Elbe–Lübeck Canal

Template: Infobox River / GKZ_fehlt

Channel at Dalldorf

The Elbe -Lübeck Canal ( ELK, 1900-1936: Elbe-Trave Canal) is a 61.55 km long Federal waterway of class III of Lauenburg / Elbe at Elbe - km 569.23 to Lübeck in Schleswig -Holstein. It establishes a connection for the inland navigation between the Elbe and Baltic dar. responsible is the Waterways and Shipping Office Lauenburg.

History

Precursor of the Elbe- Lübeck canal is the historical Stecknitz Delvenau channel, which was built from 1391 to 1398 from the Lübeck over the course of the rivers Stecknitz and Delvenau. Their Altstrecken the left and right of the current Elbe- Lübeck canal can still be seen. This channel had 17 locks ( first weirs, and later as -locks ) on a length of 97 kilometers and was the first real watershed channel in Europe. From the locks the Palmschleuse in Lauenburg and the Dückerstieg lock ( floodgate ) at Witzeeze are still preserved. Almost 500 years was this waterway in operation until the start of construction of ELK.

The Elbe -Lübeck Canal was from 1895 - as seen from the Lübeck as a rival to the North Sea-Baltic Canal - built by the plans of the building director Peter Rehder and Lübeck in Lübeck under Mayor Heinrich Klug in the presence of Emperor Wilhelm II on June 16, 1900 put into operation. The Stecknitz and Delvenau are largely absorbed into the Elbe- Lübeck Canal. Said to 1936 Elbe-Trave Canal inland waterway cut short the distance to 62 km, the number of locks fell to seven, the journey time to about eight hours. A very advanced for its time and proven to the present technique designed by Ludwig building inspector Hotopp purely hydrodynamically driven (only by water power ) locks and generously dimensioned bridges made ​​the channel for a long time seem exemplary.

During the construction of the canal end of the 19th century fortified a reed with its roots the shore in a natural way. Over time, the waterway is frequented by more and more motor vessels whose propulsion power and speed claimed the channel bed stronger. Back Pouring water tore whole Reetballen and swept them away. With the loss of this valuable riparian vegetation caused washouts ( scours ) and bank crashes. The ground broke away on the sole and thereby decreased the water depth. It originated raisings up to 30 cm and thus the risk of groundings of ships. As a result Sohlenbaggerungen increasingly had to be made. To secure the waterfront, the Waterways and Shipping Office Lauenburg has developed a structurally and ecologically sound bank protection. It consists of a row of piles of pine piles which are driven so deep that the pile heads end 20 cm below the water surface. In this way it is ensured that the vegetation in the zone of fluctuating water hardly disturbed by the row of piles. The wildlife, such as fish and frogs, can without any obstacles get in the riparian belt. The broken shore behind the pile wall is refilled with soil. In order to prevent an outflow of the soil by the pile row, a filter mat is disposed on the back side of the posts.

As the only German channel that era next to the Kaiser- Wilhelm- channel of the Elbe -Lübeck Canal was designed from the beginning for 1000 -ton ships. The seven locks mediate the traffic between the Elbe and the Baltic Sea on the opposite the Travelodge about twelve meter higher elevation route with Mölln. They are for two vessels of 8 meters wide and up to 80 meters in length (or time for 65 meters long barges in tow Association ) designed, only the 2006 renewed Lauenburg Lock has a length of 115 m.

Construction and maintenance of the channel were 1895-1921 in Lübeck. In 1921, the channel of the Geniner bridge in Lübeck to the diaper area waterway. The bridge below the Geniner developed the construction of canals Travelodge (channel Travelodge ) was until 1934 Empire waterway.

The traffic to and from Lübeck rose in the first years of operation of the channel rapidly. In 1902 he was 207 001 tonnes, 360 204 tonnes in 1905, 1909 is already at 505 115 tonnes. Initially, the Elbe-Trave Canal was primarily used for the transport of bulk goods, in Lübeck, these were mainly fertilizer, rocks and soils, bricks, pipes, sand, gravel, chalk, oil seeds, sugar, molasses, syrup, salt, bark, tannins, cut wood, stone and goods, petroleum and other oils, fruits and chemicals. In the opposite direction raw and broken iron, stone and quarry products, legumes, cellulose, coke, coke breeze, oils and fats and molasses and oats were primarily wood ( cut and stem wood), transported. The gravel deposits found during canal construction in the area of white bream in the Duchy of Lauenburg soon contributed significantly to channel traffic.

On March 25, 1903 went through as the Lübeck newspapers of the time vermeldeten according thrilled the first warship, the torpedo boat S65, the channel.

Today's meaning

The present importance of the channel is rather low because the small for the present time lock and bridge dimensions do not allow economic container transport and only smaller barges can happen to a dumping of 1,000 tons the channel. The channel is used today mainly for bulk materials (such as mined in the region of the channel gravel). In 2008, the transport volume was 1.1 million tons in 2432 cargo vessels ( both based on Lauenburg Lock ). In addition the channel is also used by the recreational boating in traffic between the Baltic and the Elbe (approx. 5000-6000 boats per year).

Channel levels

The combination of lock opening hours and the maximum authorized speed (4 km / h Lauenburg harbor and from the lock to the Elbe, otherwise depending on the loaded draft and vehicle width 6-10 km / h) allows the distance from the Elbe to Lübeck in a day to cover.

The bridge headroom is at normal channel water level 4.4 m and is to be increased in the coming years to 5.25 m. The loaded draft is max. 2.0 m.

Limiting factor for the shipping are the six locks 11 km before the end of the channel at Lauenburg, which can only accommodate vessels up to 80 meters in length. The further expansion of the channel has been postponed for an indefinite time.

In addition, in recent years the recreational benefits for recreation and tourism has grown. The riverside paths of the channel suitable for (wheel ) walks between Lübeck ( Geniner bridge ) and Lauenburg (also alternating with the parallel passing through the Lauenburg Lakes Nature Park historic Old Salt Road ) and so open up the bike trails on the Elbe and in the Lüneburg Heath.

Towns and cities on the Elbe- Lübeck Canal

• Lübeck, 71 m northeast of the axis of the Geniner Road bridge begins with the ELK 0.00 km, just beyond crosses the railway line Lübeck- Hamburg, a little further the federal highway 20 the channel
• Lübeck, the district of Büssau with lock at 3.43 km
• Krummesse with lock at 8.55 km
• Berkenthin with lock at 13.33 km ( here also crosses the highway 208)
• Behlendorf with lock at 16.52 km
• New Lankau with the thunder lock at 20.67 km
• Mölln ( here crossed the highway 207 the channel that runs through the Möllner Ziegelsee )
• Guster, here crosses the motorway 24 The channel is here bordered by a series of lakes, which are partly accessible also from the canal. The gravel mined here was brought down over the ELK. Today the lakes are mainly used for recreation.
• Seven Oaks ferry to Fitzen
• Büchenberg
• Witzeeze with lock at 50.45 km
• Dalldorf with bridge to Zweedorf ( Schwanheide )
• Basedow ( Lauenburg ) on Lanzer lake at km 55 (the channel leading to the lake along Lanzer )
• Lauenburg / Elbe with lock at 59.91 km ( here crosses the main road 5 channel ), confluence with the Elbe at km 61.55.

Geodata

• Beginning of the chainage: 53 ° 50 ' 37.2 "N, 10 ° 38' 5.2 " O53.84366666666710.634777777778
• Confluence with the Elbe at Lauenburg: 53 ° 22 '10 " N, 10 ° 33' 27" O53.36936111111110.557611111111