The red hot and dilated steel was placed with the help of a mallet round the wheel's edge, then water was poured over it so that it would cool off, which would make the metal band contract and fit tightly on the wheel. As it took a lot of water to cool the steel off, it made sense to put the wheelwright's stone near the river.
Walking
Randonnées de la Maison du Tourisme Famenne - Ardenne Ourthe & Lesse PRO
