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Rhine - water levels and similar topics 2015


notamermaid
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Greetings from Germany!

 

I thought I might provide you with some info on the current water levels and weather, seeing that the cruising season has started. I have already spotted several companies and their ships. During my shopping trip to Koblenz the other day two Viking longships were docked there side by side. And it is only the beginning of April. Talk about the rivers getting crowded...

 

Anyway, here goes:

 

we have had a miserable few days here in the West of Germany with a hurricane and lots of rain. A few people have been killed in accidents connected with the hurricane. Regional train traffic was disrupted severly.

 

The weather is a little better now, but Spring is having a slow start this year.

 

The water levels have risen quite a bit - also on the Danube - but so far only one station on the Neckar (a tributary to the Rhine) has announced flooding issues.

 

The Rhine should be fine over Easter.

 

Generally, the water levels have been lower than average this winter, so there is still a bit of room in the river bed for the snow coming from the Alps. It is still quite cold. Temperatures probably will not rise over 12 degrees Celsius this weekend. There might be a little snowfall in the Black Forest area tomorrow.

 

notamermaid

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Greetings from Germany!

 

I thought I might provide you with some info on the current water levels and weather, seeing that the cruising season has started. I have already spotted several companies and their ships. During my shopping trip to Koblenz the other day two Viking longships were docked there side by side. And it is only the beginning of April. Talk about the rivers getting crowded...

 

Anyway, here goes:

 

we have had a miserable few days here in the West of Germany with a hurricane and lots of rain. A few people have been killed in accidents connected with the hurricane. Regional train traffic was disrupted severly.

 

The weather is a little better now, but Spring is having a slow start this year.

 

The water levels have risen quite a bit - also on the Danube - but so far only one station on the Neckar (a tributary to the Rhine) has announced flooding issues.

 

The Rhine should be fine over Easter.

 

Generally, the water levels have been lower than average this winter, so there is still a bit of room in the river bed for the snow coming from the Alps. It is still quite cold. Temperatures probably will not rise over 12 degrees Celsius this weekend. There might be a little snowfall in the Black Forest area tomorrow.

 

notamermaid

 

Any news about the Elbe? We are sailing there the end of the month from Berlin to Prague. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Cole

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Hello Cole,

 

it is impossible to say anything about the Elbe so far in advance, the general trend seems similar to the Rhine for the next week or so. However, the weather and the amounts of rain are often different from the Rhine area.

 

notamermaid

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Hello Cole,

 

it is impossible to say anything about the Elbe so far in advance, the general trend seems similar to the Rhine for the next week or so. However, the weather and the amounts of rain are often different from the Rhine area.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

I know it is far in advance, just wondered if the Elbe river levels were similar to Rhine. Will keep watching posts to see what information can be gathered.

Thanks,

Cole

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notamermaid ~ you're fabulous for posting and keeping us informed!! You were great for our Dec 2012 trip!

 

"Shopping in Koblenz" - I'm feeling nostalgic!!

 

Everyone - have great trips - we loved the Rhine River - both our 2008 land trip and 2012 Viking cruise!!!!

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Thank you every for the nice replies.

 

Glad to report that the weather is improving. Temperatures are scheduled to reach the twenties (Celsius) this weekend. Lots of sunshine to be had already. Spring is finally here.

 

notamermaid

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  • 2 weeks later...

Last weekend was very sunny and warm, the beergardens had their first busy weekend this season.

 

This weekend is cool and cloudy, temperatures are between 10 and 12 degrees today lunchtime.

 

It has not rained much, in fact, too little so far for April. The water level on the Rhine is lower than average, but fine for sailing.

 

notamermaid

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Last weekend was very sunny and warm, the beergardens had their first busy weekend this season.

 

This weekend is cool and cloudy, temperatures are between 10 and 12 degrees today lunchtime.

 

It has not rained much, in fact, too little so far for April. The water level on the Rhine is lower than average, but fine for sailing.

 

notamermaid

Not that I want other people to have a rainy cruise, but since the water levels are already lower than average, I hope there is more rain soon so we have reasonable water levels at the end of August.

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Hello Heart26,

 

the weather is unsettled with cool temperatures, light wind, a little bit of rain. There is snow forecast for tomorrow in the East of Germany down into some of the valleys with a sharp drop in temperatures!

 

But here on the Rhine we will have cool temperatures between 5 and 13 with a peak of 16 Celsius maximum forecast for tomorrow. Lots of rain over the coming weekend, unfortunately.

 

Water levels are fine.

 

notamermaid

Edited by notamermaid
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I am sitting on a Viking longboat at Strasbourg right now for the second day in a row as the Rhine river is too high to for the ship to move. They will let us know if the ship can move tomorrow night and continue our trip. I'm worried that we will miss the Rhine castles in daylight as they try to make up time. The staff is nice, but as this is only the second trip for the Gefjon, no one is too confident. We are "going with the flow" but I want to warn anyone planning a river cruise that this could happen to you too .

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I am sitting on a Viking longboat at Strasbourg right now for the second day in a row as the Rhine river is too high to for the ship to move. They will let us know if the ship can move tomorrow night and continue our trip. I'm worried that we will miss the Rhine castles in daylight as they try to make up time. The staff is nice, but as this is only the second trip for the Gefjon, no one is too confident. We are "going with the flow" but I want to warn anyone planning a river cruise that this could happen to you too .

Oh no :eek:...surely they will find a way for you to see the castle portion during the daytime as that is a primary purpose for doing the Rhine cruise! Keep us posted. Wishing you good luck!

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I am sitting on a Viking longboat at Strasbourg right now for the second day in a row as the Rhine river is too high to for the ship to move. They will let us know if the ship can move tomorrow night and continue our trip. I'm worried that we will miss the Rhine castles in daylight as they try to make up time. The staff is nice, but as this is only the second trip for the Gefjon, no one is too confident. We are "going with the flow" but I want to warn anyone planning a river cruise that this could happen to you too .

 

Are other cruise lines' ships stuck with you, or is this unique to the Viking lard bottom [i mean long boat] design?

Edited by Host Jazzbeau
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The staff said that 25% of the river was closed, mainly from Basel to Strasbourg. The only things passing us are sticks. They are running out of places to take us. Today we are going to Freiberg. Yesterday we were bused to Heidelberg, but there were problems getting enough buses. The river looks like it went up again last night. I hope we are allowed to move tonight.

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I ventured out early (for me) this morning and saw the river level. My more or less immediate thought was "I reckon they will be having problems up there at Basel". I am sorry to hear that I was right. From what I have heard in the news most of the area of Baden-Würrtemberg is affected, i.e. the upper Rhine valley and the tributaries. In "port terms" that is Basel, Strassbourg, Breisach and potentially Mannheim/Speyer (I am estimating for the last two). Further downstream, roughly from Speyer onwards it is looking o.k. at the moment. In the middle Rhine valley all ships appear to be sailing still. The level here has not reached the official marking for the term "flooding" yet. It is not certain at all what will happen as it is raining on and off in the valley. In the Middle Rhine valley it is not looking bleak.

 

Fingers crossed!

 

By the way, oddly, I saw the Gefjon on its "training cruise" on the Rhine a few weeks ago in a place called Königswinter. The company has its own marked berth there but their boats normally do not stop there. Imagine my surprise when for the first time in years I went to the river bank there and the Gefjon docked! The Gefjon appears huge, people stopped to look. Heads turned in the cafè at the riverside.

 

Yes, hostjazzbeau, I would like to know as well how the other companies are faring.

 

Fafnar, Viking has so many boats on the river now, has there been any talk of switching boats to help you along on your journey? They did it last year on the Danube. If you were closer to the Middle Rhine valley area you could even switch to the regional boat companies for full enjoyment of the river castles.

 

I sincerely hope things will get better during the day for you.

 

notamermaid

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I need to add that it appears a section of the river upstream is still officially closed, which means that there is no river traffic at all. Due to the current weather conditions it cannot be predicted when the ban will be lifted (the level needs to drop below an official marking).

 

notamermaid

Edited by notamermaid
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Thank you for your very nice reply. We saw one barge go by about an hour ago! However nothing since. Other passengers talked about the possibility of changing ships, but not the staff.

You can tell the staff is new. They are all trying very hard to do everything right but often miss basics. The captain is very young, 28, and not used to talking to a room full of passengers. However, we love the ship and are making the best of our vacation .

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More bad news, also the Danube seems to be closed between Passau and Regensburg. The river level at Deggendorf went from 3.50 to 5.00m in 2 days.. What a great season start :(

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I was in Passau this morning, Danube has risen about 1.5 meters since Sunday, very fast flowing, locks are still in operation.

 

The problem in Passau is the low suspension bridge, when the Danube is over 6.3 meters (as it is now), boats with large/high superstructure can not proceed under the bridge.

 

It never rains but it pours. There is a weather warning for heavy rain the south of Bavaria for later today, which means the Danube right bank tributries will be carry more water than normal.

 

Beautiful day in Passau, 27°C tomorrow 13°C.

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It was just announced that we won't leave Strasbourg until noon. They are going to bus us to speyer , and hopefully the boat will meet us there . They are watching a "wave" of water as it makes its way downstream . They promised to at least put us on a day trip up the middle Rhine to see the castles. But I think the time on the Moselle and trier will be forfeit. I'm disappointed to say the least.

The Viking Idi made it out of Basel , so they are happier.

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So sorry to hear about your problems! Atleast it sounds like they are doing the best they can under the conditions. Hope it gets better. I will stay tuned for your updates. We are sailing in less than 3 weeks on Uniworld from Basel to Amsterdam. Hoping things get better by then.

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The problem in Passau is the low suspension bridge, when the Danube is over 6.3 meters (as it is now), boats with large/high superstructure can not proceed under the bridge.

 

To my knowledge, ships are stuck at Vilshofen / Deggendorf because of the old railway bridge at Regensburg. Groups today will reach Nuremberg by bus, have not heard anything about tours tomorrow or for this weekend..

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