Photo
galleries
The
photographs in this TradBoat special were taken in the summer of 2004, on the Middle
Rhine between Koblenz and Rhudesheim.
They are a cross section of Rhine traffic in this beautiful region and include both
carrying and passenger craft. The sheer size of the
vessels in this area is astonishing, and in
endless variety. To go directly to the Photo
Galleries click here or scroll down
through the galleries for a description of the Middle Rhine
About the Middle Rhine.
We
have included an introductory piece setting the scene for the Middle Rhine with
a little of the history of trading on the river, photographs of some of its
spectacular castles, and a gallery of river marks. We also include a short
list of sources for those
who might be interested in going to the area, and glossary of useful German
words. Start
here
The
Photo Galleries
Goethe - the last of
the paddle ships in the KD Fleet
Click on any of the thumbnails for a larger view. Go
to a Goethe Source page here
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| Goethe coming into
Kamp-Bornhofen on her morning run upstream |
Goethe working upstream |
Contrasts in size. Goethe
works past a modern containership below the
Loreley |
Goethe's elaborate paddle box and
smart livery |
Containerships
- Containerschiffes
– with extending wheelhouses
Click
on any of the thumbnails for a larger view
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Container ship, hotel ship and
passenger ferry.
Lahnstein |
Container traffic with Stolzenfels
castle in the background.
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The extended mast carrying the
bridge deck.
Note cars on deck |
Containers three high in the
Loreley approach.
Bridge deck high |
Specialised tankers
- Tankmotorschiffes
–for liquids and gases
Click
on any of the thumbnails for a larger view
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| Tankship approaching the Loreley
gorge. Note green navigation mark |
Margaux based in Rotterdam
in the Middle section |
A pair emerging from the Loreley
gorge. They will change to push mode |
Another overhead view. This ship
is approaching the Loreley |
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| An LP Gas ship approaching
Lahnstein about a kilometre above Koblenz |
This shot illustrates the sheer
length of these vessels. Compare with lorry behind |
Another LP gas ship with a little
more built up freeboard. Stolzenfels in the background |
Less freeboard in this
example. Again Stolzenfels in the background |
General cargo vessels
- Motorgütershiffes – in wide variety
Click
on any of the thumbnails for a larger view
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| Modern vessel, radar equippd;, this
is a tank ship |
Cargo of every sort. Here is
a load of srarp metal |
An older style smallish cargo
vessel of Dutch origin |
Working down, these vessels are
over 8 0metres in length |
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| Entering a bend in the riv, castle ahead in the shadow |
Family comforts include a sensible
playpen for the toddler |
Peter's bow purpose built to push
a dumb vessel ahead of it |
Passing Stolzenefels castle.
Little freeboard |
Small craft,
tugs and various ferries
Click
on any of the thumbnails for a larger view
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| The Loreley tug working upstream
in to the Loreley Gorge |
This little passenger boat works
the waterfront in Koblenz |
Car ferry linking
St Gaorhausen with St Goar (in the background) |
A small passenger ferry carrying
people and bicycles from Lahnstein |
About
the Middle Rhine
The
Rhine - where it comes from and where it goes
The
Rhine has its source in Switzerland and runs Northwards and then West into the
sea on the Dutch coast at Rotterdam, some 1320 kilometres. On
the way it passes through Switzerland, France, Lichenstein, Germany and Holland. It is
navigable from Basle (Basel) in Switzerland, to Rotterdam, a distance of about
820 kilometres. Compare this to,
say, the River Thames which is navigable for about 150 miles all told.
The
Rhine is divided into six sections:
Alpine
Rhine – Source to Lake Constance
High
Rhine – Lake Constance to Basle (Basel)
Upper
Rhine – Basle to Bingen
Middle Rhine – Bingen to Bonn
Lower
Rhine – Bonn to the Dutch border
Bovenrijn
– Dutch border to Rotterdam
The
Romantic Rhine
(Middle Rhine)
The
photographs were taken in the area Koblenz - Bingen. This
section of the Rhine passes through heavily wooded valleys and vineyards
clinging to the steep slopes. The road runs along the river on both sides
with charming townships along the way. There are no bridges for some
distance above Koblenz
but car and passenger ferries are frequent and well marked.
The
Rhine has always been a great commercial highway.
For example about half the timber used in Holland came down the river in
vast rafts or flüßels. In
mediaeval times the
Middle Rhine was largely controlled by the
great landowners on either bank. They charged tolls of the trading vessels, and were prepared to use force to back up their
demands. Their castles appear at every
turn of the river and give the Middle Rhine its romantic appearance today.
Nowadays the river traffic is continuous and works seven days a week except on
church feast days.
The ship handling is of the highest order. To watch large passenger
vessels crossing at high speed from one landing place to another is to see it at its best.
Getting
upstream
The
problem for Rhine traffic has always been the upstream journey particularly in
the shallowish and fast flowing
sections of the Middle Rhine, and in the Loreley
gorge.
Trading
vessels sailed or were hauled upstream by teams of men and horses until the
Middle of the
1800s when the first steam tugs came into use.
Steam had been introduced to the Rhine in 1824 when Der Seeuw
travelled past Koblenz and up to Kaub
where it was halted by flooding. By
1827 a regular passenger service was in operation.
Steam
tows began in 1829 with Herkules, a Dutch vessel which worked upstream to
Cologne and later Mainz. Because most of this section of the
Middle Rhine is comparatively shallow
it was, and is, difficult to use the conventional deep drafted tug anywhere
other than in the Loreley gorge.
(This tug is used today to assist vessels through the Loreley gorge. There is
a photographs of her at work in our Photo
Gallery, in the Small
Craft Gallery, click here)
Steam Paddle Tugs
By
1850 shallow draft steam paddle tugs (sidewheelers) were coming into service, each capable of
hauling up to six barges. These
Radschleppdampfers were common on the river and continued into this century, the
last of them going out of commission in the 1940s, although steam was gradually
replaced by diesel.
Cable
tugs
In the
late 1800s a cable tug was introduced between Bonn and Bingen. The
remarkable double ended vessel picked up a rope cable and ran it over a series
of steam powered rollers. The model
in the Rhein-Museum Koblenz shows clearly
how it worked. However, it was soon
found that the cable ropes rotted and the vessel was withdrawn in 1905, although
similar vessels continued in service on minor waterways using chain instead of
rope.
Self
propelled vessels - selbsfahren
By the
late 1940s tugs were being replaced by specialised self propelled (selbsfahren)
commercial vessels of six main types. Click here for the
Photo Galleries.
Signs and signals on the river
Distance
markers
and Traffic Signals
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| Kilometres
Marker
boards are set up to give the distance downstream in kilometres, from zero at
Basle (Basel). This is an example at 544 K
with a German railway building in the background. (Railway
lines run along both sides of the river in this region but don't impede the view
because they are between the road and the hillside.)
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500
Metres.
Between the kilometre
markers there are boards
carrying a black cross on a white background. These mark 500 metres.
This one is clearly visible against the dark background.
Kilometre
marks are often painted on walls alongside quays.
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Traffic
signals
Signals at the difficult Loreley gorge, warn traffic of the size of vessels in each
section. Since a towed pair might
be something like a quarter of a mile long they are obviously essential.
As you will see from the photograph the system makes use of illuminated panels
on which sets of bars are displayed as well as a set of "traffic
lights"
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Buoyage
Traffic
travels on the right and the fairways are marked with green buoys
(on the right going upstream) and red buoys on the left.
Blue
Boards
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Blue
Boards
Any
vessel changing sides – that is travelling on the “wrong” side of the river
for a time - puts up a blue board so that oncoming vessels are warned of the
change of course.
This blue board is displayed well forward above Goethe's wheelhouse but
boards on commercial carrying vessels are usually well aft.
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Depth
indicators
- Pegelstände
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Depth
Indicators
In the upper reaches, at Kaub
and Bingen water depth gauges (Pegelstände) have been set up to advise skippers of
the actual depths on a daily basis. This one
is at Kaub
(this is a paper model bought at the Rhein-Museum)
The current minimum depth of the river is displayed in centimetres, and
the Pegelstände also
broadcasts to skippers each day.
(Note. A number of real time depth indicators for
the Rhine and Mosel may be found on the internet sometimes called 'water
guages'.)
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Sources
of information
Museums
Rhein-Museum - Koblenz
This
museum is on the East bank of the Rhine at Koblenz and is approached from
Koblenz by way of
the spectacular Pfaffendorfer Bridge.
It is
one of the best set out museums which we have visited either in the UK or
Germany. The staff are endlessly helpful.
If you don't read German the desk will provide you with "crib"
sheets in English. It is permitted to take non-commercial photographs but courteous to ask
first. The history of Rhine traffic
is set out in separate rooms and the models used are of superb quality.
They include the astonishing rope laying steam tug shown here, models of the vast
Rhine timber rafts - and a wide variety of Rhine craft from early times to date.
Address: Rhein-Museum Koblenz, Charlottenstraße 53 a
56077.
Koblenz Web:
www.rhein-museum.de
Kamp-Bornhofen
Flöße
und Schiffermuseum
Kamp-Bornhofen is a small township about twenty kilometres above Koblenz on the East bank of the Rhine.
The
museum is in the red brick Rathaus which faces the river. This is a small
museum and whilst open
on a regular basis, can be visited only on a few days each week.
However it is packed with models and memorabilia of Rhine traffic and is particularly
strong on the development of timber rafts (flößer) which were assembled close by.
It should certainly be visited in addition to the Rhein-Museum at Koblenz
Address:
Rheinuferstraße 34 (in the Rathaus)
56341 Kamp-Borhofen Tel: 06773/573
Loreley Centre
The Loreley Visitor Centre is in the superb open country above the
Loreley gorge. It is approached by a winding road which climbs up the
hillside immediately upstream of St Goarshausen, and there is plentiful car
parking. The Centre covers
all aspects of the Rhine including its geology and botany in its excellent
educational centre. After visiting the Centre you may walk
along the path which runs along the top of the Eastern cliffs of the gorge where
there are high vantage points for photographers.
Address: Besucherzentrum Loreley. Auf der Loreley
576346 St Gorshausen
Web: www.besucherzentrum-loreley.de
Books
“Rhineschiffart
– gestern und heute (Rhine ship
travel yesterday and today)”
This
book is available in most bookshops in the area but only in the German edition.
However it is heavily illustrated and with the aid of a dictionary for
non-German speakers, provides an excellent summary of these extraordinary vessels from earliest
times, as well as much useful information about the Rhine signalling systems.
In 2004 it cost €9.90, approximately £6.95.
Author:
Karl-Heinz Lautensack 114 pages
colour and black and white illustrations. Many
photographs both historic and modern vessels.
Published
by: Verlag Lautensack 55413 Weiler bei Bingen.
ISBN 3 00011331 8
KD Lines
A history of the Koln - Dusseldorfer Line is available from most of their
riverside booking offices.
Glossary
Dampfgüterschiffe
- steam powered general cargo
Flößer - huge rafts of timber, formerly traded to Holland
Mindestfahrrinnentiefe - literally the minimum travel depth
Gütersmotorchiff - motorised general cargo vessel
Motorschleppboote - motorised tug
Pegelstände - building where water level is measured
Personendampfer - a steam powered passenger ship
Personenschiff - a passenger carrying vessel powered by diesel or similar
Radschleppboote - a side wheel tug.
Radschleppdampfer - steam paddle tug.
Schubschiffe - independent pusher units, capable of pushing huge loads
Wassertief - water level
© Charles
Smith Publications. Brought on line: 27/9/04.
Updated:
06/01/2023
