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The Rothensee ship lift, which is at the end of the Mittleland canal, where it meets the river Elbe. This shot is from down at the level of the Elbe, looking back at the lift (on the right) which we have just come down. I couldn't hover at the entrance for a picture, as Mr Barge-in-a-hurry was waiting to get in. To the left is the entrance to the new lock, which has multiple side ponds, and which can take bigger ships than the lift.
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This is the good ship Temujin pirouetting around the bouy in the middle of the Muritz See. 'Twas a breezy day, and at times the land looked a very long way away.
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Only 12 years ago, the harbour at Waren, in the north of the Muritz See, was a decaying inland port. Now the harbour is a bustling resort. Pontoon moorings are laid out on the water, trip boats come and go and the old warehouses have been apartmentalized. It is all very pretty, and everyone seems to be making loadsa money by selling services to everyone else, but … ?
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A busy little bridge on a fine summer's day.
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Ah!! Yes. Ostensibly this is merely a typical steel cruiser. But observe, if you will, its name. I know it’s very childish, but …
The German word for journey is 'fahrt'. Why they chose that word, I don’t know. Anyway, Brits who speak no German are, understandably, somewhat taken aback when some one says 'Bon Voyage' in German, 'cos it comes out as 'Gute fahrt' to which one is stumped for a reply, especially if one is sure that one hasn't, in the near past, had one. A gute fahrt, that is. Anyway, we had just got to the point of not smirking every time we left a mooring to the cries of 'Gute fahrt' when we came upon this wondrously named vessel, and stated sniggering all over again. It's called 'Fahrtwind'.
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Compared with our own fair island, Germany is VERY BIG. And much of it is forest, because, like the French, the Germans like forests. I think Brits like forests too, but our Kings stole most of them from the common people, so we try to forget about our woody past. Anyway, the Germans use their forests as a resource for things other than firewood. Hence this bank-side protection is a bonus from the forest.
Whilst it looks good and is jolly good at protecting the banks, it's not good for mooring. There is nothing to tie to, and the bank itself is usually so soggy that a mooring pin can be pushed in by hand – and hence pulled out again by the wash of a passing boat.
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A wonderfully still evening on the Finow canal. Alternative name: Upside down picture?
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The Finow canal has been bypassed by a larger waterway, so it is not much used these days, but in the past its opening heralded a boom for the area. There are still old factories along it. A brass foundry has some black houses nearby – the walls were externally clad with copper sheets, now blackened with age. A steel rolling mill is now a tourist/heritage centre. I was told that this is an old paper mill.
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In recent years, the Finow canal has been cleaned up for us tourists. Some of the older bits have been kept, such as these lock gates. No balance beams – the gates are opened by pulling or pushing the T-bar…
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... This contraption attached to a gentrified concrete post was used for raising and lowering the paddles (that let water into, and out of, the lock). The inverted, ‘U’-shaped bar is attached, below ground, to the paddles. The horizontal bar is pivoted, its pivot point being between the arms of the U-bar. On either side of the pivot point there is a hole, and on each of the arms of the U-bar there is also a series of holes – these can be seen in the picture. The position in the photo is with the paddles down
Remove both pins. One end of the horizontal bar is pushed down, until its hole lines up with a hole in the U-bar. A chunky iron pin is then poked through the two holes locking the horizontal bar to the U-bar. Thence to the other end of the pivot bar, which is now pulled down (hence levering the U-bar up a bit and hence pulling the paddle up a bit) until its hole lines up with a hole in the U-bar. A chunky iron pin is then poked through the two holes, locking them together. Then back to the other end of the pivot bat, remove its pin, push the pivot down, insert pin … and so on.
No. I don’t know why they chose such a method either. I don’t think many other canals copied their example.
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At the eastern end of the Finow canal, one gets a distant view of the Niederfinow ship lift. This was built on the Oder-Havel canal (which, when built, removed east-west through traffic from the Finow canal. As built there were three locks to raise the boats up 36 metres. There is a not very easy to find foot path beside the old locks, and enough holes in the extensive fencing to enable an intrepid explorer to gain access. There are also some viewing platforms for less intrepid explorers.
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Approaching the Niederfinow lift. That’s Temujin in front of Rosy. At 36 metres, the lift is half the height of the Strepy Thieu lift in Belgium.
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Here is a trip boat, another cruiser, Rosy, Temujin and That Bloody Canoe in the lift. That Bloody Canoe spent so much time and effort in attempting to keep OUT of everybody else's way that he ended up by getting INTO everybody else's way, and, hence, holding everybody else up.
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Going uup...
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... and looking down.
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In the old German Democratic Republic (the East) these barges were used as overnight accommodation for waterway employees at out-of-the-way work sites. Nowadays they seem to be used as mobile canteens and toilets, or as extra offices. Some are in private hands as houseboats. This one is moored at a waterways sub-station.
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The main entrance to the Sachenshausen concentration camp.
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A roller, used by the inmates for compacting the roads that they were required to build. The T-bar for hauling it is missing. The roller at Ravensbruck had a diameter of about half as much again. I’ll leave you to imagine how the roller was moved from work site to work site...
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Not sure what to call this. 'Abstract Piece', perhaps? Or 'Abstract Peace'?
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A warning for Sir not to fill up the petrol fuel tank of his inflatable's outboard on the stern deck of his expensive, steel cruiser, whilst his Dear Lady Wife is in the galley making his dinner on a gas stove. No one was hurt in this fire, but the innards of his boat were burned out in about 15 minutes.
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This is a good example of 'brick Gothic', built in the late 13th Century. It is the Chorin Kloster. The gable end is particularly fine.
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Pretty good for the 13th Century. The buildings are still in use – in the summer months concerts are held. On the day of our visit – a wonderful summers day – there was a piano recital which perfectly matched the mood and atmosphere of the day.
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This lovely old tower was once a part of the walls of Brandenburg. Now it is beside the Brandenburg lock. We stopped to take our masts down before shooting the bridge.
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I know this isn’t the best photo in the world but …
This is the famous Glienicker Bridge. It is near Berlin, and you are bound to know it. It is the bridge shown in every cold war spy film, and is the bridge that was used for spy swaps.
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On the river Spree, heading east out of Berlin, there is still much dereliction. Some is old, dating back to WW2, with pockmarks from shells and bullets clearly visible. Other parts are newer, being Soviet buildings abandoned at reunification. This was an industrial site which is now being re-developed – there are some new buildings in the background. The bit by the water was cleared, but nothing was happening. Except ….
This crane used to serve the wharf. It is atop a fairly substantial building so …
Someone moved in, renovated the inside of the building, put in some picture windows and lived in it – a smart house in the middle of industrial dereliction!! As we passed by, I saw someone in a towelling robe emerging from a shower to join two other people on a sofa for breakfast. I gave them a cheery 'Toot' but I guess they have double glazing.
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A very convenient mooring at a waterways crossroads at Schmockwitz – eastwards from Berlin. It's a 48 hour mooring, but we stayed longer and then kept going off for a few days and returning for a few days.
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An early morning view from the cabin doors early on a misty morning at Schmockwitz. Going by is a push tug, pushing three 80 metre pans of coal.
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There has always been a dearth of stone on the great north German plain, so buildings have usually been made of brick. It is noticeable that many (most?) industrial buildings have wonderful, decorative flourishes. The pointed gable over the door, for example, with a medallion explaining the business, or the curved arches over the doors and windows, and the 3-pronged hinges on the doors. All for an industrial building.
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A peaceful mooring on a little diddy canal that Temujin and Rosy felt very much at home on.
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Apart from 'proper' housing, there are lots of bungalows and chalets built beside the lakes and smaller, non-commercial canals. The 'Barrel Summer House' is a popular adornment, and this was one of the smarter ones that we saw.
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This was, for us, the head of navigation of the river Dahme. To the right, a railway line with a small trolley allows easy portage of canoes etc round the lock. I think they get round to the head of the river Spree, and then paddle down the Spree.
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And finally, a map of the Elbe. It's big - 83Kb - but it shows where we have been, are now and will be in the future.
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