Everything was supposed to happen very quickly: When the popular Lohme marina on the island of Rügen had to be closed in mid-November last year for dredging work to ensure navigability, the responsible company, Touristik Lohme GmbH, expected it to take just two to three weeks. During the winter, the restriction for recreational boating was also minimal.
Lohme: closed at the start of the season
But that is now changing: after the work had dragged on and on and the closure had to be repeatedly extended, a Current notice for seafarers (BfS) of the responsible Baltic Sea Waterways and Shipping Office, the deadline is now only 30 April - presumably. This means that Lohme harbour will not be available again at the start of the season and could remain closed for even longer.
A popular harbour in more ways than one
The harbour in the south of the wide Tromper Wiek, about nine nautical miles south-east of Cape Arkona, which is protected by a stone breakwater, is not only important for cruises around Rügen. It is also used as a jumping-off harbour for the crossing to the Danish Baltic Sea island of Bornholm and to southern Sweden. It is also beautifully situated at the foot of the famous cliffs and is ideal for excursions into the nearby Jasmund National Park and to the Königsstuhl.
Attractive location is also a risk
However, the location of Lohme harbour below the chalk cliffs also harbours the risk of being affected by landslides on the steep coast - as happened twenty years ago on 19 March 2005, when the slope slid over a width of 100 metres not far from the harbour after snowmelt and persistent rain. 400,000 square metres of soil broke off and tumbled down onto the shoreline. The harbour itself was spared. Safety work was subsequently carried out.
