Since last weekend, large brown carpets of branches, whole tree trunks and large root blocks have been floating on Lake Constance. Particia Reuthe from Ultramarin Kressbronn, the largest marina on Lake Constance with around 1,400 berths, reports on the efforts to tackle the masses of wood: "We initially tried to catch the wood with funnel-shaped oil weirs." But the chunks were too big and the wind threatened to push large fields of driftwood into the harbour. On Saturday, they had to close the harbour entrance completely. Because "once the wood is in the harbour, it's very difficult to get it out again," says Reuthe. And if driftwood gets stuck in the propulsion propellers or a boat hits a drifting log, this can cause major damage.
Temporary closures due to the risk of driftwood
And even a week later, the harbour operators are still battling the wood. According to a recent message (7 June) on the Marina Ultramarin website, the harbour entrance is "only open temporarily until further notice due to the continuing danger of driftwood." In the 15-minute time slots between 9.30 - 9.45 am, 1.15 - 1.30 pm and 4.15 - 4.30 pm, entry and exit is possible through a narrow lane.
Operations at the BMK marina in Langenargen had also been suspended since Saturday. "We are working at full speed to get rid of the driftwood," explained harbour master Dennis Zürn in response to a media enquiry two days ago. The wood was pushed aside with a clearing boat. This morning (07.06. 09.00), the harbour master was then able to announce that the harbour entrance was open again, just in time for the weekend. However, due to the continuing danger of driftwood, the harbour master reserves the right to close the harbour entrance temporarily. In addition, all boaters are asked to take extra care and watch out for driftwood. In general, skippers are advised to keep an eye on the driftwood and to reduce speed early on when approaching landing sites and harbours. Lindau-Zech harbour, on the other hand, was less badly affected. It was only closed for the past weekend and was able to reopen its harbour access on Sunday.
Rivers had washed up huge amounts of wood
The heavy rainfall of recent weeks had washed the wood down the Leiblach, Argen and Schussen rivers into Lake Constance. The prevailing westerly wind had washed the material onto the banks. The Argen flows into Lake Constance right next to the Ultramarin and the Schussen near Langenargen. According to the water management office, hundreds of cubic metres of driftwood have already been collected. The clearing work is expected to continue for several weeks.
