We have been watching a few web sites that report the river levels and those show a considerable rise in the water level in the last couple days.
The rain is continueing, so we are hoping all will be back to normal by the time we join the ship.We have been watching a few web sites that report the river levels and those show a considerable rise in the water level in the last couple days.
The rain is continueing, so we are hoping all will be back to normal.
By this time next week we will be on our way to Amsterdam.
Our friends are leaving on Thursday, so they can get in and rest up for
the adventure. I guess they plan on being worn out from so much shopping.
The Rhine is still low, as noted in previous posts, however is is now raining in Germany.
It will take a lot of rain to bring the river back up in a week, but we can still hope.
If the water is still low we will make the best of it and just drink more gluwein to make up for the
inconvience.
The suitcase is about ready, it is ever harder to figure what to take since rain is forcast and we will
be spending some of the nights in a hotel, that lessens the chance of being able to get things laundered. On the ship you can drop them in the AM and they are usually back in your room before you are.
Stay tunes, the posts start next weekend, unless Greg puts something up Thursday or Friday.
This weekend, a large section of the German city of Koblenz will come to
a standstill as bomb experts gingerly defuse a massive World War II bomb
that recently emerged from the Rhine River due to low water levels.
Almost half of the residents will be evacuated, the largest such
operation in the city's history.
You can download the complete article over the Internet at the following
URL:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,800947,00.html
More about this issue
---------------------------
War Leftovers in the Rhine: Low Water Levels Lead to Explosive Finds
http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/0,1518,799226,00.html
*****************
Rhine, Danube shipping troubled by lower water
Wed Nov 16, 2011 10:39am GMT
* Shallow water still hampers Rhine, Danube sailings
* Some vessels sailing under half full
* Length restrictions in southern sections of river
HAMBURG, Nov 16 (Reuters) - A further fall in water levels this week is hindering freight shipping on the Rhine and Danube rivers in Germany and many vessels are sailing only 50 to 20 percent full, traders said on Wednesday.
Rhine water levels have fallen because of dry weather in Germany and Switzerland, continuing a period of shallowness which started in late October.
Water levels are so low that the maximum length of vessel permitted to sail in some southern sections of the river has been reduced to 116.50 metres from 135 metres normally, a spokeswoman for the German inland navigation agency said.
"Vessels over this length have to apply for a permit and undertake a test sailing," she said.
The river is too shallow to allow vessels to sail with full loads on the river from Duisburg in the north to Switzerland, traders said.
Water is so low on the Rhine from Cologne to southern regions around Koblenz that vessel owners have a contractual right to refuse to sail if they think their vessels will be damaged.
Low water means vessels are unable to load to full capacity and surcharges are added to freight rates, increasing costs for cargo owners.
More vessels are also required to ship the same freight volume. Some cargo owners have to pay for the full vessel even if it sails half full.
Low water is hindering shipping on the entire German section of the Danube river, traders said. The Danube has also fallen to the level at which vessel operators can decline to sail for safety reasons although their had been a slight increase in water levels in the past two days, traders said.
River catchment areas in Germany and Switzerland are forecast to be mostly dry up to Sunday, so no immediate improvement is in sight, traders said.
The Rhine is an important shipping route for commodities including grains, minerals, coal and oil products such as heating oil. It is a major route for Switzerland's commodity imports.
The Danube is a major route for east European grain exports to west Europe. (Reporting by Michael Hogan; editing by Keiron Henderson)
Here is the schedule for our next adventure, GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKETS, we will be posting to www.goviking.posterous.com. They should also appear on my facebook page.
Deciding on the clothes to take has been the hardest, it could be anywhere from mild to winter snows.
I guess go with the old addage LAYER, LAYER, LAYER
The delivery of the documents means that it is 6 weeks and we are off to Holland and Germany for the christmas markets.
