The Baraque Michel (german: Michelshütte) is a locality in the municipality

Jalhay Jalhay (; wa, Djalhé) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 Jalhay had a total population of 7,953. The total area is 107.75 km² which gives a population density of 74 inhabitants per ...

, in the

High Fens The High Fens (german: Hohes Venn; french: Hautes Fagnes; nl, Hoge Venen), which were declared a nature reserve in 1957, are an upland area, a plateau region in Liège Province, in the east of Belgium and adjoining parts of Germany, between the ...

Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...

. Before the annexation of the Eastern Cantons by Belgium in 1919, it was the highest point of

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

.Border markers of the former Belgian-Prussian border
/ref> Now it is the third highest point at , after the nearby

Signal de Botrange Signal de Botrange is the highest point in Wallonia and in Belgium, located in the '' High Fens'' (''Hautes Fagnes'' in French, ''Hohes Venn'' in German, ''Hoge Venen'' in Dutch), at . It is the top of a broad plateau and a road crosses the sum ...

() and the Weißer Stein (). The Baraque itself is an

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

and the starting point of many excursions. The Baraque Michel was founded between 1811 and 1813 by Michel Schmitz, of Herbiester (a hamlet close to

), already as an inn, but also as refuge for stray travellers: a bell was sounded there during fog, which allowed the rescue of more than one hundred people during the 19th century. The establishment was also used as relay for the

mail coach A mail coach is a stagecoach that is used to deliver mail. In Great Britain, Ireland, and Australia, they were built to a General Post Office-approved design operated by an independent contractor to carry long-distance mail for the Post Office. M ...

es, that connected the two then

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

n towns of

Eupen Eupen (, ; ; formerly ) is the capital of German-speaking Community of Belgium and is a city and municipality in the Belgian province of Liège, from the German border ( Aachen), from the Dutch border (Maastricht) and from the " High Fens" ...

and

Malmedy Malmedy (; german: Malmünd, ; wa, Måmdiy) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On January 1, 2018, Malmedy had a total population of 12,654. The total area is 99.96 km2 which gives a populati ...

. The direct connection was partly through Belgian territory, along the current N68 road. Several rivers of Belgium, part of the basin of

Vesdre The Vesdre ( French, ) or Weser ( German, ) and Vesder (Dutch, ) is a river in Liège Province, eastern Belgium. A few kilometres of the upper reaches also flow through the German municipality Roetgen and form part of the Belgian–German border. ...

, take their source in the vicinity. The principal ones are

Gileppe The Gileppe is a river in Belgium with a length of about . It is a left tributary of the Vesdre. Its source is in the High Fens of eastern Belgium. The Gileppe flows through an artificial lake ('' Lac de la Gileppe''), built in 1867–78 and enlar ...

Hoëgne The Hoëgne is a river in Belgium, a left tributary of the Vesdre. Its source is in the High Fens of eastern Belgium, near the Signal de Botrange Signal de Botrange is the highest point in Wallonia and in Belgium, located in the ''High Fens'' ( ...

and Helle.

References

External links

* Mountains under 1000 metres Mountains and hills of the Ardennes (Belgium) Mountains and hills of the Eifel Mountains and hills of Liège Province Buildings and structures in Liège Province Jalhay {{Liege-geo-stub