I had a ticket today that I could use to anywhere in Belgium, so I took it from Gent to Hergenrath, just short of the German border near Aachen. I looked for a walking route, and found to my delight I could walk to Aachen via the ‘Dreilaenderecke’ where three countries - the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany meet.
About half was on roads walking to the nearest town, Kelmis, from the station, as Hergenrath is a small village. Then it was a steady, not steep, walk up through dry woodland tracks.
At the top was a stone marking the three countries’ borders touching, cafes, car parks and an observation tower that I climbed as the lift was broken. As a bonus, I discovered that I had conquered the summit of the Netherlands.
A descent through the woods in Germany led to the road into Aachen and I walked along it into the city centre. About 15km, a very enjoyable day. On the map attached, the three-country- boundary is at the very top and Hergenrath station bottom right.
PS: I was going to get a bus from Aachen to Eupen in Belgium to pick up the train there, but of course you need a mask in Germany, and I hadn’t got one. So I bought a ticket at Aachen station back to Hergenrath for an eye-watering €7.60 for nine minutes on an ancient EMU with concertina doors. The guard told me I should have bought it off him for half the price.