Rhine water levels 2024 and similar topics

[CastleCritic]

11 minutes ago, NCvol24 said:

How are you to tell if it is held up? We are scheduled to depart next week on the Rhine. Hoping to make the most of it like you.

I always use a site called marinetraffic to see where the ships are. Cerainly will leave some interpretation a few days out but hopefully your cruise company will communicate before you leave as to what any changed plan is. 

[Dwg7127]

I spoke with Emerald this morning and they said “currently there is no interruption to our cruise”. Still 4.5 days until departure so things can change. I think the only concern is that the boat gets to Basel by Saturday.

[notamermaid]

6 hours ago, Ladyshopper23 said:

I really hope that the flooding does not impact the communities living closest to the river too much. Must be quite scary watching those river levels rise.

Most of them are quite skilled in dealing with this as it occurs every two years or in this instance  every five to ten years. Authorities issue warnings, you can get leaflets informing you of the risk to your part of town or street even and online info. Right now there are regular updates every fifteen minutes for the locals. Still, it is work and nervousness - even anxiety if you are a new owner of a potentially affected property - that comes with living close to the river. And not every insurance is willing to insure your property or with the coverage you would have elsewhere - or it may be very expensive to get that type of contract.

 

6 hours ago, Ladyshopper23 said:

We are due to embark an APT river cruise on 28th June at Nuremberg, that is sailing to Amsterdam. I guess we'll have to wait and see whether we are impacted by this or not.

That is quite a way out in date still so there is every chance of things returning to normal but I have a feeling that ships may still not be in the place they should be according to their original itinerary.

 

This week is bad, next week could still be shaky as we are expecting a lot of water still, but the week after next looks promising for normal conditions for sailing and completely resuming normal itineraries. Rather than just a short wave, the river may remain on a high so I am a bit cautious about saying that we will get to a normal state soon.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

7 hours ago, Dwg7127 said:

The boat we are scheduled to board on the 8th (Emerald Dawn) in Basel is coming from Amsterdam and scheduled to arrive Koblenz tomorrow June 5th. Looks like it will be held up there. Any idea when the river traffic will be able to move again?

Good question. the wave is coming towards the Emerald Dawn, it is actually already in Koblenz but the crest of the wave will not hit Koblenz yet. Logistically I am not sure that I can get my head round this but this may be a scenario. The Emerald Dawn is in Koblenz in the morning so sails the Rhine Gorge in the afternoon. But the level at Kaub is forecast to rise so much that river traffic may be suspended in the afternoon in the Rhine Gorge. That would keep the Emerald Dawn at Koblenz for at least 6 hours. If she can get through the Gorge tomorrow she may sit out the wave and the high level at Rüdesheim for example.

 

The authorities estimate that river traffic will resume at Maxau on Thursday. I would take this with a pinch of salt as the prediction as of now suggests it could be midnight going into Friday.

 

Continued in next post...

 

notamermaid

 

Edited June 3 by notamermaid

[notamermaid]

3 hours ago, Dwg7127 said:

I spoke with Emerald this morning and they said “currently there is no interruption to our cruise”. Still 4.5 days until departure so things can change. I think the only concern is that the boat gets to Basel by Saturday.

 

So following on from the previous post I would say that they may be right for your cruise. They could do a "fast run" to Basel and make it. But it looks tight to me depending on where the Emerald Dawn meets the crest of the wave.

 

Koblenz is getting flooding but at the moment it looks as if there will be no river traffic ban. If that is the case then things are looking good for gauges after that as the Moselle, as I mentioned before, is not contributing to the situation with a high volume of water.

 

notamermaid

 

[Dwg7127]

Thank you for your insight as to river/gorge possible conditions. We will be traveling to Europe tomorrow so not in contact for a bit but will post again when we have more news. 
Just an insight for other cruisers; when we cruised with AMA last year they were constantly updating us via email about our upcoming cruise and things to prepare or plan for. Emerald, not so much. Pre-trip communication is minimal which means you need to contact them if you want an update or have a question.

[notamermaid]

17 minutes ago, Dwg7127 said:

We will be traveling to Europe tomorrow so not in contact for a bit but will post again when we have more news.

Have a good trip.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Time for me to retire after an eventful day.

 

A note though on the Upper Rhine valley. This high water will not pass as fast as we would like as the rivers of Switzerland are still draining much into the Rhine and there are tributaries that have now more or less drained into Lake Constance from the East. Basel gauge has risen again.

 

More on that tomorrow and we will see how things have developed in the Rhine Gorge.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

River traffic issuspended at Mainz and at Bingen. Kaub is on the brink and looks very likely to happen.

 

German report: https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/rheinland-pfalz/mainz/stadt-ingelheim-warnt-vor-hochwasser-durch-steigende-pegel-am-rhein-100.html

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

The Emerald Dawn - let us follow her a bit - is now in Koblenz and has docked alongside two Viking ships, i.e. another rafting as three ships at that landing stage. There are docking places between Koblenz and Kaub but some have to stay free for the regular excursion boats. So we will likely see Koblenz busy for a while. Rüdesheim is inaccessible as river traffic is suspended according to the news article I posted above.

 

With the crest of the wave now approaching the Rhine Gorge, Maxau gauge must have fallen further, right? Unfortunately not, the area has taken on more water in a small second wave and is back up to 803cm. The end of the ban on river traffic has been pushed to Friday.

 

After 36 hours of falling, Basel gauge went up again yesterday and although that little peak has passed will remain high and another small wave may pass through the city over the weekend.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Kaub gauge has gone to 647cm, navigational flood mark II is at 640cm.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

In the afternoon the Viking Alruna left Koblenz and entered the Rhine Gorge. She only got as far as Osterspai and then turned back. You can make out the track and the return:

 

The Emerald Dawn is still docked in Koblenz.

 

The peak at Kaub gauge is expected for 2am to 3am local time.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Maxau gauge is still following that forecast suggested earlier today. No change for the better, the river traffic ban will still be likely lifted on Friday. But the river is likely to remain high after that, so a normal state of affairs is unlikely to return this week, just relief and river traffic hopefully.

 

I said yesterday that I would explain a bit more about Basel and why the river remains so high.

 

We are still seeing some rivers and lakes in Switzerland giving a higher than normal volume of water to the Rhine and the discharge at Basel had increased again after that first peak. Excursion boat trips at the Rhine Falls have been suspended by the way, it is too dangerous. We are talking about this area:

 

Basel is back on green on this map but the Higher Rhine between Konstanz and Basel is still showing yellow. From Ravensburg a small river flows into Lake Constance and that brought a lot of water two to three days ago. The long line above Pfullendorf by the way is the Danube (two yellow and one orange dot, which shows that even the young Danube is still affected). The rivers and lakes will all drain off enough soon if the dryer weather forecast is anything to go by, but Lake Constance will keep supplying plenty of water. Right now the Lake is actually on mild flooding status:

 

The advantage of this is that should we get warm and dry weather soon, this natural reservoir of the Rhine will keep the level of the river at a good height for longer. But that is for another week to look at - hopefully several weeks into the future.

 

Time to say goodnight and check on the ships at Koblenz tomorrow.

 

notamermaid

 

[NCvol24]

Thanks for your update, not feeling so good about being on the river next week.

[cruisingonQ]

I have been reading this tonight and am concerned as we fly to Amsterdam on Friday and on Monday start our voyage to Basel. When we booked we choice early June because of concerns the river might get too low later in the summer. 
 

[Izengolf]

Notamermaid mentioned that now most ships are not in their correct spot and I have wondered how they resolve this? Easier for Viking with so many to move passengers to a ship in the right spot but, for example, there are 7 ships taking refuge in Strasbourg that have not and cannot move until at least Friday with 5 having no hope of reaching Amsterdam in time and 1 to Trier (strange since the Moselle is closed to traffic for annual maintenance June 3-12). The 7th almost made it to Basel. The lines must be scrambling with plans A to Z depending on the weather, rivers and authorities.

[notamermaid]

6 hours ago, Izengolf said:

Notamermaid mentioned that now most ships are not in their correct spot and I have wondered how they resolve this?

I think I will not even start to get my head round any of the itinerary problems the companies are facing. I had forgotten about the lock maintenance on the Moselle! I was saying to someone yesterday at home that the Moselle is fine... Accessible on land perfectly but very few ships the river will see. In theory you are allowed to sail but not much point just between two locks and if the first lock at Koblenz is closed then all you can do is sail up the Moselle for about 800m... Oh, and on the Rhine there is still only one chamber at Iffezheim lock available.

 

To the ships at Koblenz. The Johann Strauss (a smaller, older vessel) had quite a nice stop in Koblenz overnight. There is a possibility that this the original itinerary, but it would be an unusual one - she is on the return lap down river now (a bit difficult to make out):

 

The Viking Alruna is still at Koblenz. It is a mystery to me why they went to Osterspai and back, I mean attempting to get close to Bingen would have been a silly idea. Docking at Oberwesel or Braubach perhaps possible. But all a bit iffy which will become clear when I post a video of Boppard. Remember that I said that ships can dock in the Rhine Gorge at the landing stages that the excursion boats do not need at the moment? Well, when the spare ones are not under water.

 

And the Emerald Dawn? This was her "journey" yesterday:

 

The 24 hour track shows her changing position from one landing stage to another.

 

According to SWR news the river peaked at Kaub this morning at 6.51m. St. Goar village stayed dry and people there are naturally relieved. But they have to cancel a festival that was supposed to take place at the weekend. It is an interesting, make-shift-looking solution, in the photo of St.Goar, but apparently effective up to 6.70m:

https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/rheinland-pfalz/koblenz/hochwasser-mittelrhein-sankt-goar-innenstadt-schutz-ueberflutung-schnelldamm-aufgebaut-100.html

 

The crest of the wave has just gone through Koblenz it seems, in about an hour's time we can clearly see if the river is falling there. The level for a river traffic ban has not been reached and we can safely say that all gauges up to and including Cologne will be fine as regards that as well.

 

Maxau gauge is going down well and we can assume that river traffic will resume on Friday. But as I have hinted at yesterday, the high level will stay with us so the situation will stay "interesting". Sorry.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

13 hours ago, NCvol24 said:

Thanks for your update, not feeling so good about being on the river next week.

Sorry to have no better news for you. I am afraid you will need to be flexible. If you have any concerns, do phone the cruise company. I expect you have the ship's special phone number or the cruise director's contact details in your personal info for the cruise. Again, if you have any concerns...

 

Things could go okay depending on where your ship is now and where it is supposed to pick you up.

 

A general note to all: as of now it really looks to be calming down as regards the weather a bit, but there is just far too much water that is heading in the general direction to the North Sea. With little rain having fallen North and West of Cologne, things are looking much better there right now and I am confident the rivers up there on the map will cope. Today it is raining from the more standard directions, so we have a more normal weather pattern again. But it is not heavy rain. Should be okay.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

10 hours ago, cruisingonQ said:

I have been reading this tonight and am concerned as we fly to Amsterdam on Friday and on Monday start our voyage to Basel. When we booked we choice early June because of concerns the river might get too low later in the summer. 
 

Sorry. Unfortunately Mother Nature decided to give us a hard time this spring. As you start in the Netherlands I am confident that you will be able to sail through the canal upstream on the Rhine into Germany. That should be okay and likely you will get as far as Cologne. It is just more the question of where your ship will be. I am sure your cruise line will do its best to get the ship to you and inform you if something does not work out, but should you have any logistical concerns, I suggest you phone them.

 

For those who would like to track their ship this week, marinetraffic.com can be of service: https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:7.4/centery:50.7/zoom:9

I happen to have this on that zoom setting right now and have just spotted the MS Treasures sailing upstream to Koblenz. Her signal says Budapest. It may sound odd, but I think she could make it there without problems, her timing may work out.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

 

[Canal archive]

Okay regardless I know have visions of Emerald Dawn surf boarding on the wave (hopefully completely untrue, but you never know) I so sincerely hope that Emerald/Scenic have got it right and from experience I know Scenic has exceptional Captains. Everything crossed 🤞 

[Harrilo]

Due to cruise Amsterdam to Basel on Saturday 8th with Viking, phone call this am to say there is a definite boat change and possible long coach journeys +/- says in hotels not on boat.

Not sure on the logistics of that.  Current options are cancel, re schedule or go and hope for the best 😬.  

Not sure what to do for the best 

[Host Jazzbeau]

13 hours ago, Izengolf said:

Notamermaid mentioned that now most ships are not in their correct spot and I have wondered how they resolve this? Easier for Viking with so many to move passengers to a ship in the right spot but

Not necessarily.  Viking have that many more sailings to match their higher number of ships.  Whether you have 2 ships or 20 you need to have 1/2 of them on each side of the blockage.

[disgirl]

We are supposed to depart on the AMA Mora on Monday (Basel to Amsterdam).  Thank you for all of the updates.  It is greatly appreciated and I have shared with my friends going along.  I am giving myself grace to be prepared for a bus tour of Europe.  I know a lot can happen in 4 days though so I am putting out positive vibes for the safety of the locals and the rain to stop.

[notamermaid]

27 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Not necessarily.  Viking have that many more sailings to match their higher number of ships.  Whether you have 2 ships or 20 you need to have 1/2 of them on each side of the blockage.

That is the problem in flooding. It is not the "easy-peasy" solution of having a ship upstream of the Rhine gorge and downstream from the Rhine Gorge. That is only about 60km to cover. This flooding extends over 200km.

 

Which brings me to:

1 hour ago, Harrilo said:

Due to cruise Amsterdam to Basel on Saturday 8th with Viking, phone call this am to say there is a definite boat change and possible long coach journeys +/- says in hotels not on boat.

Not sure on the logistics of that.  Current options are cancel, re schedule or go and hope for the best 😬.  

Not sure what to do for the best 

You are in the UK which makes travel to the continent a bit easier. If Viking says a long coach ride this could mean they will cover the 200odd kilometres by coach. They have done that before. Viking have a policy of not cancelling any river cruise but give the passengers the best experience possible [which may involve a long coach ride - my addition]. Give it a good think and check your insurance policy... If you are flexible you may prefer to go in July.

 

We are not sure yet how the weekend will develop at Maxau...

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

River level update. Koblenz peaked at 575cm this morning. The crest of the wave is now going through Bonn and Cologne. Both look to have a peak below the line for a flood that happens every two years. So no big deal and far away from the line of a river traffic ban. A look further downstream reveals that the situation at Düsseldorf is most likely to be similar. So all good there. With no more tributaries providing higher than normal volumes of water to the Lower Rhine this could turn into a "straight run through" now for the waters. The Meuse is fine but the Dutch authorities are indicating elevated levels around the Ijssel. Not sure if that could have any impact in connection with the wave coming from Germany. Maxau gauge: nice drop, potentially lifting of the river traffic ban earlier on Friday than the authorities had anticipated. At weekend further improvement possible, a bit early to say.

 

Ship docking "madness". I never knew you could get so many river cruise ships into Koblenz. The Emerald Dawn is still there, with the Treasures alongside her. Another rafting couple is made up of the Scenic Crystal and the Emerald Sun. The Viking Alruna and the Viking Kara are the "mad" pair. This morning the Viking Kara joined the Viking Alruna and then had a run to Osterspai! First I thought she would drop passengers off at Braubach for Marksburg Castle but she did not stop there. She just turned around and went back to Koblenz. If anyone has a clue what the point of these two trips to Osterspai were please enlighten me.

 

notamermaid