Those were the days: Coal dust, which constantly blew into the harbour of the AMC Castrop-Rauxel from the slag heaps on the other bank of the Rhine-Herne Canal, covered the white decks of the boats in a black film of grease. The "ship's wives" were in constant use with scrubbing brushes and buckets to get the "black plague" under control. That was in 1989 - on my second trip to the Pott - in 2000 - the slag heaps were gone and a wasteland awaited further development.
And in 2012? A clinically clean industrial estate no longer gives the slightest hint that mountains of "black gold" once rose dusty into the sky here. And so the change is not only visible in Castrop-Rauxel: In the former "coal pot", the "steel forge of the nation", inhospitable industrial wastelands, slag heaps and landfill sites have become industrial and landscape parks that offer millions of people living, working, culture, leisure and recreation in a completely different environment.
From the Münsterland to the Ruhr region
The centrepiece of this "green change" is the "Emscher Landscape Park" which stretches from the Rhine near Duisburg to Dortmund and whose arteries are the Emscher River and the Rhine-Herne Canal. But before we get there, the Dortmund-Ems Canal lies ahead of us. A perfectly developed but thoroughly boring canal. Only the welcoming harbours offer any variety.
One of these is the Old Fuestrup marina (DEK-km 80.0 RU) north of Münster. It's great how owner and harbour master Klaus Nowacki has transformed what was actually a dead canal into a lively harbour. The boats are moored alongside or on finger pontoons on both banks of the canal. A hand-operated cable ferry provides transport from shore to shore between "Dover" and "Calais". The harbour offers all important supply facilities including a repair service and a 16-tonne crane. A bread roll service, the daily food trolley (except Saturday and Sunday) and the very popular harbour restaurant "Zum Fährhaus" ensure survival.
Münster: The city is a highlight on the Dortmund-Ems Canal! The centre around Prinzipalmarkt with Lamberti Church and the historic town hall with the original "Friedenssaal" (Peace Hall), which was largely restored after being destroyed in the war, is particularly worth a visit.
St Paul's Cathedral, St Maurice's Church and the Prince-Bishop's Palace are further eye-catchers. And where is the boat moored when you go ashore? The small but beautiful harbour of the Monastaria Yacht Clubs (DEK-km 70.7 LU) with water, electricity, clubhouse and very nice sanitary facilities with washing machine and tumble dryer has only a few guest berths. "Pits that are free may be taken," says the harbour master. Bus stop to the city centre 300 m from the harbour.
An alternative to the club harbour is the city harbour II (DEK-km 68.1 LU). On the north bank of the former transshipment centre, a trendy district has been created that is home to office buildings, art, culture, restaurants and trendy clubs in a mixture of converted warehouses and modern architecture. There's something going on here around the clock. It will remain a mystery to the city fathers of Münster why, apart from the simple quay wall, there are no services for pleasure craft. Yet the harbour with its "creative quay" is crying out for expansion for water sports enthusiasts!
Dattelner Meer" canal junction
Lunch break at the guest jetty of the MYC Kanalstadt Datteln in the old Lüdinghausen harbour (DEK-km 39.0 RU). A quiet spot in the countryside, in the southernmost Münsterland: "This is exactly what guests from the Ruhr area are looking for," says the harbour master, "we are fully booked at Whitsun, so they like to come down to us."
Just under 20 kilometres of canal further south, at the "Dattelner Meer", we have reached the northern border of the Ruhr region. The West German canal network meets at what is supposedly the "largest canal junction in Europe": the Dortmund-Ems, Wesel-Datteln, Datteln-Hamm and Rhine-Herne canals.
Just five kilometres south of Dattelner Meer, at the junction between the Dortmund-Ems and Rhine-Herne Canal (DEK-km 15.5 LU and RHK-km 45.5 LU), we come across the first highlight of the Emscher Landscape Park and the "Route of Industrial Heritage".
At the MBC Lüdenscheid (clubhouse with WC and showers, water and electricity at the jetty) we are moored in the underwater part of the Henrichenburg ship lift just a few metres away from this technical marvel, which was opened by Kaiser Wilhelm II on 11 August 1899, was in service until 1969 and can now be visited as part of an industrial and shipping museum. Just under 400 metres from the MBC harbour, there is a good "Greek" restaurant, Papachristos, on Provinzialstraße.
So now we're in the Ruhr region. We stop to refuel at AMC Castrop-Rauxel (RHK-km 38.0 LU), which not only gives us diesel, but also a magnificent, freshly caught zander that we can buy from an angler. My first fish from the "Kumpel-Riviera", as the Rhine-Herne Canal is popularly known. And on this hot day, the name fits: the canal banks become a "meatball beach" and the sports boat waiting jetty in the upper water of the Herne-Ost lock becomes the perfect "teenager barbecue". The "longest bathtub in the world" is not just made for fish and boats.
No money for water sports
The red steel tubes of the "Nordsternpark double arch bridge" in Gelsenkirchen boldly span the canal. A project that was realised for the 1997 Federal Garden Show. On the bank below the spectacular bridge is the Gelsenkirchen amphitheatre, which is also part of the landscape park. In the mid-90s on the site of the former "Nordstern" colliery the park is another highlight of the "Route of Industrial Heritage".
We have passed three locks on the Rhine-Herne Canal so far: Herne-Ost, Wanne-Eickel and Gelsenkirchen. Each lock has a solid sports boat waiting area in the upper and lower water. This wasn't always the case either: in 1998, the state government launched the "Recreational boating tourism" funding programme, investing a total of around 10 million euros and providing, for example, recreational boat waiting areas at locks and sports boat-friendly mooring systems in lock chambers. The private label "Recreational boating area Ruhr area" caused a furore, but today only leads a shadowy existence. As money dwindled, the promotion of water tourism also went down the drain.
Marina Oberhausen's location is remarkable: nestled between the "Sealife Centre", "Aquapark" and the "CentrO", a unique shopping and leisure paradise in Europe with around 220 (clothes) shops and 20 restaurants. It's just a shame that there is no supermarket or grocery store in the huge complex.
supermarket or grocery shop, which the skipper needs more often than new clothes from some luxury brand. It's also a shame that the Ruhr motorway, which is only 200 metres away, makes a lot of noise over the marina around the clock.
From Oberhausen to the Ruhr
And then there is the city's unmissable landmark: the "Gasometer Oberhausen", built in 1929 as a coke oven gas storage facility and today a more than exotic exhibition hall. The Gasometer owes its apt nickname "Cathedral of Industry" to its extraordinary spatial experience.
It takes us a good 90 minutes to travel from Oberhausen to the mouth of the Ruhr in Duisburg-Ruhrort. From Mülheim onwards, the Ruhr is state water, and now the locks also cost money. 2.50 euros each. This does not detract from the beauty of the Ruhr valley. Gentle hills, meadows and fields characterise the landscape. There are a few large campsites on the left bank. The Mintard Ruhr Valley Bridge swings majestically across the river, visible from afar. It is "only" a motorway bridge (A 52), and yet it is often referred to as the "Golden Gate of the Ruhr".
Horror at the MBC Kettwig jetty (Ruhr km 22.2 RU): only four boats are still bobbing on the finger pontoons of this once so lively and popular facility. Harbour master Dahlmann reports "internal conflicts and a major crisis" that has befallen the club. The harbour looks correspondingly run-down. Sanitary facilities are now only available at the neighbouring Kettwiger Ruderclub.
The pretty half-timbered houses in the alleyways of Kettwig's old town and dinner at the "Bonner Hof" (Kringsgat 14) make up for the gloomy sight of the "harbour". Behind the German name lies a cosy Spanish-Mediterranean restaurant with unusually creative cuisine. Table reservations are compulsory. Tel.: 02054-53 86.
One more lock, another 2.50 euros, and the Baldeneysee is reached. It is doubtful whether this trip is even worthwhile for motorboats: motorised vehicles are not allowed to leave the buoyed fairway on Lake Baldeney. In other words, apart from the "distant view" of Krupp's "Villa Hügel", the trip on the lake is not particularly uplifting.
Whitsun Saturday, the Ruhr to the valley. At the YC Mülheim-Ruhr (Ruhr-km 8.4 LU) is the place to be: the club is celebrating its 40th birthday. And it's not celebrating alone, but with countless guests and guest boats. If we had known, we would have signed up. As it is, it remains a flying visit.
As the Ruhr lock in Duisburg is not in operation at the weekend, we head towards the Rhine via the Duisburg-Meiderich lock and the Duisburg harbour canal (Rhine km 780.8 RU). Just four kilometres up the Rhine, which as always is quite a challenge, and we reach the entrance to Duisburg's outer and outer harbour. Inner harbour (Rhine kilometre 776.6 RU). Up to the Marina Duisburg it is just under three kilometres by canal or harbour from here.
The marina is located in front of the imposing "Five Boats" office complex designed by British architect Sir Nicholas Grimshaw and the "Hitachi Power Office". Modern architecture, converted warehouses, a former mill as a museum, old loading cranes, Mediterranean-style rows of restaurants: Once again, we experience a prime example of the structural transformation of the Ruhr region, and of course the inner harbour is part of the "Route of Industrial Heritage".
A good 130 boats up to 20 metres in length can be moored on the marina's eight floating jetties. There is water and electricity at the jetty, a sanitary block in the harbour master's building, a waste disposal station and a boat filling station with petrol and diesel.
Caribbean beach in Flaesheim
Our plan to travel along the Rhine to Wesel and from there follow the Wesel-Datteln Canal from west to east fails at the Friedrichsfeld lock: one chamber is closed and the nautical information radio reports waiting times of up to six hours. We don't want to put ourselves through that. So we head back along the Rhine-Herne Canal towards Datteln, stopping for the night at the AMC Castrop-Rauxel. A hospitable harbour with all-round facilities (including boat and engine service, 20-tonne crane and new children's playground!) The "Zum Yachthafen" restaurant is not only a popular destination for boat crews.
At the Dattelner Meer we turn into the Wesel-Datteln Canal and reach the Wesel-Datteln Canal via the Datteln and Ahsen locks. Marina Flaesheim (WDK-km 50.7 LU). At first glance, this is just a floating jetty around 250 metres long. But what a location on the approach to a former quarry pond in front of a Caribbean white beach and crystal-clear, silvery-green water! "For me, the most beautiful marina in the Ruhr region," a skipper in Oberhausen had already told us. Water and electricity at the jetty. Above the beach is the "Flaesheim Leisure Park" with bistro and kiosk.
We set course for Dorsten, 30 kilometres west of Flaesheim. We are moored very quietly at the finger jetty of the Dorsten MYC (WDK-km 28.5 RU), although the small harbour bay is open to the canal. Water and electricity at the jetty, sanitary facilities in the clubhouse. It is around 1.5 km from the harbour to the town centre. The sports boat mooring below the Hochstaden bridge (WDK-km 27.6 LU) is located directly next to the shopping centre, which is closed for renovation. In addition, the notice "Take care of your property. Do not leave boats unguarded" does not exactly inspire confidence. The other one close to the city centre Marina Dorsten (WDK-km 27.1 LU) is jam-packed, and we can't find a free spot after passing it several times.
Out of the Wesel-Datteln Canal and into the Datteln-Hamm Canal. It offers little for the eye until, after 23 kilometres, we reach the Marina Rünthe (DHK-km 23.3 LU). The way it has developed since my last visit (2000) leaves me speechless: the extension of the harbour in a north-easterly direction, the attractive, post-modern buildings on the south bank, the beautiful panoramic view from the terrace of the "Achterdeck" café on the outer pier. You could write pages and pages about this harbour.
The fact is: Owner Thorsten Nustede has made this marina with its almost 300 berths the absolute number 1 in the Ruhr region. There's nothing missing: whether it's a crane (16 tonnes), boat filling station (petrol and diesel), boat repairs or summer and winter storage. Three restaurants, a café and a bistro are just decorative accessories. A grand finale to my third "Tour de Ruhr"!
TERRITORY INFORMATION
Precinct
As federal waterways, the canals shown here are part of the North German canal network, on which an inland navigation licence is required to operate boats with more than 11.06 kW (15 hp). This also applies to the Ruhr, which is a state waterway above Mülheim. On the Rhine, the licence requirement already applies to boats from 3.68 kW (5 hp). As the Rhine and the canals are heavily frequented by commercial shipping, the area should only be travelled by experienced skippers. The less frequented Ruhr, on the other hand, is also suitable for skippers with little experience. Pleasingly, there are solid waiting areas for pleasure craft in the upper and lower water at all locks in the Ruhr region, although several of them have no connection to land or the shore. Here are the most important parameters of the waterways in the area:
- Dortmund-Ems Canal (DEK) (from the Alte Fahrt Fuestrup marina to Waltrop [Schleusenpark]); length: 64 km; locks 1; maximum speed 12 km/h; bridge height 4.64 m (at normal water level). Boat refuelling stations: km 77.6 RU: Bootscenter Münster, diesel. Tel. 0251-93 20 20, km 70.2 LU: Bunkerstation Lohmann, diesel. Tel. 0251-23 56 19.
- Rhine-Herne Canal (RHK) (with Duisburg harbour canal); length: 47.8 km; 5 locks; maximum speed 12 km/h; bridge height 4.58 m. Boat refuelling station: km 38.5 RU: AMC Castrop-Rauxel, diesel. Tel. 0172-234 52 36.
- Wesel-Datteln Canal (WDK) Length: 60 km; 6 locks; maximum speed 12 km/h; bridge height 4.94 m. Boat refuelling station: km 27.1 LU: Hanse Marina Dorsten, diesel. Tel. 02362-77 91 89.
- Datteln-Hamm Canal (DHK) Length: 47 km; locks 2; maximum speed 12 km/h (upgraded stretches); otherwise 10 km/h; bridge height 4.46 m. Boat filling station: km 23.4 LU: Marina Rünthe, diesel, petrol. Tel. 02389-31 63.
- Ruhr Length: 41.6 km; 5 locks; maximum speed 12 km/h, 6 km/h in some marked passages. Bridge height 4.75 m up to Baldeneysee, 3.15 m above Baldeneysee. Boat refuelling station: none.
- Rhine (from the entrance to Duisburg's inner harbour to the mouth of the Wesel-Datteln Canal); length: 36.6 km; no locks; maximum speed unlimited; bridge height 9.10 m. Boat filling station: km 776.6 RU: Marina Duisburg, diesel, petrol. Tel. 0203-289 56 97.
Cruise literature - Manfred Fenzl: From the Rhine to the North and Baltic Seas. Edition Maritim, Hamburg. ISBN 978-3-89225-446-1.
- Bezirksregierung Düsseldorf (ed.): Schifffahrt & Wassersport auf der Ruhr. Brochure. Download at www.brd.nrw.de → Transport → Shipping.
Cruise stages - Alte Fahrt Fuestrup ▹ Münster 9
- Münster ▹ Waltrop (Schleusenpark) 55
- Waltrop ▹ Oberhausen 36
- Oberhausen ▹ Kettwig 27
- Kettwig ▹ Baldeneysee ▹ Essen-Rellinghausen ▹ Kettwig 40
- Kettwig ▹ Mülheim ▹ Marina Duisburg 31
- Duisburg ▹ Castrop-Rauxel 42
- Castrop-Rauxel ▹ Flaesheim 21
- Flaesheim ▹ Dorsten 25
- Dorsten ▹ Marina Rünthe 58
- Total 344
