Butte Baltia

Butte Baltia is a small but symbolically important earth-and-stone mound topped with a masonry lookout, built in the High Fens (Hautes Fagnes) close to the village of Ovifat in the municipality of Waimes, Liège province. The site marks the highest point in Belgium and has been a listed monument since 1991.

Where does the name come from and why was it built?

The mound was built at the initiative of Lieutenant-General Herman Baltia, who in the 1920s served as the King's High Commissioner for the so-called Eastern Cantons — territories attached to Belgium after the First World War. In April 1923, a decision was made to raise a mound that would symbolically mark and highlight the location of the country's highest point, known as Signal de Botrange. The structure takes its name, Baltia, directly from this officer.

What does the structure look like?

The base is a circular earth-and-stone embankment roughly 14 metres across, forming a cone about 3 metres high. On top of this grassy mound stands a stone construction with a staircase of nearly twenty steps climbing the northeast face to a small viewing platform. The platform floor is made of blue stone, engraved with the words "ALTITUDE 700.00", referring to the symbolic 700-metre elevation. In 1934, further surveying work at the site refined the measured altitude to 718 metres, confirming it as the highest point in all of Belgium. The topographic work behind the project was carried out by Captain Van Bleyenberghe, while the construction itself was overseen by commissioner Tollet, with support from the municipality of Robertville and its mayor at the time, Jamar.

Where exactly is it located?

The mound sits right next to the Signal de Botrange observation tower, in the heart of the High Fens nature reserve — a vast peat-bog plateau that is one of the most distinctive landscapes of the Ardennes. Its coordinates are approximately 50°30'08"N, 6°05'36"E. The whole surrounding area, stretching from Baraque Michel toward Sourbrodt and Ovifat, is under landscape protection, underlining the exceptional character of a region known for its high-altitude bogs, heathland, and Ardennes weather patterns of fog and strong wind.

Is it worth a visit?

Butte Baltia is a popular stop on hiking and cycling routes through the High Fens. Given its modest height, climbing to the platform takes only a moment, and from there visitors get a clear view over the surrounding peat bogs and forests. It is frequently visited together with the nearby Signal de Botrange tower, forming a single cluster of sightseeing attractions in the region.

Frequently asked questions

Is Butte Baltia really the highest point in Belgium? Yes, the site corresponds to the country's highest point, though precise 1934 measurements put the altitude at 718 metres rather than the symbolic 700 metres engraved on the platform.

Who was Baltia, the mound's namesake? Herman Baltia was a lieutenant-general and the King's High Commissioner for the Eastern Cantons in the 1920s, and it was on his initiative that the mound was raised.

Is the site protected? Yes, Butte Baltia has been a listed monument since 1991 and lies within the protected High Fens landscape reserve.

Is anything planned nearby? A telecommunications mast of similar height has reportedly been considered for the area, though this does not affect the protected status of the mound itself.