In the United States there is only a single river, the Salmon River in Idaho, which is not dammed. Learning that the Rhine is a free flowing river amazed me. The Rhine starts in Switzerland with snow melt from the Alps and meanders north in order to empty into the ocean in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The cultural, economic, geo-political significance of the Rhine can never be underestimated. Living, walking and eating near the Rhine, I have watched the levels change wildly.
There is a round building on the west side of the Rhine just north of the Deutzer Bridge. I have walked by it several times wondering what it wanted to tell me. It is the Pegel Köln and it shows the ship captains the level of the Rhine at km 688. My next question was to find out what the numbers were telling me.
Lets start with normal. 350 cm is a normal height for the Rhine at km 688. January 2018 the high water was at 900 cm. The city set up the flood control fences, which are spectacular. The boats and barges could not get under the bridges so they sat for a week. October that same year was an all-time record low level at 69 cm. The barges were again stuck. When the water came up a bit, the river cruise boats would bus the passengers to the next town to reduce the weight and ride as high on the river as possible. During that low water event, an unexploded WWII bomb was found.
Today the height is 140 cm.
This having to sit and wait is reminiscent of the medieval days. Köln would not charge a tax for boats to pass but they would require the ship to stay in Köln for three days to enjoy the city’s wine, women, music and food. What an ingenious way to get their money.
Update: 8 February 2021
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