52 weeks Rhine kilometer 749 - 760
For 2022 I had planned as a photo project, to upload here every week a new picture of the Rhine bank between the Rhine kilometers 749 and 760, the Rhine bank belonging to the city of Meerbusch. Sometimes with a view of the Rhine, sometimes with a view away from the Rhine.
Initially, I was not sure whether I would be able to keep up this project over the whole year and whether the largely natural shore section would offer enough motifs. In fact, however, there was no shortage of motifs at all. On the contrary, one picture per week was often felt to be far too few to reflect the impressions. It became apparent in the course of the year that the area on the banks of the Rhine has a high and varied recreational value for people from the surrounding towns.
Originally intended mainly as a documentation of the landscape and the seasonal changes, the project soon developed more and more in the direction of documenting the human activities distributed throughout the year and the traces left by people, some of them long ago.
Previously defined photographic boundary condition was to take all pictures with the same camera and with the same lens (fixed focal length) and to develop them exclusively to black and white.
Week 01
A cloudy, gloomy January day on the Rhine near Langst-Kierst
Week 02
Rhine kilometer 755 at the Rhine ferry in Langst-Kierst
In the background the Langster "Fährhaus".
Week 03
Even in winter, nature on the banks of the Rhine offers beautiful structures.
Week 04
Paper chase on the Rhine
Station 6 "Am orangenen Tor" is located at the red-brick Deichtor in Langst-Kierst.
Week 05
A treasure hunter on the Rhine
Equipped with a shovel and metal detector, a treasure hunter is on the lookout for treasure next to the ferry head of the Rhine ferry Langst-Kierst on Saturday morning. The ducks to his right don't mind.
Week 06
An abandoned pitch
The campsite in Langst-Kierst is located in front of the Rhine dike in the flood area of the Rhine and is therefore closed over the winter. Here, a permanent camper has apparently fortified and greened his site. In the background on the other side of the Rhine Düsseldorf-Kaiserswerth can be seen.
Week 07
The water is rising
In mid-February, the Rhine is not yet in flood, but the water level is significantly higher and many trees are already in the river. The Flughafenbrücke (airport bridge) can be seen in the background.
Week 08
Fireplace with seating.
So easy to set up a bench for a cozy evening by the fire. Whether both were really used now in winter?
Week 09
Fog
Week 10
Sunday outing
A group of kayakers in early March on their way downstream. In the background the Rhine ferry Langst-Kierst.
Week 11
The work of an unknown artist
Week 12
Just before touchdown
An Airbus A380, one of the largest aircraft in the world, on approach to Düsseldorf Airport.
Week 13
A heart for the mommy
A heart painted with chalk and a lot of love on a tree trunk on the banks of the Rhine in Meerbusch-Büderich.
Week 14
Just before the season opening
The campground opens after the winter break on April 8, 2022, but one permanent camper parked his trailer a week earlier.
Week 15
The Flughafenbrücke (airport bridge) connects Meerbusch with Düsseldorf
Week 16
Closed forever
This week, the hotel "Rheinhotel Vier Jahreszeiten", located at the Langst-Kierster ferry landing stage, closed its doors for good. However, a new operator has already been found and the hotel is expected to resume operations under a different name at the turn of the year 2023 following a complete renovation.
Week 17
House Niederrhein
House Niederrhein on the banks of the Rhine in Meerbusch Langst-Kierst was built back in 1926 as a family hotel and excursion restaurant. Since last week, both hotel and restaurant are closed after ceasing operations.
Week 18
Number 9
A piece of paper, labeled only with "9," lies weighted down with two stones on the banks of the Rhine. What for? What does the "9" mean? A message? For whom?
Week 19
Little idyll
In a lonely spot on the banks of the Rhine, where strollers rarely pass, there is a hidden retreat under trees, which includes this nook.
Week 20
A lonely tent on the banks of the Rhine
With nightly temperatures of 10 degrees Celsius and more in the 2nd half of May, it can be endured in the tent.
Week 21
Angler's luck
Anglers on the Rhine are no longer a rarity. The river offers with species richness and stock good conditions for fishing success.
Week 22
Under the Rhine Bridge
A runner under the Flughafenbrücke (airport bridge) on the way from the Rhine bank to the Rhine dike.
Week 23
Sailing regatta
Whitsun 1922 was the birth of the first Rhine Week, a sailing regatta on the Rhine that is now steeped in tradition. 100 years later, on Whitsun 2022, the participants pass Meerbusch-Büderich just before the Flughafenbrücke (airport bridge). The Rhine Tower in Düsseldorf can be seen in the background.
Week 24
Refreshment
At 28 degrees (Celsius, in the shade!) dogs also like to refresh themselves in the water. Dogs are allowed to run freely on the banks of the Rhine without being leashed. This is another reason why dog owners and their animal companions are permanent guests on the Rhine at any time of the year.
Week 25
Water Rescue
The rescue boats of the Düsseldorf fire department are primarily intended for the rapid rescue of persons. The boat in the picture is used by the Deutsche Lebens-Rettungs-Gesellschaft DLRG (German Life Saving Association) rescue and training station Düsseldorf-Lörick, which is located at the city border Meerbusch/Düsseldorf, in the water rescue service on the Rhine also in the area of Meerbusch.
Week 26
Dike Gate
The dike gate in Langst-Kierst is the only breach in the Rhine dike on Meerbusch territory. The dike gate was completely rebuilt in the course of the dike renovation in 2010 and considerably widened in the process. Whereas previously only one car at a time could pass through the culvert, since then there have been two lanes and a wide pedestrian and bicycle path. In case of imminent flooding, the gate can be closed with two rows of aluminum beams. However, this has so far only been done for practice purposes with the new dike gate. The road ends after a short distance at the ferry terminal of the Rhine ferry to Düsseldorf-Kaiserswerth.
Immediately behind the trees in the picture, the Rhine bank has already been reached.
Week 27
Hotel
This building, erected in 1996, belongs to the hotel complex on the banks of the Rhine at Langst-Kierst, in addition to the historic Haus Niederrhein. Located between the Rhine and the dike in the flood plain of the Rhine, it stands entirely on stilts to be protected from high water. Of the few houses on the banks of the Rhine in Meerbusch between Rhine kilometers 749 and 760, it is by far the largest building.
Week 28
Heart Stones
Who collected the stones on the banks of the Rhine and deposited them so decoratively?
Week 29
Swing
The swing is certainly great fun for children. Someone has hung it on a large tree at the campsite at the height of Rhine kilometer 756. Düsseldorf-Kaiserswerth can be seen in the background.
Week 30
Everything in sight
Feet in the water and under a parasol - that's how you can stand it when it's over 30 degrees and the sun is shining. The river and the ruins of the imperial palace on the other side of the Rhine, completed in 1193, are firmly in view.
Week 31
Stone towers
Building stone towers on the banks of the Rhine is a popular activity. Here, however, a particularly large tower was built. How long it will remain standing without falling over?
Week 32
Sheep
Sheep are regularly welcome guests on the banks of the Rhine. They keep the grass and the stinging nettles, which are often present in large areas, short. This young sheep is after a refreshment at the water on the way back to the herd, a part of which can be seen in the background. In the middle of the picture the Rhine ferry Meerbusch-Kaiserswerth is on its way from bank to bank.
Week 33
Canada Geese
With the extreme low water in August, the Rhine recedes more and more, leaving small pools in some places. The Canada geese obviously feel comfortable in them.
Week 34
Break
Dog and master take a break. The large boulders belong to the so-called "hunger stones" on the banks of the Rhine near Meerbusch-Büderich and are not visible at normal water levels of the Rhine. They were called "hunger stones" in earlier centuries, because the visibility of the stones due to little water in the Rhine meant drought and thus a poor harvest.
Week 35
Campground
Between the Rhine kilometers 755 to 757 people have been camping for over 70 years. The campground near Langst-Kierst is located directly on the banks of the Rhine between the Rhine and the dike in a nature reserve and must be completely dismantled every fall because of the danger of flooding. The next spring, meadow then becomes a campsite again.
Week 36
The Power of Nature
The boulders ("hunger stones") near Meerbusch-Büderich were originally located in the middle of the Rhine and already hindered navigation in the 19th century. In 1884/85, they were blown up and pulled toward the bank with steel cables. At low water they are still visible today and after only a few weeks nature then begins to conquer them. In some places, remnants of the steel cables used at that time are still present today.
Week 37
Ephemeral art
This work of art consists only of found objects collected on the banks of the Rhine, of which only a small part can be seen in the picture. As the water level of the Rhine rises, all the found objects will be dispersed in the river again and all traces of the work, which was created with a great deal of effort, will disappear.
Week 38
Rising water
After the low water of the summer, the Rhine level rises slowly. Here, soon nothing of the plants that grew on the dry fallen ground in spring and summer will stick out of the water.
Week 39
Walk along the Rhine
It has become autumnal and instead of sunbathing on the bank or stretching your feet into the cooling water, warmer clothing is the order of the day.
Week 40
Excursion
In sunny and very beautiful autumn weather, many excursionists use the Rhine ferry "Michaela II" between Meerbusch Langst-Kierst and Düsseldorf-Kaiserswerth to visit the other side of the Rhine.
Week 41
Head of Joseph Beuys
At Rhine kilometer 749, directly on the border with Düsseldorf and overlooking the Rhine, stands the 2.50-meter-high and twelve-ton heavy sculpture "Head Joseph Beuys" by the artist Anatol Herzfeld, who died in 2019. With this granite sculpture, created in 2008, Anatol commemorates his teacher Joseph Beuys.
Week 42
!!!Attention drag hunt!!!
The landscape along the Rhine is used for many activities. Here for a drag hunt on the banks of the Rhine in the area of Meerbusch-Büderich. A drag hunt is not a hunt for animals, but an organized ride into the countryside with dogs that follow an artificial, previously laid track.
Week 43
On the dike
The well-maintained path on the top of the dike is popular not only with walkers, but especially with cyclists. The signs on the left are signposts with distances to the surrounding places. There is a bench with a waste basket for a rest break.
Week 44
Destination Scotland
Raised bow and free-fall lifeboat at the stern, so not a pure river tank vessel. A not everyday type of ship on the Rhine. The Sea/River-going vessel "Twister," an LPG tanker, passes downstream the Rhine bank Meerbusch-Büderich on November 1, 2022. The night before, the Twister was unloaded at Chempark Dormagen. The next destination is the seaport of Grangemouth in Scotland.
Week 45
Ride
The meadows between the dike and the Rhine are popular for a community horseback ride.
Week 46
Signs
Information for navigation at Rhine kilometer 750. Here the VHF radiotelephone channels defined for the respective sections of the Rhine change for communication between ships on the river. The sign on the right indicates that the Rhine may be navigated by jet ski from here downstream.
Week 47
Stingesbach
Here, the Stingesbach, a small stream, and a rainwater collector near Meerbusch-Büderich flow into the Rhine. The Stingesbach is fed exclusively by rainwater and groundwater without having a source. Due to the drought in recent years, the brook has unfortunately not carried water for several years.
Week 48
Electricity
The campsite has long since been dismantled in early December to protect the facilities from a winter flood of the Rhine. What remains is this power distributor, which was placed on a tower to protect against flooding.
Week 49
Concrete and steel
At the Rhine dike, circular pedestrian and cyclist ramps lead onto the Rhine bridge on each side of the airport bridge. The only place on the entire route where concrete and steel can dominate the picture.
Week 50
Ruin of the Stone Bridge and irrigation lock
In the night from January 15 to 16, 1920, the Rhine reached its highest flood level for decades in the area of today's Meerbusch after a long period of rain and large amounts of meltwater. In the area of the Mühlenbach irrigation lock (called "Stone Bridge") between Ilverich and Büderich, the Rhine dam broke over a length of 50-70m. The enormous water masses completely destroyed the structure and flooded villages and land behind the dike over a wide area. Today's dike forms an arc around the remains of the structure, which has now been a reminder of the last flood disaster in the region for over 100 years.
Week 51
Myriameter stone LIX
In 1867, the Rhine riparian states decided to set "Myriameter stones" as measuring points every 10,000 m ( = 1 "Myriameter") on both sides of the Rhine as part of a Rhine survey. Near Meerbusch-Nierst one of these stones has been preserved until today. Towards the Rhine side, the stone is inscribed with the number "LIX" (59) in Roman numerals, which means that it is the 59th Myriameter stone from the Rhine bridge in Basel. Towards the land side, the inscription, which is unfortunately hardly legible today, reads "590 kilometers from Basel, 234 kilometers to Rotterdam". The Myriameter stone, which is now over 150 years old, is now a historical monument.
Week 52
High voltage power line
Almost exactly at Rhine kilometer 760, a 380,000 volt high-voltage line, which is important for the power supply, crosses the Rhine. At the end of the year, the weather is similar to the beginning of the year - cloudy, rainy and with a well-filled Rhine.