Safety Information During Hunting Season
Walkers, hikers, riders, mountain bikers... during hunting season, precautionary measures are required!
Walkers, hikers, riders, mountain bikers... during hunting season, precautionary measures are required!
The primary role of hunting is to maintain game populations at densities that allow the forest to grow properly and other living species (plants, flowers, amphibians, birds,...) to thrive as well. Indeed, an excessively high population of deer, roe deer, and wild boar can cause significant damage to the forest's ecological diversity, its economic profitability, or the agricultural area.
But hunting also means a potential danger for other forest users.
A system of standardized signs, applicable throughout the Walloon Region, informs you of the hunting days and types of hunting practiced. Only this signage is official!
Yellow signs inform you of the hunting calendar for the entire season. These signs allow you to plan your future autumn walks by avoiding the hunting zones.
Red signs constitute prohibitions.
- They either warn of the organization of a drive hunt during which hunters stand in line along a firebreak, a path, or even a road, waiting for game driven by beaters and dogs; this forest area is off-limits to you on the day of the drive hunt.
- Or they warn of a stalking and ambush hunting period; they then indicate the morning and evening hours during which circulation is prohibited.
Walk Closure Calendar
To help you better plan your future autumn walks and avoid hunting areas, a calendar of drive hunt dates is displayed on the various departure boards of the marked walks in the municipality. It is also available at the Municipal Tourism Office, at the municipal administration, or at the DNF.
This calendar of drive hunt dates is published for informational purposes only and has no legal value. Please note that these lists are subject to change at any time, so we recommend that you exercise the utmost caution during your walks and respect the indications you encounter in the field.
2024-2025 calendar will be released around mid-September.
The ChasseOnWeb and PartageonslaforÊt Applications
ChasseOnWeb is a mapping application that lists hunting territories and drive hunt dates in Wallonia. Its goal is to allow all forest users to coexist more peacefully. Thanks to the collected data (hunting territories, harvests, drive hunt dates, etc.), the interface serves as a communication tool between the different forest users, namely hunters, professionals, hikers, mountain bikers, and walkers...
The partageonslaforet.be application allows for overlaying hunted territories with locally marked hikes or uploading your own route in gpx format. Information is also available by DNF cantonment and by hunting advisory board.
On-site posters remain mandatory! The site will never replace an on-site warning. The yellow and red posters at the entrance to a public road announcing a hunting action are therefore always relevant. They must, of course, always be placed and fully respected. It is about everyone's safety.