For a few weeks in April and May each year, the hyacinths adorning the Hallerbos forest on the edges of the Belgian capital turn the sloped grounds into a beautiful blanket of blue.
From Saturday 12 April, this year's bluebell season will officially begin, with the relaunch of the regular shuttle bus service to the forest. However, visitors might need to wait a few more days to see the blue carpet in full bloom.
"There are already bluebells in bloom on the plateaus. The flanks of the valleys follow eight to 12 days later," Pierre Kestemont told The Brussels Times. On Thursday, he said that the hyacinths were still green, with only bluebell leaves, and that the plateaus are not yet fully in bloom.
"They still look green/blue-purple. Quite a few bluebells still need to start blooming. It will only become a blue-purple carpet when the flower stems have grown and stick out above the leaves. The entire process takes several days."
Credit: Belga/ Nicolas Maeterlinck
Despite the warm weather this Saturday, Kestemont reiterates that visitors should not expect a sea of blue, but that it is still a good time to go regardless. "There will not be a full bloom this Saturday. The combination wood anemones (in full bloom)-bluebells (starting) is lovely at the moment."
The bluebells don't stick around for long, so it is worth going sooner rather than later. "The bloom lasts as long as sunlight reaches the flowers directly. In recent years, this has been until the end of April. But it's different every year."
Free shuttle bus
Visitors can take advantage of the free shuttle bus on offer over the next few weeks (on 12, 13, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27 April and 1 May), which runs between the Stationsplein in Halle and Parking 2 (forest museum) every half hour from 09:00 to 19:00 on Saturdays and every 20 minutes on Sundays and 1 May. In Halle, there is also a stop at the Welkomstlaan (where there is a long parking lane).
For those aged 65 and over, pregnant women and other visitors with reduced mobility, there is a separate, smaller, free shuttle bus every hour on the days mentioned above which takes them from Parking 2 to the Achtdreef.
The annual 'Hyacinth jogging' (Hyacintentrail) will take place in the afternoon on Saturday 26 April. Everyone is welcome.
The forest is free to enter and only accessible from 05:00 to 23:00 on the official paths. The car parks and temporary toilets are also free. There are no catering facilities.
For more information on the free shuttle service to the forest, see here.
Thousands of people trek to Halle every year to see the blue carpets. Credit: Belga/ Nicolas Maeterlinck
