notamermaid

Thank you, will be good. Actually changed a shift with my colleague (her request) so I now have the shorter one. Lots of small things happening on the Rhine, as always, not that much that is noteworthy for the Rhine thread. Things like excursion boats changing ownership, a few mishaps, new modern barges and tankers, etc. Next unusual thing will be a Viking ship - nooo, not those - a real one. I mean a real newly built one, a replica of one they found in Norway. Info over there in the thread when I find time. Oh, hang on, forgot, there is something newsworthy, a river cruise ship christening in Cologne. Info coming in another thread. notamermaid

Yesterday I was shopping in my local supermarket and when I stepped past the lady at the checkout to collect my wares I nearly bumped into a pile of beer bottles neatly stacked in six-packs and surrounding box construction. I just thought "How unpractical, why are they doing this now?". Then I read the small sign saying "For Father's Day. Every father may take a bottle for free." What a nice touch. The Saturday before Mother's Day every mother could take a red rose, I had not expected them to do anything for Father's Day. It has been a lovely warm and sunny day today, so perfect for any activities a father may want to do. It is also Ascension Day of course in our Christian calendar and in Germany that is a public holiday. People around here often use the combination of public holiday on a Thursday with weekend to create a very long weekend bridging the Friday and taking that day off work. As I work in tourism I cannot do that. If I could convince "ze big boss" in my company to employ one more person I may be able to do it next time... Have a good Friday and weekend. notamermaid

My pleasure. Thanks for saying hello. July should make for glorious sunsets and great barbecue evenings. Or just cocktails on the sundeck. Have a great cruise. Maxau gauge peaked at 682cm and is now down to 665cm. The submarine U17 safely arrived in Speyer yesterday. All back to business as usual on the Rhine. Except - there is (if all goes well) another unusual vessel coming up the river, at the end of May. notamermaid

The river peaked at Passau gauge at 706cm. Level now is 642cm. The level will go down now most likely slowly as there is still quite a bit of water coming from the tributaries. The Isar for example is on flood mark I close to its mouth. notamermaid

The level at Passau has risen quite a bit again, the gauge now reads 673cm. The peak is expected for late this afternoon at over 700cm but most likely below 725cm. notamermaid

In my current avatar is a photo of the Rhinau area in France, taken from onboard the ferry Rhenanus. On the German side is Kappel. There are quite a few ferries taking you across the river. Further downstream from the wide river you do not cross international borders but sometimes boundaries, at Nierstein it is from Rhineland-Palatinate into Hesse (left bank to right bank). Hopefully, this will not be the "problem" that will be the end of the ferry "Landskrone". The operators of the ferry from Nierstein to Kornsand face financial ruin due to roadworks and road closures on both sides of the river, nor far from their ferry terminal. It appears that commuters and occasional travellers use diversions of the road works or avoid the area completely so the ferry now only has a third of the customers it normally has, the average in normal times is 1,500 passengers a day. Local councils have had a crisis meeting, all want to help, Rhineland-Palatinate has promised 60,000 euros but Hesse is not giving any money, stating that "the law concerning traffic does not allow for such compensations in this case" (my shortened translation). A real problem. This is a German article with video: https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/rheinland-pfalz/mainz/treffen-zur-zukunft-der-faehre-landskrone-zwischen-nierstein-und-trebur-kornsand-100.html By the way, Nierstein is not only a well-known wine-growing small town but also has a place in history particularly interesting for US citizens. I have written a bit about this here, part 14: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2516698-rhine-beyond-the-standard-ports/page/2/ notamermaid

The computer modelling for Maxau gauge and flooding tomorrow is now a proper forecast and the wave is still likely going to peak around lunchtime just below 700cm. That is flooding. River traffic stops at 750cm so we should get through this wave alright. After that it should be downhill with the figures fast, below 600cm at the weekend. Kaub is going to stay below any problematic levels and from this weekend looks to be most likely at very pleasant levels well into June. No low water in sight. notamermaid

I promised to get back to you with the levels. In flooding there is a ban on river traffic when the Pfelling gauge is at 620cm, at Passau gauge it is the level of 780cm. notamermaid

That is a good point. From what I understand it was the equivalent of "parking the car badly in a narrow parking bay", so all in all not something that would make headlines. notamermaid

I am afraid I am not really familiar with averages. Most of the problems arise on the Bavarian Danube so I will talk about that a bit. In Bavaria we have a free-flowing river section that can be problematic in low water, in fact it is every year but it may not always result in ships not sailing. I would say expect it to be close in some years during most likely a week in autumn - that is to say three days, then two days a week later, etc. If it gets worse it can be two consecutive weeks, as an example. The figure to watch is 290cm at Pfelling. That is between Straubing and Vilshofen. Anything lower than that means river cruise ships will need to stop sailing one by one, depending on draft and hull construction. The captain decides, there is no river traffic ban in Germany in low water. High water is different. Here we have the infamous bridge at Passau, that becomes an issue before the actual river level does for sailing. That figure is 630cm for passage under the bridge for some river cruise ships - your captain will know this best and decide for his ship. The level for stopping river traffic in Bavaria eludes me at the moment, it is many centimetres higher than the bridge headroom allows*. Austria also has a ban on river traffic in flooding. Again, this depends on the stretch of river. I am not familiar with the countries beyond Austria. Generally speaking, the current and the conditions change in flooding so this affects all ships and for safety, also for protecting the embankments as I have read, a ban on traffic in very high water makes sense. * Will get back to you on this. notamermaid

That is a bit weird. I mean, two people were treated for injuries on the scene. As it was the stern end of the ship the passenger cabins were probably all fine but still. If she is on her way to Budapest that is great and hopefully a lick of paint and minor internal repairs can do the trick. notamermaid

"Chris will immer hoch hinaus" - she always sets her sights high - or should that be chooses the sights that have many steps? Here are the best views from up high across Hamburg according to Northern broadcaster NDR: https://www.ndr.de/ratgeber/reise/Panoramablick-Die-besten-Aussichtspunkte-in-Hamburg,aussicht105.html notamermaid

More footage of the U-Boot. Regional broadcaster SWR is based in Mainz and tonight the submarine is docked there. It was headline news: https://www.ardmediathek.de/video/Y3JpZDovL3N3ci5kZS9hZXgvbzE4NTc3MjY U17 had spent last night in Lahnstein where it was illuminated. By the way, the submarine would most likely not be able to sail under its own engine (if it was allowed to) in the Rhine Gorge. Its draft is 4.60m which is a bit too much for the current river conditions. notamermaid

So the river was too high and Viking did the ship swap(s). Thanks for the info. Have a great cruise. notamermaid

Maxau gauge has returned to more pleasant levels but a wave is coming on Thursday. This may bring the level to official flooding status again. Kaub gauge peaked at 356cm and the level is going down slowly but steadily. notamermaid

As regards the news cycle this is a finished incident, so I am unlikely to hear anything. Any mention of this in the roll calls? Have you checked the My Viking Journey pages of the company? Seeing that the ship was allowed to sail on, it could run the season with some cosmetics but I have no way of knowing this for sure. If there is anything you need to know before you leave for your cruise I am sure Viking will inform you. Water levels. All gauges in Bavaria have returned to below flooding status. Passau has risen to 648cm and should rise further. After this short wave (which may not reach flooding status again) the level will return to a more pleasant level during the course of tomorrow according to the forecast published at lunchtime today. notamermaid

Dresden is perhaps the main port and attraction visited by river cruisers on the Elbe, not counting Berlin and Prague of course. Both those cities are accessible by smaller (those with less draft) river cruise ships. All ships cruising the Elbe and Havel - whichever stretch - are smaller than the large ships on the Rhine for example. I have not been to Dresden. The popular attractions I am sure I would enjoy but these unusual modes of transport would really grab my attention: https://www.dvb.de/en-gb/excursions/hillside-railways The Schwebebahn is the oldest of its kind in the world, notamermaid

I like those: https://www.binnenschifferforum.de/showthread.php?114241-U-Boot-schippert-über-den-Rhein/page3 Well done to Kalle in Köln. And I recommend going up to Erpeler Ley (the rock opposite Remagen) if you are in the area. Quite interesting plateau and good view as you can see. Tomorrow, the Rhine Gorge! I hope someone posts a video or photos online. Bingen webcam for ship spotting: https://heimatzeithotels.panomax.com/bingen notamermaid

Level at Passau going down nicely, now at 631cm. Looking better by the hour but there may be another small rise coming. notamermaid

Brief news. U-Boot U17 drew the crowds in the lower Middle Rhine valley. Webcam of Andernach showed the embankment lined with people. Passengers on the Scenic Opal can pop down - up the river - to see the submarine. Both are docked in Lahnstein (blue dot at Niederlahnstein and green dot near river confluence): notamermaid

Yes, a real challenge. The U-boat will be turned 90 degrees to get under Heidelberg Old Bridge - like the sofa you turn to get through the door I suppose. But that will be next year. Next stretch, another video. Nice one from the bridge at Krefeld industrial areas: Passage at Deutsches Eck in Koblenz planned for 1600 hours local time tomorrow. notamermaid

Me neither. notamermaid

Viva Cruises, the company as such, is celebrating its 5th birthday. There are some special sailings. Perhaps in this context Cruisecritic - the company is increasingly targeting the North-American market - has been on the Viva Two: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2937126-cruise-critic-feature-what-its-like-on-a-river-cruise-with-viva-cruises-just-back-from-viva-two/ Here is an interview with the COO: https://www.travelweekly.com/On-The-Record/Andrea-Kruse-Viva-Cruises and a look at the Viva Two from another writer's perspective: https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Viva-Two-inviting-design-is-a-conversation-starter notamermaid

Not really. I cannot see long term forecasts published. But overall it looks good for the next three days. There appears to be no risk of flooding right now and the Main is regulated by locks so we virtually never see low water. notamermaid

Vilshofen is on flood mark II. Passau gauge is showing expected figures, now at 679cm, so no change to the forecast. 700cm should not be reached. notamermaid