Rhine water levels 2019 and similar topics

[sharkster77]

We just got off the Rhine a week ago, and things re:  water levels were just fine.

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, notamermaid said:

At this point in time I purposely steer round that big display of Christmas biscuits in my local supermarket as wide as the alley allows me to.

 

In the US, first we have to steer clear of the Halloween candy [our pantry is already stocked for the little beaners*, and on Nov. 1 there will be whatever's left staring at me whispering 'I'll only get stale if you don't eat me now...'], then the Thanksgiving Day feast and its leftovers.  Then of course the Christmas parties start at work etc.  Hardest time of year to maintain my boyish figure [except when on a cruise, of course!]

 

* note: I reject the neologism that this is a term referring to Mexicans.  It has been used in my family for years to refer to any kids, and seems to be by this ad for kids' haircuts:  https://www.beanersfuncuts.com

 

[Orsino]

No worries on the Rhine as far as I know. Have been sailing since the 13th. We had a bit of rain but no issues with water levels on the Rhine. 

 

I don’t think there is a thread on the Moselle, so I’ll put this here for any Moselle cruisers. We are having high water levels on the Moselle. Today we were supposed to go to Thionville France but have instead stopped at Grevemacher Luxembourg. The reason given is high water levels due to much rain in France. 

Unfortunate to have to adjust plans, but not too bad overall. 

 

The Rhine is fine as far as I know though. Funny that three weeks ago we were worried about too little water on the Rhine, then end up with too much water on the Moselle. :)

[G.M.T.]

19 minutes ago, Orsino said:

I don’t think there is a thread on the Moselle, so I’ll put this here for any Moselle cruisers.

Here is the link to the general Moselle thread:

 

 

[djh1959]

On 10/17/2019 at 10:16 PM, G.M.T. said:

Hopefully you are on the right ship.😇

 

The photo is of Ehrenbreitstein Fortress in Koblenz.

 

Have a great cruise.

Ha ha you are quite right of course. No idea why I said Cologne!  Still a stunning sight though. 

[notamermaid]

On 10/20/2019 at 11:32 AM, djh1959 said:

Ha ha you are quite right of course. No idea why I said Cologne!  Still a stunning sight though. 

Ehrenbreitstein, yes, I don't think I have ever seen it that stunning in morning lights. Probably because I have not been there early in the day since the renovations a few years ago. As good as Cologne, in a different way.

 

Weather and river levels in brief while I am here. Pretty uneventful. Kaub is currently at 212cm, after all that rain. The level is forecast to drop slowly during this week, not to worry, at the current rate we will still be around 160cm by Saturday. A good amount of rain today for the catchment area, little to none on the six days following.

 

I shall look towards the Danube from tomorrow where we can say more about the situation after 9am local time when the latest forecast is out (I mean to say when I have a chance to look over breakfast).

 

notamermaid

 

[MLA]

Hello from GCT’s. River Aria in Vienna. Gorgeous weather after heavy morning fog. Hope weather holds!  On to Melk tomorrow. 

[Fourmiler]

My cuckoo clock arrives tomorrow from the Black Forest.  A nice memento of our Rhine cruise.  (Yes, I got sucked into buying one!)

[Mimosa09]

We are now in our daughter’s apartment in Amstelveen. Just got off Uniworld’s River Duchess this morning in Amsterdam. We had no water level problems on the Rhine from Frankfurt on (Oct 20th to Oct 24th).  We did do a ship swap at Würzburg (River Princess to River Duchess) on Oct 18th to get Uniworld’s two boats back on their schedules since there was a ship swap earlier in the month. 

  Other than not getting on at Giurgiu in Bucharest (got on at Turnu Magurele due low water or two barges stuck due to low water), we had no other low water problems on our Ultimate European Journey on the Danube, Main-Danube canal, the Main or the Rhine. We did have some days of rain & fog (hail for a short period in Rothenburg 😦) & enjoyed a number of sunny Fall days. We are very happy with this river experience. 

   Thank you again to Notamermaid & GMT for keeping us abreast of the happenings  on the Danube & the Rhine. 

- Rose & Alan

[notamermaid]

Thank you everyone,

for your posts from home or your cruise trip.

 

As things are indeed splendid on the Rhine as regards water levels - and the colours are nice, too - I am not posting much. One minor incident is a ferry at Boppard on a crossing slightly hitting a tanker.  Apparently, in the low-standing Autumn sun the captain of the ferry did no see the tanker fast enough. Although both vessels tried a manoeuvre it was just a little too late. The tanker had minor scratches, but the ferry was out of order for a few days. Thankfully, no injuries.

 

Let us move onto a geographical oddity.

 

borders (and boundaries) part 3

 

in my loosely-themed series (parts 1 and 2 are hidden somewhere in the 2018 thread) I look at any kind of borders and boundaries connected with the Rhine, its countries and regions, languages and customs, etc.

 

Borders in the Upper Rhine valley have been shifting quite a bit over the centuries, you might have heard of Alsace and the fact that the region has changed hands several times. There is a place in a region further South near Switzerland which has become a political/geographical oddity. A few weeks ago a BBC article explored the town of Büsingen, both an enclave and an exclave: http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20190922-germanys-tiny-geographic-oddity

 

With Brexit looming and Northern Ireland a question seemingly still in need of an answer, one can follow the author's thought: "could such an anomaly work outside of Büsingen, for an area like Northern Ireland?"

 

notamermaid

 

 

[notamermaid]

It is Monday and I will have a look ahead into the week. Life seems to go on along the river with all the trials and tribulations, joy, fun and laughter that we face every day. No sudden occurrences of the major kind that other regions or countries face, certainly something to be thankful for. Touch wood, hopefully we will have a quiet Autumn and Winter.

The river is cooperating for industry and trade and river cruisers. Kaub gauge is at 164cm, but is forecast to go down to under 160cm tomorrow. With a normal weather pattern that we have at the moment we shall see both rain and sunny days, enough of both for the next five days to keep the level pleasant for all.

 

Friday is a public holiday along much of the Rhine, but more on that later.

 

The Rhine is a river but also a busy waterway that needs care and attention. In Germany this is the WSA, short for Wasserstrassen- und Schifffahrtsamt (you may stick to calling it WSA (grin)) and they will get a new ship at the division in Duisburg to help look after the river/waterway. For those with a deeper interest in technical stuff and small maintenance vessels, here is the article on the ship that has just started being built, i.e. the keel laying at a shipyard in the Netherlands: https://www.ship-technology.com/news/damen-keel-laying-wsa-diving-bell-ship/

 

I quite fancy having a look at "my" river with the means of a diving bell. I do not think it would be a pretty sight, after all this is not a deserted blue lagoon, but sure interesting.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

[MLA]

Guten tag from Wurzberg. Cooler but wonderfully sunny after a foggy morning. On to Wertheim tomorrow. We have been so lucky on the River Aria with no rain and no bussing from place to place!

[Fourmiler]

Aha.  A new ship with a diving bell to be used to find old wreckage.  I wonder if they could use it to find the long lost locomotive.  I wondered how it ended up in the Rhine and it apparently fell off a barge!  Notamermaid, I am still hopeful that it will be found 😁

[notamermaid]

5 minutes ago, Fourmiler said:

Aha.  A new ship with a diving bell to be used to find old wreckage.  I wonder if they could use it to find the long lost locomotive.  I wondered how it ended up in the Rhine and it apparently fell off a barge!  Notamermaid, I am still hopeful that it will be found 😁

Fourmiler,

That is exactly what I thought they could also use the diving bell for!

 

1 hour ago, MLA said:

Guten tag from Wurzberg. Cooler but wonderfully sunny after a foggy morning. On to Wertheim tomorrow. We have been so lucky on the River Aria with no rain and no bussing from place to place!

Good to hear from you.

 

It is indeed getting cooler. I have put my (thin) winter jacket on for the first time this season today. Temperatures are forecast to go down to 3 to 1 Celsius at night later in the week, similar in other places. Highs only 10 to 14 degrees depending on area, a bit milder at the weekend.

 

With the daylight saving time having ended it is dark so early now - well it feels early anyway - but it made for a lovely late mist over the river this morning. The river temperature is now higher than the air in the morning and the mist rises and moves, it gives the river a different kind of charm - a bit like a wash house full of steam. I do not really like the cold, but I look forward to splendidly red winter sunsets.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Thursday evening was going to be weird, mournful, eerie, depressing and somewhat sad, also with All Saints' Day the next day, a traditional day of remembrance in Germany. Wit Brexit no longer happening on that day, some of that has been averted and the Anglophile that I am has calmed down for the time being. Actually, I think this postponing has just been a cunning plan of the cartoon/caricature scene to be able to write about all this longer.

 

So, onto what is called Reformationstag - Halloween is a modern imported thing for us - tomorrow and All Saints' Day the day after.

 

 

Borders and boundaries part 4

 

Public holidays, here I mean religious feast days, are different from country to country and region to region sometimes, potentially leading to confusion when you are on holiday. You can encounter such a situation on the Rhine on Friday. Tomorrow for example is Reformationstag, the day to celebrate the Reformation by Martin Luther, i.e. Protestantism, it is celebrated by protestants but is not observed as a public holiday along the Rhine at all, i.e. no countries or regions (Länder). If you happen to see many children on the street in Baden-Würrtemberg, they are not playing truant, they have the day off, though. Okay, quite easy to remember. Now comes the difficult bit.

 

Friday is All Saints' Day, it is a public holiday for Catholics and not observed in Basel City, but could be a day like a Sunday or public holiday in other places and cantons in Switzerland. Across in Germany, in the state/land of Baden-Würrtemberg, it is observed. It is likewise a public holiday in France. Travelling along the Rhine you might hit Speyer, yes, public holiday, also on your excursion to Heidelberg. Further downstream is the popular port of Rüdesheim, that is in the state Hesse, there it is not a public holiday. The Rhine there acts as the boundary to Rhineland-Palatinate, so if you cross over on the ferry you are in Bingen, public holiday! From Rüdesheim through the Rhine gorge you are in Koblenz - Rhineland-Palatinate again. If you think "I am in Cologne on that day, that is North-Rhine Westphalia", you are right, but there the public holiday is observed, too. In the Netherlands it is not a public holiday.

 

For some locals it has become a tradition to head out to other regions for a (shopping) trip when their own shops are closed, so much that it is anticipated every year by the shopping trade and even reported upon by regional television. I call it the public holiday shopping "Völkerwanderung" (migration). Mainz people go to Wiesbaden, Koblenz people go to Limburg, those living close to the border go to the Netherlands, etc, etc. This whole thing is further enhanced by the other observances and non-observances of 31 October and 1 November that I have not mentioned in other regions of Germany... I do not want to confuse you.

 

notamermaid

 

 

Edited October 30, 2019 by notamermaid
Grammar

[USCAdventurer]

hello notamermaid,

i'm leaving for london and basel tomorrow (thursday) and will arrive basel friday late afternoon.  i an very excited about taking the river cruise on the crystal bach which leaves basel on sunday.

you have been just wonderful about providing river information to eveyone and i thank you very, very much.  i think the rhine is going to be ok for my voyage and i'm very happy for that.  you are wonderful world of river information for everyone traveling through europe on river cruises.  i'm sure everyone is very grateful for your insight and friendliness.

 

cheers,

david

[notamermaid]

@USC Adventurer

Hello David,

Thank you very much for your kind words. Heard on the other thread from Roy that you were delayed. I hope with the storm raging in Britain that you have made it safely to Basel. Rain I am afraid will be your companion for much of this week but when the sun comes out you should still be able to see some nice colours as the storms have not taken all the leaves of the trees yet. There is a storm warning in place but along the Rhine currently only in the Southwestern hills, the Swabian Jura, of Germany.

 

 

The rain will keep the river level up really well.

 

Have a great cruise everyone.

 

notamermaid

 

[rafinmd]

18 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

@USC Adventurer

Hello David,

Thank you very much for your kind words. Heard on the other thread from Roy that you were delayed. I hope with the storm raging in Britain that you have made it safely to Basel. Rain I am afraid will be your companion for much of this week but when the sun comes out you should still be able to see some nice colours as the storms have not taken all the leaves of the trees yet. There is a storm warning in place but along the Rhine currently only in the Southwestern hills, the Swabian Jura, of Germany.

 

 

The rain will keep the river level up really well.

 

Have a great cruise everyone.

 

notamermaid

 

I hope so.  He was due on a Swissair flight due around 3PM and I cant get a flight status from them.  Hopefully he is safely on his way to his hotel and a very welcome rest.

 

Roy

[notamermaid]

10 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

I hope so.  He was due on a Swissair flight due around 3PM and I cant get a flight status from them.  Hopefully he is safely on his way to his hotel and a very welcome rest.

 

Roy

Oh! I was wondering if everything is okay with flights when I saw the storm warnings. The port of Dover is closed at the moment.

 

I hope you are enjoying Basel and I look forward to reading more about your travels on the other thread.

 

notamermaid

 

[USCAdventurer]

Hello from Basel!

I finally made it to Basel I got to the hotel around 3:30 today and there was a horrible storm in London although the airport never shut down actually I love stormy rainy weather doesn't bother me one bit of course if it interferes with some of the views from the river cruise then I won't be happy I found the most fabulous chocolate shop in Basel and of course but lots and lots of chocolate I'm a real chocoholic then I found one of the best restaurants in Basel for fondue so I had some mushroom fondue for dinner and the best the best veal Cordon Bleu I've ever had in my life and then I have these potatoes called rosti that is the Swiss version of hash brown potatoes and they were fabulous no dessert though so I'm here.  

[notamermaid]

Hello David,

good to hear you have arrived safely and are enjoying yourself.

Swiss chocolate, really nice. I have not had a fondue for many years, but those Rösti, yes, I also prefer them to hash browns (those I know from travels in Britain).

 

Hope you get to sample some more regional food, on or off the ship. Love the fact that Crystal offers Schwetzingen Palace as an alternative excursion, I have heard good things about the place.

 

notamermaid

 

[USCAdventurer]

Hello not a mermaid the dining room of crystal Bach I had a fabulous day touring Strasbourg this morning by foot in by canal boat and then they had a special concert for Crystal Bach at the cathedral of Notre dam in Strasbourg there is an organ recital in a tour of the cathedral and it was only opened for Crystal passage and have wonderful food infection I I'm having dinner schnitzel French onion soup instruct cocktail I love German food no problem with water level at all and I'm having the most fabulous time of my life and Crystal is beyond brilliant it's a wonderful Cruise Line cheers David

[notamermaid]

It is Monday evening, let us have a brief look at the week. It has started with - an earthquake! At 00:59 during Monday night the earth shook in the Swabian Jura, the area North of Lake Constance, precisely at Albstadt, and the magnitude was 3.8 on the Richter scale. A lot of reports of people waking up have come in, but no damage or injuries have been reported, from what I have read here and in German reports: https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/app/earthquakes/quake-info/2572310/M3-Mon-4-Nov-Albstadt-D-Germany.html

There had been earthquakes in the Summer near Lake Constance. If you would like to find out more about volcanism and why earthquakes happen along the Rhine and nearby, please read from post #75 in this thread.

 

The river levels are fine, with Kaub at 205cm and still rising. Flooding is not expected for this week. Little rain is forecast for tomorrow, Wednesday and Thursday should see mostly drizzle all over the valley with Friday light rain just around Basel and towards Lake Constance. Temperatures are mild, 13 Celsius maximum during the day, 6 at night (Strasbourg being about the warmest area) but it will get cooler later in the week.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

[MLA]

Just back in US after wonderful trip from Vienna to Amsterdam. We enjoyed incredible weather (only one rainy day in Cologne which was OK as I got to hear Mass at the Cathedral on All saint’s Day). Even quite warm on our final day in Amsterdam! No water issues.   Lucky lucky us!  Thanks for all the useful info on this and the Danube thread. 

[notamermaid]

Reviewing the river levels this morning and looking at the forecast, I was wondering if the low water risk is passed us for this year - at least on the Rhine. From an amateur's point of view I would say it is looking promising...

 

Yesterday it rained more in my part of the valley than the forecast had suggested on Monday. The levels along the whole river, by that I mean downstream from Lake Constance, are rising with Maxau getting just that little bit closer to high level. Real flooding is not anticipated. There are a couple of low bridges around Basel that might cause a problem or two, but I have no details on the situation up there, past cruisers have given anecdotal evidence of problems in the past.

 

A little diversion from the subject Rhine I hope you will forgive me, especially those who are fond of castles. The castles in the Rhine valley are loved by so many, but a few people have in the past mentioned having seen enough old stones after a Rhine cruise. For those who still cannot get enough here is a hop across the border into France. The region of Burgundy is part of a few itineraries as pre- or post-cruise stop and so it is feasible for you to have a trip out to this old castle at Guedelon. Actually, it is a castle but not old. It is being built from scratch and you can help! Here it is: https://m.dw.com/en/europe-to-the-maxx-guédelon-castle/av-51086041

 

Get the hammer and chisel ready! You are of course allowed just to watch others doing the work...

 

notamermaid