The Ourthe (; Walloon: ''Aiwe d' Oûte'') is a long river in the Ardennes in

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 ...

(

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 ...

). It is a right tributary to the river

Meuse The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a t ...

. The Ourthe is formed at the confluence of the ''Ourthe Occidentale'' (Western Ourthe) and the ''Ourthe Orientale'' (Eastern Ourthe), west of

Houffalize Houffalize (; german: Hohenfels; wa, Oufalijhe) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium.Sven Vrielinck: De territoriale indeling van België 1795-1963 Volume 1. Universitaire Pers Leuven 2000. page 48 ...

. The source of the ''Ourthe Occidentale'' is near

Libramont-Chevigny Libramont-Chevigny (; wa, Libråmont) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. On 1 February 2015, the municipality, which covers 177.86 km², had 10,955 inhabitants, giving a population density of 61,5 ...

, in the Belgian province

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

. The source of the ''Ourthe Orientale'' is near

Gouvy Gouvy (; wa, Gouvi) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. On 1 January 2007 the municipality, which covers 165.11 km2, had 4,780 inhabitants, giving a population density of 29 inhabitants per km2. T ...

, also in the Belgian province Luxembourg, close to the border with

. After the confluence of the two Ourthes at

Lake Nisramont Lake Nisramont (French: ''lac de Nisramont'') is located in Wallonia in the south-east of Belgium on the river Ourthe in the municipality of La Roche-en-Ardenne, province of Luxembourg. It is named after Nisramont, a village near the lake. The ...

, the Ourthe flows roughly in north-west and later in northern direction. Near

Noiseux Noiseux ( wa, Nwezeu) is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Somme-Leuze, located in the province of Namur, Belgium. Near Noiseux flows the Ourthe The Ourthe (; Walloon: ''Aiwe d' Oûte'') is a long river in the Ardenn ...

it flows for a short distance through the province of Namur. After the municipality of

Durbuy Durbuy (; wa, Derbu) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. The total area is 156.61 km², consisting of the following districts: Barvaux, Bende, Bomal, Borlon, Durbuy, Grandhan, Heyd, Izier ...

it flows into

Liège Province Liège (; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is the easternmost province of the Wallonia region of Belgium. Liège Province is the only Belgian province that has borders with three countries. It borders (clockwise from the north) the Du ...

. Eventually it flows into the river Meuse in the city of Liège. The most important tributaries of the river Ourthe are the Amblève and the

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. ...

. Towns along the Ourthe are

(Ourthe Orientale), La Roche-en-Ardenne,

Hotton Hotton (; wa, Houton) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. The municipality lies 12 kilometers from Marche-en-Famenne in the Ardennes and has more than 5,400 inhabitants. The river Ourthe crosses Hotton. ...

Hamoir Hamoir (; wa, Hamwer) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On 1 January 2006, Hamoir had a total population of 3,592. The total area is 27.80 km2 which gives a population density of 129 inhabitants per k ...

and

Esneux Esneux (; wa, Esneu) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 Esneux had a total population of 13,072. The total area is which gives a population density of 384 inhabitants per km². The muni ...

. Near

, the caves of Hotton are located. In these caves runs a

subterranean river A subterranean river is a river that runs wholly or partly beneath the ground surface – one where the riverbed does not represent the surface of the Earth. It is distinct from an aquifer, which may flow like a river but is contained within a per ...

which flows in the Ourthe. Near

lies the Roche aux Faucons. This is a vantage point located on a high cliff, above a meander of the Ourthe. In the south, near Marcourt, there is another high cliff where the Hermitage and chapel of Saint-Thibaut is located. Around 1820,

William I of the Netherlands William I (Willem Frederik, Prince of Orange-Nassau; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was a Prince of Orange, the King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg. He was the son of the last Stadtholder of the Dutch Republic, who went ...

demanded the creation of the Ourthe channel. Via the Ourthe, this channel would have connected the Meuse basin with the Moselle basin. Belgium's independence in 1830 put an end to these plans. The main remnant of these works is the unfinished channel tunnel in Bernistap (province of Luxembourg).

Gallery

Confluence of the two ourthes.JPG, Confluence of the ''Ourthe Occidentale'' (Western Ourthe) and the ''Ourthe Orientale'' (Eastern Ourthe) La_Roche.jpg, The river in La Roche-en-Ardenne Ourthe333.JPG, The Ourthe near Beffe in autumn Ourthe beffe.JPG, Again the Ourthe near Beffe in autumn Taxodium distichum (Rendeux) JPG1.jpg, The Robert Lenoir Arboretum near

Rendeux Rendeux (; wa, Rindeu) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Luxembourg, Belgium. On 1 January 2007 the municipality, which covers 68.83 km2, had 2,274 inhabitants, giving a population density of 33 inhabitants per km2. ...

alongside the Ourthe Hotton JPG01.jpg, The river at

, and a view of the city church Sy2.jpg, Rocks at the Ourthe near Sy 0 Hamoir - L'Ourthe (2).jpg, Bridge across the river at

20100705 combain pont02.JPG, The Ourthe flowing through

Comblain-au-Pont Comblain-au-Pont (; wa, Comblin-å-Pont) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. As of 1 January 2014 Comblain-au-Pont had a total population of 6,754. The total area is 22.68 km² which gives a populati ...

Esneux JPG01.jpg, View at

and its bridge across the river Lock on Ourthe canal, Liège.jpg, Lock on the Ourthe canal that runs parallel to the lower part of the river, Liège Rivers of the Ardennes (Belgium) Rivers of Belgium Rivers of Wallonia Rivers of Liège Province Rivers of Luxembourg (Belgium) Rivers of Namur (province) Geography of Liège {{Belgium-river-stub

See also

Gallery