Rhine water levels 2023 and similar topics

[notamermaid]

1 hour ago, MotherDaughterTravels said:

Thanks for the very timely updates, Noto.

My pleasure. Unfortunately your attachment is not available.

 

Rhine and Main sounds great. Which company is it? We can then probably look it up on their website.

 

Sorry, I am busy. Short update on the river later.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Basel gauge remains high, as expected.

 

Maxau gauge went down to 762cm yesterday but has gone up again since and is now on 790cm. The level is expected to fall tomorrow but stay above 750cm. After another rise the situation should ease during the course of Tuesday.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[notamermaid]

Slight change in forecast for the better. If trend continues at Maxau gauge we could see shipping resume a few hours earlier than anticipated last night. Fingers crossed.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Maxau gauge stands at 772cm. So the better forecast has proven to be right. If this continues the level at Maxau should fall below 750cm midday tomorrow.

 

Remember: we have got that bottleneck Iffezheim lock.

 

This is the lock, with the German website being just a little but more extensive: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iffezheim_Lock

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

Maxau gauge is at 773cm. As predicted, there was a slight rise during the day. During the night and tomorrow we will see a slow decline, possibly too slowly to see figures below 750cm before the evening.

 

So where is Maxau? This is the area, near Karlsruhe:

 

When sailing you find the gauge at Rhine kilometre 362.3.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Maxau gauge at 762cm. Only 12cm to go...

 

All gauges up to and including Cologne have peaked. The down slope is very slow, so not much of a slope to speak off. Another grey day in the valley, but the weather is supposed to improve.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Maxau gauge at 754cm.

 

Per newspaper report yesterday 30 ships were already waiting at Iffezheim lock.

 

notamermaid

 

[moonriver54]

5 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

Maxau gauge at 754cm.

 

Per newspaper report yesterday 30 ships were already waiting at Iffezheim lock.

 

notamermaid

 

Wow!  That's starting to sound like the Panama Canal!!

[Canal archive]

Hope there’s no one attempting to queue jump, patience patience and patience again.

[notamermaid]

I guess this is what the authorities mean, lots of dots at Germersheim:

 

notamermaid

 

[MotherDaughterTravels]

On 11/18/2023 at 3:25 PM, notamermaid said:

My pleasure. Unfortunately your attachment is not available.

 

Rhine and Main sounds great. Which company is it? We can then probably look it up on their website.

 

Sorry, I am busy. Short update on the river later.

 

notamermaid

 

HI,  Emerald Waterways, Nuremberg, Bamberg, Wurzburg, Wertheim, Mittleburg, Rudshein, Cologne, Amsterdam                         

[notamermaid]

5 minutes ago, MotherDaughterTravels said:

HI,  Emerald Waterways, Nuremberg, Bamberg, Wurzburg, Wertheim, Mittleburg, Rudshein, Cologne, Amsterdam                         

Lovely. Enjoy.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Maxau gauge is at 749cm. And the ships are on the move!

 

That is the tailback at Iffezheim, a report just before the ships could sail again:

https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/baden-wuerttemberg/karlsruhe/hochwasser-am-rhein-verursacht-schleusenstau-in-iffezheim-100.html

 

That looks better:

 

The problem at Iffezheim: one lock is broken, the second lock is in maintenance status, the kind that slows the locking process. The German report says that locking can take up to 40 minutes.. On normal days, four locking processes can take place in that time.

 

River traffic on the move again, confirmed:

https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/baden-wuerttemberg/karlsruhe/hochwasser-pegel-maxau-schifffahrt-karlsruhe-100.html

 

notamermaid

 

 

[notamermaid]

Cologne Niehl harbour is slowly filling with ships for the winter. Today the Viking Gymir - the one that hit a bridge on the Main - has joined the others already there:

 

In case you are wondering: Cologne gauge has peaked far below the level for a river traffic ban.

 

notamermaid

 

[Canal archive]

At one time here pleasure craft had to give way to working as in cargo craft I cannot remember is this the case on the European mainland?

[moonriver54]

10 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Cologne Niehl harbour is slowly filling with ships for the winter. Today the Viking Gymir - the one that hit a bridge on the Main - has joined the others already there:

 

In case you are wondering: Cologne gauge has peaked far below the level for a river traffic ban.

 

notamermaid

 

Looks like a very protected moorage!  Do you know where Avalon Waterways berths its ships for the winter?

[notamermaid]

1 hour ago, moonriver54 said:

Looks like a very protected moorage!  Do you know where Avalon Waterways berths its ships for the winter?

I have seen few in Germany, as far as I remember they are either on the Danube (Linz has a large harbour for example) or in the Netherlands. Duisburg in Germany also has a typical harbour but I think that is mostly used by German ships. There are a couple of others. CroisiEurope are in their home harbour in Strasbourg by the way.

 

This is where I have seen a cluster of several ships (Avalon and others) in the past and three Avalon ships are there now. A screenshot, zoom in on marinetraffic.com to see them all:

 

Maxau is doing okay, a slightly slow decline. 730cm. The area will stay on flooding level I for several days but no rise of note is indicated in the forecast, a slight rise may come next week.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[moonriver54]

5 minutes ago, notamermaid said:

I have seen few in Germany, as far as I remember they are either on the Danube (Linz has a large harbour for example) or in the Netherlands. Duisburg in Germany also has a typical harbour but I think that is mostly used by German ships. There are a couple of others. CroisiEurope are in their home harbour in Strasbourg by the way.

 

This is where I have seen a cluster of several ships (Avalon and others) in the past and three Avalon ships are there now. A screenshot, zoom in on marinetraffic.com to see them all:

 

Maxau is doing okay, a slightly slow decline. 730cm. The area will stay on flooding level I for several days but no rise of note is indicated in the forecast, a slight rise may come next week.

 

notamermaid

 

 

Very interesting...thank you!

[notamermaid]

9 hours ago, Canal archive said:

At one time here pleasure craft had to give way to working as in cargo craft I cannot remember is this the case on the European mainland?

Not sure. There is the notion that commercial ships have priority at locks, but I have not seen that confirmed in writing. The standard is first come, first serve. In Germany priority is given to boats operated by the authorities, like police launches, etc. Further priority can be given to other ships, they then carry a red triangular flag. The rule book called "Binnenschiffahrtsstrassenordnung" says:

"§ 6.29 Reihenfolge der Schleusungen

1. Es wird, soweit nachstehend nichts anderes bestimmt ist, in der Reihenfolge des Eintreffens vor der Schleuse, bei mehreren Schleusen vor der gewählten oder durch Richtungsweiser nach § 6.28a zugewiesenen Schleuse geschleust. ..."

The exceptions then follow in the text.

 

Perhaps someone can talk to captain or crew members on their upcoming cruise to find out a little about the topic.

 

notamermaid

 

[Canal archive]

I suspect most Captains would allow both to pass them. Thanks.

[CastleCritic]

I can definitely remember arriving at a lock with AMAwaterways far as I remember on the Rhine and having a barge come around us and go through an entire cycle before we could go in.

[Barb at Maple Lane]

Not a Mermaid, what dates was the section from Passau to Regensberg closed this fall please?

 

Also, how long was Budapest unavailable for the ships to dock there?

 

Need this for a "trip interruption" claim.

 

Thanks in advance.

[notamermaid]

16 minutes ago, Barb at Maple Lane said:

Not a Mermaid, what dates was the section from Passau to Regensberg closed this fall please?

 

Also, how long was Budapest unavailable for the ships to dock there?

 

Need this for a "trip interruption" claim.

 

Thanks in advance.

Oh, that is a bit difficult to compile for Budapest. Pfelling I can get together.

 

I will give it a think and put something in the Danube thread.

 

Some posts in the Viking river roll calls can give you clues as well.

 

Bare with me a day or two please.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

6 hours ago, moonriver54 said:

Looks like a very protected moorage!

It is big and really away from the river flow, an industrial harbour, but also has been the place for the KD company (Köln-Düsseldorfer) to put their river cruise ships (when they operated them) and excursion boats for many years. I had not realized this. When I went there in a previous year - you know, when all ships were grounded - I saw the KD logos where Viking has their ships. That is because of the business connection that Viking started in Germany with KD ships.

 

Not the sort of place you want to dock in for the night and too far from the city centre. But the village of Niehl is nice, a traditional fishing village it was - till the big companies came: https://www.stadt-koeln.de/artikel/06809/index.html

 

I really like this drone photo of the harbour, do check out the photographer and the text is worth translating with an online program, it explains the significance of the date the photo was taken: https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Datei:Hafen_Köln_Niehl_I_(Niehler_Hafen)_-_Panorama-07900792.jpg

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

The situation continues to improve on the Rhine, all stations, now also into the Netherlands, show well fallen levels. The flood alert system has reverted to standard mode.

 

The weather has improved. After a lovely sunset last night we had a cold night and today has been the more pleasant wintery grey rather than November grey. Need to get the gloves out.

 

Tomorrow: Christmas markets open! Many of them at least. Koblenz for example.

 

I have been to my first Advent charity event, but I will say a bit more in the Christmas markets thread.

 

notamermaid