Rhine water levels 2022 and similar topics

[notamermaid]

The sun has set gloriously over my valley and tomorrow will hopefully be another pleasant day with warm temperatures. For the crew of one ship and a "ship-to-be" it will be a special day because a ship - not sure which yet - will bring the hull of the Viva Two onto my river. She is currently docked near Gustavsburg, just beyond the last lock on the Main before the confluence with the Rhine. The Zasavica pushboat has brought her from Regensburg and if that pushboat does not do it herself, a barge or tanker should sail the Viva Two tied alongside that vessel to the Netherlands. There the hull will be outfitted and in summer there will be another christening...

 

If you happen to be on the river in that area tomorrow and the day after you may spot her.

 

notamermaid

 

[Jjg34219]

1 hour ago, notamermaid said:

Oh wow, exciting! I am so bold as to say that reading cruisecritic means you are well prepared .

 

10 days out is also the maximum we can look at in advance with Kaub water levels. Most likely scenario is for between 136 and 141cm on the day you come to Basel. So that is a bit low but certainly good enough for any river cruise ship.

 

notamermaid

 

We are doing a couple days in Basel. Board the 26th. Yes I check Cruise Critic daily for any info and its a great resource

[notamermaid]

Greetings from the Rhine valley - swimming in rain! We are having downpours in parts of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is good for nature, but actually not that pleasant, as it is a bit much in one go. Apparently, the Ahr valley is on flood alert again . But it is should not be extreme, "just" heavy rain, according to the warning map. My yard has quite a few puddles but not too bad. This is the radar map:

In my state it looks like the area of the Westerwald hills with the river Wied is worst now. Munich and the Isar river look pretty extreme. I know steamboats lives at an elevated spot, so should be alright.

 

We had enjoyed some days of pleasant weather. The rain was forecast for the weekend but in some places did not materialize so I guess that is why we are getting even more of it now. As is usual with such downpours, it is not a problem for the Rhine river, but small rivers and cellar and people living on a hill near small streams. Landslides can become an issue.

 

Sorry if you missed out on good castle viewing this afternoon. But it seems the weather was not too bad in some spots. Not nice in Koblenz:

 

Oh, yes, Kaub gauge. Much of the rain came down North of there so does not help with the level. But it is doing okay, currently at 153cm.

 

notamermaid

 

[Jjg34219]

As we look ahead to next week and beyond for our trip it looks like more “normal” temps, not quite so warm as the past week, and a daily chance of rain. Can handle showers, just wont want those all day rain events.

[notamermaid]

1 hour ago, Jjg34219 said:

Can handle showers, just wont want those all day rain events.

I actually thought about such days yesterday when I posted. I went back to my memory of a May when we spent most of the days with our umbrellas up or sheltering from the rain (which I did with work colleagues on an abysmally wet trip into the forest). The years 2013 and 2014 were marked by heavy rain in May and in 2013 it led to bad flooding on the Elbe and the Danube into June. The Rhine also burst its banks but was not as bad as the other rivers. This year the clouds and pressure areas coming from the West do not suggest many days of heavy rain. It is more warm to hot days with the occasional thunderstorm and downpour, with indeed lower temperatures and more rain for the week after that, as you mention. Let us have a look at Breisach:

 

 

Referring to my assessment yesterday: has the sudden and high amount of water had an impact? I suggested not, so let us have a look. This is Kaub:

This does not look anything more than standard fluctuation with three or four extra centimetres to me. Most of the rain fell further downstream so what does Cologne look like?

This I would interpret as a small direct effect. But you see that such downpours like yesterday do not (normally) result in flooding for this river that always carries a huge volume of water. Just a note on the figures on the scale. This is the gauge measurement of the river level in centimetres, it does not correspond to the actual river depth.

 

All in all, I find the river levels a bit low for May and do wonder with what figures will we go into the summer months? The current weather pattern is okay but less rain is not a good idea. But at this point it is all speculation what June and July will bring in detail.

 

In 2018, many people were stunned by the absence of rain and the resulting drought in autumn. Although there were signs and long-term weather reports that suggested a shift in the high atmosphere over the Atlantic would lead to a dry autumn, the general public, including me, of course are no meteorologists and could not figure that out. I found it a bit shocking to listen to an amateur weatherman explaining the weather pattern of autumn 2018 and learning from him that the professionals had predicted it correctly already in July that we would see a very exceptional few months.

 

But back to the positives of today. Those suffering from pollen allergies have an easier day today, the air is fresher and clean and the streets look quite literally washed and freed from dust.

 

River cruise ships are sailing up and down the river in their dozens and one can almost forget that life was not normal for two years.

 

Right, enough talking from me.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Parts of Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia have been put on weather warning level 3 with heavy thunderstorms and flash floods. Has now reached Bonn. Time for me to close the windows!

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

That was quite dramatic but obviously nothing like you experience in bad weather conditions in the US for example. It has calmed down for now, tomorrow will see more thunderstorms with probably similar conditions. The front has moved to the region of Franconia. More coming from the West and hitting the Rhineland during the day tomorrow. We have a pre-warning. I have posted this before, but for those who are new and would like to follow:

https://www.wettergefahren.de/warnungen/warnsituation.html?ort=Mainz

 

I have pinned Mainz. You can change the town in the frame on top of the map.

 

Storm is normally not that much of an issue on the river for ships, but it can get a bit dangerous when a strong gust of wind catches a river cruise ship at a bridge. Last year a ship got pushed towards the side of a railway bridge on the Moselle. The problem at this bridge in Güls is the fact that it is arched, so the middle has enough headroom but drifting to either side is not a good idea. So far I have not heard of a river cruise ship having to stop sailing in a storm, but I will not rule it out. If you can supply an anecdote from a river cruise ship captain or the crew feel free to post.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[notamermaid]

The North of my state is on extreme weather alert level 4. For the Rhine that is from Andernach towards Königswinter, with it felt at Koblenz as well (level 3). That is bad, I think I will postpone shopping.

 

Be careful out there.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

That was - interesting. North Rhine-Westphalia three tornados, one man sadly dead in Rhineland-Palatinate. Hail with a diametre of more than five centimetres. Short torrential rain. Storm.

 

Been out and about today. Locally people tell me of damage to roof windows. Slate tiles have come down. Plexiglas covers of street lights smashed.

 

Near me all trees are still standing, but the streets are littered with small branches and leaves. Found a plastic thing that must be part of a cover of traffic lights (against bright sunlight). Apparently the hail was so strong it has crashed through windscreens, says the news.

 

My office windows are huge, like shop windows, luckily no damage there.

 

Insurances will be busy next week...

 

So. let us look at the Rhine. The level at Kaub has risen to 164cm.

 

An unusual vessel construction is now in the Middle Rhine valley. At Sankt Goar on a platform is a special machine that on the riverbed gently takes away, a form of milling it seems, centimetres of rock. It is a test phase to see how the design does the job, i.e. they want to optimize it. It is the next phase of the deepening of the Rhine, i.e. now beyond the planning stages, so that there is more depth in the navigation channel in low water. The test milling is taking place at the side of the navigation channel, so that the main channel can stay open at all times. Sounds like passing it should not result in any delays.

 

This is the German news article with photo, to give you an idea:

https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/rheinland-pfalz/koblenz/mittelrhein-bei-oberwesel-soll-ausgebaggert-werden-wegen-zu-haeufigem-niedrigwasser-100.html

 

Second photo shows you the rock exposed at low water in 2018.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[Jjg34219]

That explains the 20-25 degree temperature drop that we see! Musta been one heckuva cold front! But tornado would be the last thing I would have suspected.

Did our Covid testing today for our Monday flights…really excited now!

[notamermaid]

27 minutes ago, Jjg34219 said:

That explains the 20-25 degree temperature drop that we see!

That must be Fahrenheit. I was a bit puzzled as to what reports the weathermen have sent over to the US . But seriously, it has got cooler. It was pleasant during today. Tornados do not happen often, three confirmed ones in a day within one state sounds highly unusual to me. The real temperature drop will happen Monday into Tuesday, they say, when the afternoon high could be below 20 Celsius.

 

There are some incredible amateur videos of the tornados and the hail online. The tornados were confirmed in Paderborn, Lippstadt and Höxter (none of those are near the Rhine). Over 40 people were injured in Paderborn as the storm went right through a busy retail park. Have a look at the video if anyone is interested. At 1:50 you can see that a tornado has ripped off a church spire. I have never seen anything like it!  Yesterday I mentioned the thunderstorms coming to the Rhine via the West and Andernach towards Koblenz. It did hit Andernach with full force of hail, you can see a few images from 1:54: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFpHPJYdkM8

Link is an official news channel, by the way.

 

People are advised not to go into parks and forests as branches and trees can still come down. I was certainly watching very closely where I was walking today even in town.

 

2 hours ago, Jjg34219 said:

Did our Covid testing today for our Monday flights…really excited now!

I was a bit nervous awaiting the test result and I only needed it for a short trip by car. Must be much worse when needing it for leaving a continent! Not sure how all of you travellers manage to get through the planning and preparations for such a trip.

 

notamermaid

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

I had to look up 5 cm to judge how big the hail was – WOW!  That's bigger than a golf ball – which is the standard for 'huge' hail around here...

[Jjg34219]

14 hours ago, notamermaid said:

That must be Fahrenheit. I was a bit puzzled as to what reports the weathermen have sent over to the US . But seriously, it has got cooler. It was pleasant during today. Tornados do not happen often, three confirmed ones in a day within one state sounds highly unusual to me. The real temperature drop will happen Monday into Tuesday, they say, when the afternoon high could be below 20 Celsius.

 

There are some incredible amateur videos of the tornados and the hail online. The tornados were confirmed in Paderborn, Lippstadt and Höxter (none of those are near the Rhine). Over 40 people were injured in Paderborn as the storm went right through a busy retail park. Have a look at the video if anyone is interested. At 1:50 you can see that a tornado has ripped off a church spire. I have never seen anything like it!  Yesterday I mentioned the thunderstorms coming to the Rhine via the West and Andernach towards Koblenz. It did hit Andernach with full force of hail, you can see a few images from 1:54: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFpHPJYdkM8

Link is an official news channel, by the way.

 

People are advised not to go into parks and forests as branches and trees can still come down. I was certainly watching very closely where I was walking today even in town.

 

I was a bit nervous awaiting the test result and I only needed it for a short trip by car. Must be much worse when needing it for leaving a continent! Not sure how all of you travellers manage to get through the planning and preparations for such a trip.

 

notamermaid

 

We are always “anxious” about the testing. We are a bit confused about flying thru Frankfurt on the way to Basel. We are fully vaccinated and boostered, but reading German requirements we may need 48 hour test to transfer thru Germany. Thats stricter than our Viking requirement. Anyone know if we need to provide negative test results to transfer thru Frankfurt?

[loriva]

1 hour ago, Jjg34219 said:

We are always “anxious” about the testing. We are a bit confused about flying thru Frankfurt on the way to Basel. We are fully vaccinated and boostered, but reading German requirements we may need 48 hour test to transfer thru Germany. Thats stricter than our Viking requirement. Anyone know if we need to provide negative test results to transfer thru Frankfurt?

 

If you are flying on Lufthansa through FRA to BSL, you can find the entry regulations here:  https://lufthansa.travel-regulations.com/route-info?origin=FRA&destination=BSL&search-enabled=true  It says that the BSL airport is actually physically located in France, so you'll need to use the Lufthansa tool to search for French entry requirements as well.

 

For transit of FRA, input your departure airport and use FRA as your destination.

 

We are also transiting FRA en route to starting a cruisetour in Vienna in June.  From what I can tell from the search tool above, all that is needed for the transit is proof of full vaccination. 

 

Lufthansa also allows you to upload your COVID-19 documents before your flight and have them "checked" for validity.  The language from their website:  "Use our offer to have your documents checked and send us the Covid-19 documents required for your flight no sooner than 72 hours and no later than eight hours before departure.  This means you will be notified in good time whether your Covid-19 documents are valid or whether you need to act urgently."  Presumably, the latter means COVID-19 testing.  The Lufthansa doc check is here:  https://www.lufthansa.com/de/en/digital-document-check.

 

The entry and transit regulations should be the same if you are flying a different airline.  If so, your airline may also offer a digital document check.

 

And, of course, regulations could change again tomorrow!  Check, check, and recheck is the watchword today--including whether your flights are still valid.

 

Hope this helps,

 

[notamermaid]

15 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I had to look up 5 cm to judge how big the hail was – WOW!  That's bigger than a golf ball – which is the standard for 'huge' hail around here...

Unusual to be able to impress a US person with weather reports. Not that this is a pleasant achievement. I would rather impress with the quality of the local wine .

 

I have been able to find a real photo of such hailstones on this page:

https://www.wetteronline.de/wetterticker/d1625440-7b38-4c48-be02-7eea3690b422

The map of Germany with the temperatures explains the reason for the extreme weather. It was cold in the North and hot in the South, so in the Middle they collided quite violently.

 

All pleasant and calm today, but as I have mentioned, tomorrow will see more thunderstorms, this time probably more towards the South of my country. Will see what the warning map says tonight.

 

Rather unfortunate is news coming in from Bonn. A barge there has collided with a docked excursion boat and damaged the boat as well as a nearby other landing stage. Thankfully no one was injured.

 

It seems hardly ever dull or uneventful on my river this Spring. I have not even mentioned the other minor mishaps of barges and tankers that do no really concern river traffic or water levels or tourist attractions.

 

By the way, tourist attractions. There is something I should mention soon for those of you who like the "Floriade". Will come back to that.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

Just a brief note. There are weather warnings level 2 in Rhineland-Palatinate, an area that includes Trier, Koblenz, Bonn, Cologne, Düsseldorf. Other than that not too many areas marked 2 now. Could be a bit stormy to the East of Freiburg and Basel. Worse (level 3) is Lake Constance. Will see how the evening progresses but should not be as bad as Friday.

 

Lake Constance is what I wanted to talk about and I will reveal the connection to the Floriade very soon.

 

notamermaid

 

[dtenel]

Can you tell me what the average temperature usually is the beginning of June?  We are doing the Romantic Rhine on Avalon departing Amsterdam June 4 and wondering what I should pack cloths wise!

[notamermaid]

Definitely pack for warm days, not Mediterranean or Florida Summer, our June is pleasant, the heat comes more in July. Temperatures I would say most afternoons above 20 Celsius. Mornings sometimes still cool, could be as low as 10 Celsius.

 

Important to remember: 1. European Summertime means the sun cannot heat up the valley by 10am, early morning excursions can be chilly, I recommend a jacket, especially in the Black Forest.

2. Basel to Amsterdam is several micro climates and the temperatures will vary throughout your cruise most likely. The Netherlands tend to be cooler and windier than France and Germany.

 

I suggest a good weather website, check the temperatures 10 days out from the start of your cruise and a couple of days before you leave, just in case. Most important in my opinion: sturdy shoes that do not mind a half day of rain getting on to them. You need to be able to walk on this, lots of it possibly, depending on town (sample of set stones near my house):

 

They are worse at Marksburg castle!

 

Weather graphics of previous posts are from this website, I have put in Mannheim for you: https://www.wetteronline.de/wetter/mannheim

But you may prefer an English one, like accuweather.

 

Enjoy your river cruise .

 

notamermaid

 

Edited May 23, 2022 by notamermaid
added link

[dtenel]

On 5/23/2022 at 1:15 PM, notamermaid said:

Definitely pack for warm days, not Mediterranean or Florida Summer, our June is pleasant, the heat comes more in July. Temperatures I would say most afternoons above 20 Celsius. Mornings sometimes still cool, could be as low as 10 Celsius.

 

Important to remember: 1. European Summertime means the sun cannot heat up the valley by 10am, early morning excursions can be chilly, I recommend a jacket, especially in the Black Forest.

2. Basel to Amsterdam is several micro climates and the temperatures will vary throughout your cruise most likely. The Netherlands tend to be cooler and windier than France and Germany.

 

I suggest a good weather website, check the temperatures 10 days out from the start of your cruise and a couple of days before you leave, just in case. Most important in my opinion: sturdy shoes that do not mind a half day of rain getting on to them. You need to be able to walk on this, lots of it possibly, depending on town (sample of set stones near my house):

 

They are worse at Marksburg castle!

 

Weather graphics of previous posts are from this website, I have put in Mannheim for you: https://www.wetteronline.de/wetter/mannheim

But you may prefer an English one, like accuweather.

 

Enjoy your river cruise .

 

notamermaid

 

Thank you for this information!  We usually do Europe in July when it is so hot so that is why I was asking!  I will pack for chilly mornings and warmer afternoons!  We leave next weekend so I will also start monitoring the weather now.  Super excited for our first river cruise!

[Techno123]

We obviously dodged the majority of the storms as we sailed up the Rhine (17th until 24th May) as our days were mainly glorious mid to high twenties (Celsius) although there were one or two night time thunder storms. Our day sailing the middle or scenic Rhine was overcast but I thought I would share some photos with you as it is truly beautiful. Map provided by Avalon to go along with the commentary.

[Canal archive]

Superb photo’s especially the juxtaposition of the first two, I did a double take as having been through that trip could not remember that view, ahhhh age!

[notamermaid]

@Techno123 Thank you for the great photos. A few clouds are better than pure sunshine I find. Clouds add "drama" to the castles. Nice clear map by AvalonWaterways, really helpful. I see they put the Rhine kilometres in it as well. For those of you who are not sure how they work: the full kilometre has a big number sign at the river bank, an example of that you can see in the last photo. 533, look at map, aah, Rheinstein Castle! The half kilometre mark is a big plus sign, the other 100m marks are smaller upright stones with a number on. So you have as an example 533 then 1 etc. the plus, then 6, etc. then 534 (counted in the downstream direction).

 

Sometimes things do not work as planned so there is a short kilometre which looks like this:

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhein#/media/Datei:Kurzer_Kilometer.jpg

 

I hope the commentary includes this fun story!

 

notamermaid

 

[Techno123]

Thank you both for your kind comments. I suppose I should have started with the view through the vineyards down to the Rhine which we took on our hike up to the Niederwald monument in Rudesheim just before we set off. 😁

 

[Canal archive]

Beautiful!

[Jjg34219]

We are boarding Viking Hervor in 2 hours. Have really enjoyed Basel, just taking in the sights with perfect weather

absolutely no Covid restrictions here and we actually have Viking guests quarantining here post cruise except since no restrictions, not really quarantined! Yikes!

hoping we have glorious weather the day we cruise the castles as shown above

 

thanks for all the advice!