Reed beds flank both sides of the enchanted, narrow canal. Above us is a green canopy of old oak, chestnut and walnut trees. Lilies and water lilies bloom on both sides of the waterway. Beavers cross the fairway. Rare kingfishers flutter in front of the ship's bow and disappear in a matter of seconds with their bright blue plumage in the sun-drenched foliage. The solitude and silence of the canal is breathtaking. Are we still in Europe?
We are in the heart of Germany, less than an hour's drive from Berlin. The canal we are travelling through is called Langer Trödel and is ten kilometres long. The name doesn't stand for trödeln, but for treideln. The Lange Trödel is the western section of the historic Finow Canal. Almost three years ago, this historic shipping route, which is one of the oldest artificial waterways in Germany, was made navigable again and renaturalised at the same time.
Millions in funding were channelled into movable bridges, boat moorings, modern monitoring and a new lock. Not only were ten kilometres of waterway gained for recreational boating, but also a connection between two areas that can be navigated with a charter certificate: the Upper Havel Waterway and the historic Finow Canal. The best way to find out how great the benefits are for water tourism in Germany is to make the journey yourself.
We took over our charter boat, a Linssen 29.9 AC, from the company 5 Sterne Yachtcharter at the Neuer Hafen marina in the Ziegeleipark Mildenberg. The high-quality and comfortable charter boat alone is a promise that it will be a good week. Our cruise plan is to sail from here to the Lange Trödel, cross it and then follow the Havel-Oder waterway to the Niederfinow boat lift. We want to lower ourselves down there and then travel uphill again on the historic Finow Canal and pass the Langer Trödel a second time at the end.
The port of departure, Mildenberg near Zehdenick, is an hour's drive north of Berlin on the Havel. Zehdenick is known as the town with the good sound. This is not meant acoustically, but in terms of construction. For generations, clay was extracted north of Zehdenick in open-cast mines and transported to the surrounding brickworks on small trains. All the brick kilns were not far from the water. The finished bricks were shipped to Berlin by barge.
Around 1910, the largest brick production in the world was recorded here. An almost unimaginable 625 million bricks were fired each year in 57 ring kilns. Entire neighbourhoods of Berlin were built from Zehdenick bricks. After the Second World War and during the GDR era, the brick boom and shipments to Berlin continued. The last kiln was closed in 1991.
A number of harbours and loading stations, once built for handling bricks, now have a new function as pleasure boat harbours. The New Harbour Marina, where several charter fleets are moored, is part of Germany's largest industrial museum, the Mildenberg Brickworks Park. A huge network of small railway tracks runs through the park. We buy a ticket at the museum and take a round trip on a light railway to the clay kilns and back to the kilns and through them. Highly recommended.
Between the clay ponds, which are now crystal-clear inland lakes and popular bathing spots, we steer our little boat southwards on the Havel to Zehdenick, pass through the lock and continue downstream on the canalised Havel, which is called the Voss Canal here. After another lock in Bischofswerder, the first houses of Liebenwalde can be seen. The town of 4000 inhabitants was a sleepy place for a long time. But after the reopening of the Lange Trödel, which branches off to the east here, the small town became a waterway hub.
Marina Liebenwalde, a cosy little harbour with 20 berths, is located at this junction. For a boat of our size, we only see occupied berths. Harbour master Horst Helbig waves us over anyway. "This place might just be right for you." He carefully threads the foredeck into the box, takes our lines, adjusts the fenders and attaches the cleats. "Welcome!" Horst says with a friendly smile. "You have electricity and water here. The showers work with coins. If you need anything else, I'm here for you."
You can read the full district portrait in the February issue from BOOTE, which will be available at newsstands from 16.01.19 - for Subscribers of course more likely.
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