Valkenberg
Climb · Flanders
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Valkenberg is a 0.8 km cycling climb averaging 3.5% (+27 m), rising from 66 m to 93 m in Flanders.
0.8 km · +27 m · 3.5% avg · ~11.9% max · 66 → 93 m
Stats computed from OpenStreetMap and satellite elevation data — approximate.
Download GPX ↓Navigate to the foot ↗
Gradient by colour: ● <3% ● 3–6% ● 6–9% ● 9%+
Where it bites
Steepest 100 m: 11.9% (km 0.2–0.3).
| section | to | avg |
|---|---|---|
| 0–100 m | 68 m | 10.5% |
| 100–200 m | 70 m | 1.1% |
| 200–300 m | 81 m | 10.5% |
| 300–400 m | 86 m | 5.6% |
| 400–500 m | 88 m | 1.8% |
| 500–600 m | 92 m | 4.2% |
| 600–700 m | 92 m | 0.0% |
What it’s like to ride
Valkenbergstraat leaves the last houses of Brakel and climbs towards Elst, 875 metres for 53 metres of height at a little over 6 per cent. The opening is gentle enough to carry speed into, then the middle ramps to 15 per cent and asks for a real effort before the gradient eases again for the run to the summit at 98 metres. The road drags upwards both before the foot and after the top, which is why the climb costs more than its numbers promise and riders talk about never seeming to make any progress on it. The surface has been asphalt since 1973, and café In den Hengst sits at the top.
History
The Valkenberg was a narrow cobbled lane when the Ronde van Vlaanderen first climbed it, in the editions from 1959 to 1973. It was asphalted in 1973 and then left out of the race for more than twenty years, returning in 1996 and appearing again in 2005–2009, 2011–2014 and 2020–2025, for 27 Ronde appearances in total. It has also been used in around 31 editions of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, usually in the Leberg, Berendries, Valkenberg, Tenbosse sequence of short hills around Brakel, and occasionally in Dwars door Vlaanderen and the Driedaagse van De Panne-Koksijde. The 2026 Omloop route dropped it in favour of Tenbosse and the Parikeberg.
Worth stopping near the climb
More climbs in Flanders
Common questions
- How long and steep is Valkenberg?
- Valkenberg is a 0.8 km cycling climb averaging 3.5% (+27 m), rising from 66 m to 93 m in Flanders.
- Where is Valkenberg steepest?
- The steepest 100 m averages 11.9%, between km 0.2 and km 0.3 of the climb.