# Ourthe

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This article is about the river. For the former administrative region, see [Ourthe (department)](/source/Ourthe_(department)).

The **Ourthe** (uʁt; [Walloon](/source/Walloon_language): *Aiwe d' Oûte*) is a river in the [Ardennes](/source/Ardennes) in [Wallonia](/source/Wallonia), [Belgium](/source/Belgium).[1] It is 165-kilometre (103-mile) long.

## River

It is a right tributary to the river [Meuse](/source/Meuse). The Ourthe is formed at the confluence of the *Ourthe Occidentale* (Western Ourthe) and the *Ourthe Orientale* (Eastern Ourthe), west of [Houffalize](/source/Houffalize).

The source of the *Ourthe Occidentale* is near [Libramont-Chevigny](/source/Libramont-Chevigny), in the Belgian province [Luxembourg](/source/Luxembourg_(province_of_Belgium)). The source of the *Ourthe Orientale* is near [Gouvy](/source/Gouvy), also in the Belgian province Luxembourg, close to the border with [Luxembourg](/source/Luxembourg).

After the confluence of the two Ourthes at [Lake Nisramont](/source/Lake_Nisramont), the Ourthe flows roughly in north-west and later in northern direction. Near [Noiseux](/source/Noiseux) it flows for a short distance through the province of [Namur](/source/Namur_(province)). After the municipality of [Durbuy](/source/Durbuy) it flows into [Liège Province](/source/Li%C3%A8ge_Province). Eventually it flows into the river Meuse in the city of [Liège](/source/Li%C3%A8ge). The most important tributaries of the river Ourthe are the [Amblève](/source/Ambl%C3%A8ve_(river)) and the [Vesdre](/source/Vesdre). Towns along the Ourthe are [Houffalize](/source/Houffalize) (Ourthe Orientale), [La Roche-en-Ardenne](/source/La_Roche-en-Ardenne), [Hotton](/source/Hotton), [Durbuy](/source/Durbuy), [Hamoir](/source/Hamoir) and [Esneux](/source/Esneux).

Near [Hotton](/source/Hotton), the [caves of Hotton](/source/Caves_of_Hotton) are located. In these caves runs a [subterranean river](/source/Subterranean_river) which flows in the Ourthe.

Near [Esneux](/source/Esneux) 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](/source/Hermitage_and_chapel_of_Saint-Thibaut) is located.

Around 1820, [William I of the Netherlands](/source/William_I_of_the_Netherlands) demanded the creation of the Ourthe channel. Via the Ourthe, this channel would have connected the Meuse basin with the [Moselle](/source/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).

## See also

- [Département de l'Ourthe](/source/Ourthe_(department))

## References

1. ["Ourthe"](https://ravel.wallonie.be/en/home/itineraires/local/ourthe.html) (in French). *Wallonie.be*. Retrieved 2025-12-04.

## External links

- [Site of the Walloon regional archives. Flooding of the Ourthe in 1993.](https://archives.wallonie.be/ark:/44119/z8fdkpmn6c25)
- [Site of the Walloon regional archives. Flooding of the Ourthe in January 1995.](https://archives.wallonie.be/ark:/44119/32vghcx8zs5q)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ourthe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ourthe) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ourthe?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.