Wipfra (river)

The fed from the Wipfra Small String pond near Ilmenau

The outflow of the upper Willinger Springs (left) joins the Wipfra

The Wipfra ( historically also Wipper ) is a 40 kilometer long tributary of Gera in Ilm-Kreis in Thuringia.

Geography

The Wipfra springs west of Oberpörlitz in Ilmenau city to the shepherds bush ponds. There, about 560 meters high mountain hawk is in the right low-water sources of Wipfra lie. They first flows in an easterly direction and forms after about two kilometers to Streichgrund, extending from Unterpörlitz to the barrier Heyda. North of the Unterpörlitz Wipfra is crossed by the A71 through the Viaduct Streichgrund. Here it formed a marshy valley with numerous small pools and ponds. Now, it proposes a northeasterly flow direction and, after a short way the Old Wipfra, which flows through the Altwipfergrund and is also crossed by the A71 through the Viaduct Altwipfergrund. This right tributary of the Wipfra runs east of Unterpörlitz to Ilmenau residential Eichicht up and also forms several small ponds.

Where unite String and String Altwipfergrund was the pond, which is a unique wetland. It is located at 424 meters above sea level and is home to many aquatic animals. Below the Strokes eich the Wipfra overflows nor the armed meadow before it opens in 1988, completed dam Heyda. The dam Heyda is the largest body of water in Ilm-Kreis, its surface covers about 95 hectares, the water level is at full back 417 meters above sea level. In the dam still gravel Bach and Bach Heydar unite with the Wipfra. The height of the dam is about 18 meters. The dam mainly serves the domestic hot water supply to the area.

North of the dam the Wipfra occurs for the first time in a plane. Here it crosses the border between the city of Ilmenau and named after her community Wipfratal. In the plane are the places Heyda, Schmerfeld, Wipfra, Neuroda, Kettmannshausen and Reinfeld, all belonging to the municipality except Heydas Wipfratal. The plane is about 400 meters above sea level and is used for agriculture. Here the Wipfra winds continue in a northeasterly direction, it flows through the towns of Wipfra and Neuroda before the slopes on both banks become steeper again and again forms a valley. Here the river cuts through a spur of the mountains clean. It is flanked on the west by the 544 meter high Gottlobsberg and on the east by the 502 meter high mountain Willinger. Behind the Wipfradurchbruch it crosses again the A 71 and the high-speed line Nuremberg -Erfurt. Then bend the Wipfra in a wide arc to 270 ° from east to northerly direction, crossing the towns of Behringen, Upper Willingen and Niederwillingen where the railway line Arnstadt -Saalfeld is in the valley that opens here again.

Now the Wipfra meanders through a 250 km ² large plain that was formed by her and lies at an altitude of 300 to 400 meters above sea level. The nearest villages lined up at short intervals on the Wipfra. First comes Roda, followed Görbitzhausen, Hausen and Marlishausen. All places belong to the community Wipfratal. Although Marlishausen only has about 1,200 residents, but is it the largest city in Wipfratal. Here the railway line again leaves the barrel of the Wipfra to west towards Arnstadt turning off. Last place of community Wipfratal the course of the river is Ettischleben. Then follow Alkersleben and finally Elxleben where the Wipfra changes its flow direction from north to west. Next place on the Wipfra is Kirchheim, as the Alkersleben and Elxleben counts for managing community Riechheimer Berg and his seat it is. The last village on the Wipfra is Eischleben, west of the town flows the Wipfra in the Gera.

History

The water overflowed the Wipfra to 1920 five state borders on only 40 kilometers in length. The upper portion to the place Wipfra belonged to the office of the Grand Duchy of Ilmenau Saxe-Weimar- Eisenach, Neuroda belonged to Saxony- Gotha, behind Neuroda followed by the area of the Office Arnstadt, which belonged to the Principality of Schwarzburg- Sondershausen. The place Elxleben was one of Schwarzburg- Rudolstadt, Kirchheim to Prussia and Eischleben back to Saxe-Gotha. However, the Wipfra throughout their course was not a border river.

Origin of the name

The origin of the river name was derived from Elfriede Ulbricht from the Middle Low German, Dutch or Middle English rockers. Accordingly, the flow name in Germany is 15 times occupied, even in variations such Wipfer. The basic word was originally aha ( a variant of the -au ). This was on -a and in the early 11th century subject in the late 10th century, the weakening in-e and then disappeared completely in the Wipper. For other rivers of this name, the -a or -e received. The name would thus turn out, assemble rotating, swinging motion and water (in the sense of flowing water ).

A very similar meaning took Felix Solmsen and Ernst Fraenkel on, saw the root of the name but with even older, Indo-European origin and translate the names of rivers as the Bouncing.

Environment

Most important habitats in the area of ​​Wipfra are the String reason, the coating pond and the Altwipfergrund in their upper reaches. There live many endangered animal and plant species.

The water quality of Wipfra is to the barrier Heyda very good, moderately thereafter to the mouth. It is influenced by the intensive agriculture in this area.

Attractions and buildings

Worth the bridges over the Wipfra are (from source by mouth )

• Viaduct Streichgrund ( A71 ), 450 meters long, 27 meters high
• Viaduct Altwipfergrund ( A71 ), 280 meters long, 35 meters high
• Wipfratalbrücke (railway), 172 meters long, about 8 feet high
• Wipfratalbrücke ( A71 ), 176 meters long, about 8 feet high

Economy

The Wipfra feeds the built in the 1980s and mainly the irrigation dam serving Heyda. It also serves to water extraction for agriculture.