It's hard to get past him: theMittelland Canal is the shortest and fastest connection between the Ems and Elbe rivers and thus Germany's most important shipping axis between west and east (or vice versa).
Admittedly: The canal is desolate and the expansion as part of the"German Unity Transport Project Number 17" has by no means become more attractive for us water sports enthusiasts: For long stretches, the banks of the canal, which are bollarded on both sides, are a nuisance with never-ending waves from the ships ahead. The high banks rarely allow a clear view of the land behind. Especially for touring boats without a flybridge, the only option is a fixed view of a green tube, the colour nuances of which only become a highlight because there is nothing else to see.
But that's enough grumbling. After all, the Mittelland Canal was not built for pleasure craft. Nevertheless, the number of marinas on this waterway is considerable, and what is on offer there can easily compete with harbours in "classic" recreational boating areas. - However, we will not present all the harbours in this report, but will limit ourselves to those in which we stayed overnight.
This starts just a few kilometres east of the"wet triangle" go. You don't know the "wet triangle"? That's the name given in Bergeshövede to the stretch of water where the Mittelland Canal branches off from the Dortmund-Ems Canal. Because it sounds so beautiful, the popular excursion restaurant "Am nassen Dreieck" is located on the bank between the two canals. However, the mooring options on the north bank of the DEK are modest. Just around the corner, the Mittelland Canal has its kilometre "zero". And as we are now cycling "upwards" in kilometres, every kilometre of canal is also the distance to the "wet triangle".
And "upwards" is not only true in terms of kilometres, but also nautically. Why? Because the inland waterway regulations stipulate that travelling up the Mittelland Canal in the direction of the Elbe-Havel Canal is considered an "uphill journey". And so we will see later that "travelling uphill" does not necessarily mean always going uphill at a lock. So at theSülfeld lock near Wolfsburg (MLK-km 237), where it goes downhill for 9 metres. - But we're not there yet ...
Marina Recke (km 12.8 LU) is the westernmost harbour on the Mittelland Canal. And what a harbour! In the largely unspoilt harbour basin, 60 boats up to 12 m in length find a comfortable berth with water and electricity in the most beautiful surroundings on a jetty with accessible side jibs on the south-west bank. Sanitary facilities including washing machine and tumble dryer are available in the functional building, whose highlight is the panorama bistro and café (on weekdays from 2.30 pm, Sundays and public holidays from 10 am).
While enjoying homemade cakes, guests can enjoy a wonderful view over the harbour both from inside and from the terrace (with covered pavilions). The restaurant's barbecue specialities, which are mainly served at weekends during the season, are highly praised and operator Helmut Robbes says: "They are known as far away as Holland." And if you get married in Recke, you can say "I do" on the water: Party ship "Paula" is registered as a floating registry office.
Right next to the harbour is the Recke outdoor forest pool, which was developed in the 1960s from a former bathing pond (formerly a clay pit). Between the harbour and the Waldfreibad there is a pitch for motorhomes, caravans and tents. Bicycle hire in the marina. Nearest shopping facilities: Edeka in Steinbeck (1.2 km).
At kilometre 30.4 theOsnabrück branch canal into the Mittelland Canal. Carelessly driving past this canal would be a mistake. Not because of the route, which has since been upgraded, but because the Osnabrück MYC offers a well-kept and quiet harbour with 65 berths for boats up to 15 m in length after only six barren kilometres of canal. And because this harbour is the ideal starting point for a visit to the beautiful city of Osnabrück.
When registering in the clubhouse (Tue-Fri 5pm to 9pm; Sat + Sun 2.30pm to 9pm; Mon closed), guests receive an information flyer that not only provides information about all the club's services, but also contains a timetable for the NordWest-Bahn, which takes you from Halen station (1 km from the harbour) to the centre of the "City of Peace" Osnabrück in seven minutes (Peace of Westphalia 1648: peace treaties that ended the Thirty Years' War, among other things).
As there is little commercial shipping, it doesn't matter that the mooring facilities with side jetties and alongside berths are located directly on the canal below the clubhouse (water and electricity). And: the service is impressive: Shower, WC, washing machine and tumble dryer in the clubhouse. Two barbecue areas, children's playground, free bicycles for hire, 3-t crane, slipway for boats up to 8 metres in length, mobile diesel filling station (registration in the clubhouse). Shopping: Edeka and bakery in Hollage 1.5 km away.
Small but cosy and very well maintained, the harbour of the MYC Mittelland Bad Essen (km 62.1 RU). 27 berths in front of bow and stern dolphins on a fixed jetty for boats up to 12 metres in length. Water and electricity at the jetty, shower and WC in the clubhouse. Slipway for boats up to 8 metres in length. The harbour basin (entrance width 6.30 m, water depth 1.63 m) is located away from the canal in a rural setting.
In the attractive centre of Bad Essen (1.5 km from the harbour) there are several restaurants and cafés in beautiful half-timbered houses on the church square around the St. Nikolai church. Supermarkets 1 km away, Lerchenstraße. And the long-planned "Marina Bad Essen" is also coming to life.
The "Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung" reported on 27 April this year: "The first project management meeting for the 'Marina with service building' construction project took place at the end of March. Due to the funding approval, the construction project, which costs around four million euros, must be completed by autumn 2014. The plan is ... to start construction 'at the end of June, beginning of July', starting with the driving of sheet piling to create the marina basin. Work on the service building and the necessary structural engineering work is due to start in the autumn." It will be interesting to see the results ...
After flying visits to the marina of theWSV Preußisch-Oldendorf (MLK-km 70.7 LU) and theMYC Lübbecke (MLK-km 80.2 LU) we reach theMinden Yacht Club (km 97.7 RU). It is surprising that we are welcomed there with a genuine "Berliner Schnauze": Michael Müller is not only the boss of the "Gaststätte Hafenblick" (from May to September daily from 10 am to 10 pm), but also a vigilant and helpful harbour master who allocates the guest berths. And he has a lot to do, as around 1000 guest boats moor at the Minden harbour every year.
The triangular harbour basin is protected from the turbulence on the canal by a dam with a narrow passage. There are 70 moorings with water and electricity on the floating jetties with accessible side jetties. The harbour can accommodate boats up to 23 m long and 6 m wide. The sanitary facilities (building behind the restaurant) are fine and spacious. There is a washing machine and tumble dryer in the anteroom. All trailerable boats can be launched via the slipway, even boats up to 15 metres in length with a slip trolley. Crane
3,5 t. Children's playground, bicycle hire and W-LAN are also available.
In addition, a diesel tanker can be ordered from the harbour master (also via the Internet), which refuels the boats just outside the club harbour on a quay wall in Hahler Hafen. www.mindener-yacht-club.de The nearest supermarket (Netto) is only 500 m away. The only disadvantage of this harbour is that Minden's old town, which is well worth seeing, is a good five kilometres away. The bus stop (timetable in "Hafenblick") is 500 metres away.
"I think I'm being snogged by a ... deer." TheMarina Idensen (MLK-km 135.5 RU) is the only harbour I know of in Germany where this "dream" could become a reality. Harbour manager Lutz Schatz runs a 7.5-hectare fallow deer enclosure with around 90 animals right next to the harbour. And these, hunted correctly and perfectly prepared, are served as "Hirschpfeffer", "Hirschbratwurst" or "Hirschfrikadelle" on the table of the harbour restaurant "Schatzinsel", run by Lutz Schatz in the third generation. (Open daily in summer). The most tempting thing about this harbour has already been mentioned.
The harbour basin, which is divided by a dam (connection directly at the entrance), is located away from the canal and offers 120 moorings with water and electricity for boats up to 18 m in length on accessible side jetties. Access to the sanitary facilities at the rear of the guesthouse. Slipway (up to 8 metres) and 12.5 t crane. The nearest supermarket is eight kilometres away, a bakery 700 m (in Wilhelmsdorf south of the canal bridge).
"Fried potato Willi" enjoys a legendary reputation among boaters: we are talking about Willi Klingenberg, founder and first owner of the Seelze marina in theHanover branch canal-Linden (km 2.4 RU/junction at MLK-km 149.6 LU). The former harbour clubhouse made it legendary. There, in the neighbourhood of the beer-drinking pony "Blacky", probably the best fried potatoes in the Hanover area were served, which is why the restaurant became known as the "fried potato ranch". It burnt down in 1994 and a new harbour restaurant was subsequently built right next to the harbour basin. Great location, but unfortunately only mediocre food. (Tue-Sat 11.30 am to 9 pm; Sun 11.30 am to 8 pm. Closed on Mon).
Today, Willi's son Frank Klingenberg is the owner and operator of the harbour. With the support of his wife, Frank Klingenberg is trying to build on his father's fame. He is doing well in and around the harbour. Not yet(?) in the restaurant. Two pontoons (water and electricity) in a recess in the canal directly in front of the restaurant are designated as guest berths. Otherwise, the boats are moored directly on the (less frequented) canal on the paved bank on side jetties. 80 berths. Sanitary facilities with washing machine (no tumble dryer). 20-tonne travel lift. Bicycle hire, children's playground, W-LAN. Nearest supermarket in Seelze, 1.5 km.
Small, quiet, tranquil and secluded" is how the Hanover Motorboat Club its harbour. This characterisation is apt, as the harbour is located somewhere in the middle of nowhere on theMisburg branch canal at the edge of a lime marl pit of the "Teutonia Zementwerke". (junction from the MLK at kilometre 171.2). A dense strip of forest shields the well-kept harbour from the lunar landscape of the lime quarry. But you get the feeling that you are a long way from the nearest housing estate, even though it is "only" around 1.8 kilometres to the supermarkets in Misburg-Anderten. Mooring is at side jetties on the paved bank. Guest berths are allocated by the friendly harbour master Wilfried Preuß. 32 berths with water and electricity for boats up to 15 metres in length. Sanitary container with washing machine and tumble dryer. Bread roll service on request. From Misburg-Anderten railway station you can reach Hanover main station twice an hour in ten minutes.
Out of the Misburg branch canal and on to Berg on the Mittelland Canal. TheAnderten lock (km 174.5) lifts us 14.70 metres upwards to the level of the 63 km long crest of the canal.
A little to the east of the confluence of theHildesheim branch canal we make a short stop at the outer jetty of the harbourMBC Sehnde (MLK-km 184.6 RU). Only boats up to 8 m in length can enter the harbour basin (with harbour gate). There is no length limit at the outer jetty (water, electricity) in the canal.
On the east side of the junction of theSalzgitter branch canal (MLK-km 213.5 LU), a snow-white bascule bridge lying just above the water marks the entrance to the new Marina Bortfeld. It was not yet in operation last year, but has been open since the start of the season this year. The bridge is opened by remote control.
"Guest jetty for gate operation" is written in white letters on a red background in vertical text to the west of the entrance to the harbour of theBrunswick Motorboat Clubs (MLK-km 217.5 RU). So: moor up and set the harbour gate in motion, which is designed to stop the silting up of the harbour basin by commercial shipping. A good thing, because when the gate is closed there is now complete peace and quiet in the harbour: no suction, no waves from the commercial shipping that passes through here in abundance.
The well-kept harbour offers 38 moorings with water and electricity for boats up to 12 m in length. In the clubhouse (hot meals daily from 5 pm) there are very nice, almost new sanitary facilities following the refurbishment (2011). A gantry crane lifts 3 tonnes. What else? Children's playground, bike hire and, since April this year, the latest generation of W-LAN: LTE. Supermarkets in Watenbüttel 1.2 km away. And don't forget Braunschweig! The residence of Henry the Lion has a lot to offer and can be reached from Watenbüttel (Am Grasplatz) in 20 minutes by bus 416 (to Braunschweig town hall).
Course east: Shortly after the junction of the Elbe side canal (MLK-km 233.7 RU) we make a short stop at the popular harbour of theYC Hoffmannstadt Fallersleben (MLK-km 235.0 LU).
By boat to the Bundesliga: Only in Bremen (harbour of the SV Weser next to the Weser stadium) is it as easy as in Wolfsburg: the harbour of the 1st Wolfsburg Motorboat Club (MLK-km 246.7 RU) is located right next to the VfL training ground (including Magath's Tränenhügel) and is just a five-minute walk from the south entrance to the VW Arena. Another five minutes and you are in the Autostadt, which is an absolute must not only for PS freaks.
On the east side, the harbour borders the Allerpark, a popular leisure area with countless attractions (www.aller park.net). It goes without saying that the harbour of the 1st WMBC is popular with guests, especially as German is not a "compulsory language" here: harbour master Ronald Rice speaks perfect English as well as German - he is a native American.
The harbour basin, protected from the canal by a dam (entrance 8 m wide, 1.50 m deep), offers 55 moorings with water and electricity for boats up to 16 m long on accessible side pontoons. The guest berths are directly opposite the entrance. The club building houses the "Neptun am Hafen" restaurant with fine Italian cuisine in a Mediterranean flair (in summer except Thursdays daily from 11.30 am to 3 pm + 6 pm to 11 pm) and sanitary facilities with washing machine and tumble dryer. Additional services: children's playground, slipway for all trailerable boats, faeces extraction system. Supermarket 800 metres away.
As we pass by, we discover another harbour that was not quite completed last year: theCalvörde marina (MLK-km 286.8 LU). It was opened on 18 May this year. 28 moorings on floating jetties with accessible side jetties with water and electricity for boats up to 15 metres in length. Sanitary containers.
Touring skippers who have alreadyHaldensleben marina (MLK-km 300.4 LU) will not only speak enthusiastically about the harbour, but above all about Paula. Paula Fischer is not only the harbour master there, but in the best sense "the soul of Janze". Be it as a cook in the harbour building, as a "canister-armed fuel supplier" or as a helping harbour master when a boat has problems mooring. Paula simply seems to be omnipresent! Fresh asparagus with schnitzel in a hurry? No problem for Paula. And when you can enjoy it on the terrace with a view over the harbour, all is right with the world. Paula on the Mittelland Canal already has a legendary reputation.
In the harbour basin away from the current, 40 boats up to 20 m in length can be moored on a floating jetty with accessible side pontoons and an electricity connection. There is only one water tap below the harbour building on the starboard side. The faeces extraction station is also located there. Sanitary facilities with washing machine (no dryer) at the rear of the harbour building. Nearest supermarket: Penny, 600 m.
The"Magdeburg waterway junction" with the trough bridge over the Elbe, the Hohenwarthe lock and the new lock in the Rothensee descent canal was the most spectacular hydraulic engineering project of the post-reunification period. The 918 metre long trough bridge, which carries the canal over the Elbe, is enormous. The longest canal bridge in Europe looks even more spectacular from below (i.e. from the Elbe) than when sailing in the trough. Crossing the bridge is subject to registration.
The registration and maintenance point for pleasure craft west of the bridge is located at MLK-km 320 LU. Five kilometres to the east, above theHohenwarthe lockthe Mittelland Canal ends (km 325.7) and merges into the Elbe-Havel Canal. Pleasantly surprised by the "transit route? Well, let's get there, dear
readers! Discover the harbours of the "Grand Canal" on your own keel.
TERRITORY INFORMATION
REVIERAt 325.7 kilometres, the Mittelland Canal is the longest canal in Germany. It
from the confluence with the Dortmund-Ems Canal (MLK-km 0.0) towards the Elbe-
Havel Canal (MLK-km 325.7). According to the Inland
This direction is considered an uphill journey.
DRIVER'S CERTIFICATEAn inland pleasure craft licence is required to operate boats with more than 15 hp (11.03 kW) and less than 15 m in length. From 15 metres in length, the skipper needs a patent (sports patent or sports boat certificate). Pleasure craft licences acquired before 31 December 1997 entitle the holder to operate boats with a displacement of up to 15 tonnes.
SPEEDThe maximum permitted speed for small vessels on the developed canal sections is 15 km/h. On unlined stretches with a draught of less than 1.30 m, the speed limit is 10 km/h.
BOAT REFUELLING STATIONS
- km 30.4 LUTurn off into the Osnabrück branch canal. At km 5.7: Osnabrücker Motoryachtclub. Mobile diesel refuelling. Tel. 05407-48 39.
- km 97.36 RUTanker Mindener Sportboot & Camping GbR in Minden-Hahlen harbour. Diesel. Order via Mindener Yachtclub. Tel. 0571-6 14 93. online www.mindener-yacht-club.de
- km 149.25 LUPetrol station William Arnemann in Seelze-Lohnde at the junction of the Hanover-Linden canal. Diesel. Tel. 05137-46 36.
- km 163.5 LU: Petrol station in Hanover marina. Diesel. Tel. 0511-37 55 34 or 0173-1 73 44 88.
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