Rhine water levels 2019 and similar topics

[SuzCruise]

On 8/26/2019 at 9:43 AM, LH8689 said:

Just returned from fabulous Amawaterways trip on Rhine from Amsterdam to Basel.  Much appreciate this board especially notamermaid as we did not want a bus trip! Were lucky on Danube last year as 2 weeks after our sailing, river was not navigable.  Rhine was beautiful, full and flowing the entire way. Castles and villages on the gorge were amazing.   Even had to lower upper level things to get under one bridge near south.  Highly recommend excursions to Heidelberg (Ludwigshafen port), Rudesheim vineyard, Strasbourg and Riquewihr (Breisach port) for those who have opportunity. Happy travels! 

I'd really love to hear more about your cruise, (and TwinCheryl and FourMiler also, please!) especially what ports you visited and excursions that you loved and hated.  We depart a month from today to begin my big milestone birthday trip around Germany, which will include a trip on the AmaDante.  I'm getting into "geek out on research" mode and need to hear more about the excursions.

 

Thanks in advance for anything and everything you want to share!

 

Suz

[notamermaid]

While the Elbe is still just a trickle and the Bavarian Danube is now really struggling, the Rhine is still doing okay. I say okay, as good would be too optimistic. Here are the figures: Maxau 429cm, Kaub 121cm, Koblenz 111cm. I said on Monday that Kaub could reach 120cm later in the week and it did this morning (a few centimetres of fluctuation always happens during a day).

 

It has been reported by industry sources that freight surcharges are now in place, this is a logistics industry negotiated amount of money to compensate for low water levels and its transport problems.

 

This need not concern river cruisers yet, but with the volume of water coming down from the High Rhine being lower what it could be at this time of year - as confirmed by the latest low water report - and no rain for the next few days, the level is bound to fall further. As a report suggests: "we need to look closely at the Rhine now".

 

Looking ahead in the new prediction we can see figures of 110cm to 105cm at the weekend. Rain is still forecast for Sunday, but the amounts supposedly then falling in the Upper Rhine valley do no appear very substantial as of now. The longer term forecast suggests more rain on several days next week. Enough to keep the level above 100cm? It sounds promising. For those who have recently joined reading this thread: From 100cm it is not far to 90cm, which is a figure we do not want to see as it indicates cruising problems coming up.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

Timbeeer! Or rather concreeete!

 

It has now been a few weeks since the "eyesore of the river basin" at Mülheim-Kärlich fell. While the nuclear power plant has been in the process of being dismantled for some years, the cooling tower's last days were eagerly anticipated by the locals as the massive construction had become somewhat of a symbol of a decade-long fight against nuclear power. The plant only produced electricity for a very short time in the eighties, making the electricity some claim the most expensive ever produced.

 

Here are the tower's last moments: https://www.dw.com/en/germany-demolishes-cooling-tower-of-former-nuclear-power-plant/a-49967279

 

This is the location: North of, i.e. downstream from Koblenz, a little past Urmitz railway bridge, at kilometre 605.

 

To water levels: still looking okay towards the weekend. We shall keep our focus on the Danube where things are worse.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[G.M.T.]

On 9/18/2019 at 1:40 PM, notamermaid said:

While the Elbe is still just a trickle and the Bavarian Danube is now really struggling, the Rhine is still doing okay. I say okay, as good would be too optimistic. Here are the figures: Maxau 429cm, Kaub 121cm, Koblenz 111cm. I said on Monday that Kaub could reach 120cm later in the week and it did this morning (a few centimetres of fluctuation always happens during a day).

 

It has been reported by industry sources that freight surcharges are now in place, this is a logistics industry negotiated amount of money to compensate for low water levels and its transport problems.

 

This need not concern river cruisers yet, but with the volume of water coming down from the High Rhine being lower what it could be at this time of year - as confirmed by the latest low water report - and no rain for the next few days, the level is bound to fall further. As a report suggests: "we need to look closely at the Rhine now".

 

Looking ahead in the new prediction we can see figures of 110cm to 105cm at the weekend. Rain is still forecast for Sunday, but the amounts supposedly then falling in the Upper Rhine valley do no appear very substantial as of now. The longer term forecast suggests more rain on several days next week. Enough to keep the level above 100cm? It sounds promising. For those who have recently joined reading this thread: From 100cm it is not far to 90cm, which is a figure we do not want to see as it indicates cruising problems coming up.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

Heard a rumour that river cruisers could be subject to freight surcharges if their BMI is above 28. 🍻

[rileygirl12]

We are taking Scenic's "Treasures of the Rhine" Oct 2-9 Nuremberg to Amsterdam. This is an 8 day part of the 15 day "Jewels of Europe" departing from Budapest Sept 25. Today we were notified of a ship change due to "As a consequence of low water on the upper Danube river, we were earlier required to enact a ship schedule change". We are okay with the ship change just worried this is a preview of trouble ahead with the water levels of the Main and the Rhine. Any thoughts?

 

[notamermaid]

rileygirl12,

You will be fine on the Main. For more info on the Main have a look at the thread dedicated to that river. If the situation on the Rhine necessitates a ship swap it will be to cut out the section Rüdesheim to Koblenz.

 

At the moment this is in the realm of the possible, but not likely. The level is falling, 100cm at Kaub is anticipated for Saturday and we might see double digits only by Sunday morning. Next week the rain will set in and the amounts along the Rhine look good enough to keep river cruise ships out of trouble.

 

The section of the Danube is the bigger trouble, i.e. what happens to your itinerary depends on how the ship that you are going to board in Nuremberg will be doing on the Danube near Pfelling.

 

The week after next is too far ahead into the future to attempt create a likely scenario. For now both rivers are in need of rain that will hopefully happen next week in the right amounts.

 

notamermaid

 

[rileygirl12]

Thanks so much, that does sound encouraging. Looking forward to our trip to Germany and “cruising” the Rhine!

[sharkster77]

We are cruising the week after next, so rain next week is music to our ears!!!

 

Not too much, though--I want next week's cruisers to enjoy themselves--maybe like Camelot, where it rains while you're asleep and sunny when you're awake!

[notamermaid]

1 hour ago, sharkster77 said:

We are cruising the week after next, so rain next week is music to our ears!!!

 

Not too much, though--I want next week's cruisers to enjoy themselves--maybe like Camelot, where it rains while you're asleep and sunny when you're awake!

Camelot, did not know of that musical. Frederick Loewe one. Sounds interesting. Only raining at night sounds nice and would certainly be favourable to river cruisers.

 

The latest low water report is out and it shows why the river is low and we need the rain. Along the Rhine upstream from Basel only half the amount of rain has fallen in the last 30 days of what the average is - i.e. a mean figure calculated over 30 years.

 

The report usually contains a prediction for one gauge on the Rhine, this time it is Cologne. The most likely scenario there is that in 10 days time the level will be where it is now (more or less) after an initial fall (what I mentioned in my previous post).

 

Does not sound brilliant but okay.

 

Anyway, have a good cruise. And by October we should see some nice Autumn colours. We have had the first Autumn storm and the trees are starting with the first tints of red and brown.

 

notamermaid

 

[Fourmiler]

As you know, notamermaid, we just finished a close-to-perfect cruise to Basel from Amsterdam with Emerald Waterways.  We don’t hear much of Emerald but everything went smoothly for us, including the staff, excursions, food and more importantly water levels.  I still miss their coffee machine which gave me excellent latte macchiatos, plus the chocolate on my pillow each night.  Regarding the Rhine, which I should be writing about here, I have a few observations.  We expected to see far more barges than we did.  The edges (banks) of the river,  all the way from Amsterdam to Basel,  were beautifully landscaped.  I had expected to see rough, long grass, so I was very surprised.  The upkeep must cost a fortune.  Also we saw many swans on the river.  After the cruise we went farther north into Switzerland and saw many more, in one place 24 of them at the side of the river.  We also saw Lake Constance with my Swiss relatives and were very impressed with the scenery.  Such a pretty area which was enhanced by the hot sunny weather.  I have to say we enjoyed Koblenz and were intrigued by the story of the fountain with the spitting boy.  None of us got wet.  (I initially thought he was vomiting - lol).

[jeb_bud]

17 hours ago, rileygirl12 said:

We are taking Scenic's "Treasures of the Rhine" Oct 2-9 Nuremberg to Amsterdam. This is an 8 day part of the 15 day "Jewels of Europe" departing from Budapest Sept 25. Today we were notified of a ship change due to "As a consequence of low water on the upper Danube river, we were earlier required to enact a ship schedule change". We are okay with the ship change just worried this is a preview of trouble ahead with the water levels of the Main and the Rhine. Any thoughts?

 

Did Scenic say which ship they expect you to be on?

[USCAdventurer]

i'm cruising on the crystal bach from basel to amsterdam on november 3rd to the 10th.  can someone tell me what the weather might like during those dates please?  rain?  pleasant temperatures?  really cold or not so much? 

thank you in advance for your comments.

[Ethel6666]

If you go to a weather site like AccuWeather, you can search for the places you are visiting and look at the forecasts. https://www.accuweather.com/ 

Once you have done your search, click on month in the menu bar and then use the arrows to go forward to November

[rileygirl12]

5 hours ago, jeb_bud said:

Did Scenic say which ship they expect you to be on?

We were supposed to be on the Scenic Crystal but we were notified 9/19/19 that we will be on the Jasper

[jeb_bud]

14 hours ago, rileygirl12 said:

We were supposed to be on the Scenic Crystal but we were notified 9/19/19 that we will be on the Jasper

We are booked on The Crystal for Romantic Rhine and Moselle starting October 9 in Amsterdam. Tracking the ships and comparing to the brochure I had come to the conclusion we will be on the Jasper instead. Your news seems to confirm that. Please don’t break the ship😜. 

[notamermaid]

On 9/19/2019 at 7:21 PM, G.M.T. said:

Heard a rumour that river cruisers could be subject to freight surcharges if their BMI is above 28. 🍻

😀 Which reminds me: keep those BMI's down or you will have to cycle along the river bank from Bingen to Boppard to keep the ships afloat without your weight pressing them down into the water...

 

In all earnest, chengkp75 did the maths for us a few years ago and showed that the weight of the passengers makes little difference, more centimetres off the draft off the ship are achieved by emptying the drinking water tanks. And not carrying beer kegs for Oktoberfest celebrations, but then you are not supposed either, it is the Rhine after all 😉. So go easy on stocking up the wine bottles...

 

I need to be serious here now. The level at Kaub is a little above the forecast but nevertheless now at 105cm only. 95cm by Monday is a real possibility, by which point one may get a bit nervous hoping the reaction to rain comes fast.

 

But for the moment I am still optimistic that we can just avoid ship swaps on the Rhine. We will know more by Monday afternoon.

 

notamermaid

 

[pully8]

Watching with interest having been caught up in the mess of low water and uncertainty late last year.

Good to read people are receiving timely info by the cruise operators of changes of ships.

Enjoy your cruises and hope the water levels improve.

 

[notamermaid]

A new week in the Rhine valley, this one comes with the prospect of grey skies and rain and then ...grey skies and rain! I said to a dear person yesterday: "Sounds like the North Yorkshire Moors!"

 

By the way, if you like deserted areas, sheep, heather and grey skies the Moors are a great place to be. If you prefer a river, castles and cities the Rhine is better...

 

The river level at Kaub is at 98cm and all stations upstream and downstream from there have lost quite a bit in figures over the last two weeks, including Lake Constance (see my post above for a reason why). Andernach and all gauges from Cologne to Emmerich - that is the last German station where the river level is measured - are now on low water status. That should not worry river cruisers though as after Koblenz the navigation channel is nice and deep.

 

Let us focus on Kaub and what water is coming from the Upper Rhine Valley. The forecast at Maxau (on the map that is near Karlsruhe) shows a rise in the graph from this afternoon which lets us hope for the Rhine gorge, where Kaub is. The Kaub level could still fall minimally during today and early tomorrow. Tomorrow evening might already bring the first centimetres back onto the gauge and Wednesday might see a rise to 110cm in the afternoon.

 

Oh, with the cool temperatures in the mornings and the damp weather you could get some atmospheric photos but I recommend bringing layers of clothing and a scarf. If you are sensitive to the cold you might find a head cover and gloves a nice thing to have for that early morning jog. Night temperatures can go down to 8 or 9 Celsius now when there is no cloud cover, the average this week seems to be 9 to 11 at night in the valley. Daytime temperatures are all in the double digits, mainly 16 to 19.

 

It looks promising for good sailing this week so enjoy, relax, and maybe warm up with a Rüdesheim Coffee or a hot chocolate. Bliss!

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

On 9/21/2019 at 12:22 AM, USC Adventurer said:

i'm cruising on the crystal bach from basel to amsterdam on november 3rd to the 10th.  can someone tell me what the weather might like during those dates please?  rain?  pleasant temperatures?  really cold or not so much? 

thank you in advance for your comments.

I second Ethel6666's suggestion of AccuWeather. My experience: Beginning of November is sometimes the onset of snowy weather, i.e. the first snow in the hills above 600m (which you get close to in the Upper Rhine Valley hills). The valley is usually milder. Rain is always a possibility around that time, sometimes more sometimes less. More in the Netherlands than upstream in the countries. Freak years like last year can bring dry conditions and warm unseasonal temperatures of 16 to 18 Celsius, daytime is normally more 4 to 12, but can be a tiny bit frosty. Night frost on the ground in the hills is a standard occurrence.

 

Hope this helps.

 

notamermaid

 

[schda12]

Many thanks to Not a Mermaid for all your postings, especially to this thread.  I attempted a tribute to you at our bar on the Avalon Vista when we were at port in Koblenz.  Unfortunately, my choice of cocktail was not sufficiently distinctive to get the approval of the bartender.  One photo is at the bar and the other at our table in the lounge.

 

This was my first river cruise and a rare departure from independent travel.  I wasn't expecting to react well to the regimentation.  I gave into it with exceptionally early bedtimes and waking before dawn in order to particpate in the morning excursions well-rested and without racing throuigh my morning routine.  Other than confusion from the intense sequence of short tours, it worked very well for me.  I was amazed by the quality of the staff on board, which implied excellent leadership.  This contrasted with my endless annoyance at the communications from Avalon before the cruise.  They were inconsistant, misleading and poor preparaton for the cruise.  Internet service onboard was mediocre to non-existant.  Mobile phone service was not much better.

[USCAdventurer]

notamermaid,

your information is a great help.  i always get educated reading your postings.  

 

thank you and cheers,

david

[gailellen12]

I was on the Avalon Vista earlier in the summer and we had no problems at all with Internet.  I guess this can fluctuate from time to time.  I had a wonderful time and loved this cruise.  I also travel a fair amount on my own or with friends but enjoyed the ambiance of this ship and the group onboard.

[Escaper]

We are booked Grand European A to B on October 1.

 

Just informed that due to ship swap upstream, we are switching from Gefjon to Ve.

 

They advise us that there are potential ship swaps ahead, but that they are monitoring the situation carefully and will keep us informed.

 

Sorry to say this, but hoping you get some rain in Germany, please!

[notamermaid]

1 hour ago, Escaper said:

We are booked Grand European A to B on October 1.

 

Just informed that due to ship swap upstream, we are switching from Gefjon to Ve.

 

They advise us that there are potential ship swaps ahead, but that they are monitoring the situation carefully and will keep us informed.

 

Sorry to say this, but hoping you get some rain in Germany, please!

Already raining in Germany both along the Rhine and the Danube! Will need to see how much is coming down in the next 48 hours and where.

It sounds as if you feel well informed by Viking, that is nice to read.

 

Have a great cruise.

 

notamermaid

 

[badtwin]

2 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Already raining in Germany both along the Rhine and the Danube! Will need to see how much is coming down in the next 48 hours and where.

It sounds as if you feel well informed by Viking, that is nice to read.

 

Have a great cruise.

 

notamermaid

 

 

Let me join with those who have expressed thanks to Notamermaid and the others who have contributed so much an so often the river level forums.  I have followed them with great interest ever since we booked our cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest 6 or so months ago.   We leave from Amsterdam on September 29, so are not unhappy to hear there is rain although sorry for those who are there now.   I will hope for more - but only at night.  And hope for enough rain over the next several weeks for all the cruisers to come.

 

Thanks again for keeping us all posted on developments.  I will raise a glass to you as we cruise up the Rhine - but maybe not the proposed cocktail - not a whiskey drinker.

 

 

 

I am trying not to worry about that which I can do nothing.