The Elbe is a major European river that flows through German and further into Europe. The canal ends about 15 nautical miles up the Elbe river. The North Sea side is a completely different scene from the Baltic end.
#Keil canal full#
We went full throttle and barely made it, as soon as we entered, the lock doors started closing behind us. When we finally realized that we had to head to the south side, the light there was white and boats were already entered. One set is for large commercial traffic and another set is for small pleasure craft like us. What we didn’t realize is there are two separate locks being operated on this side of the canal. We slowly motored up and started circling around. As we approached, we again saw red lights. The North Sea end locks were a little different. They say you need to hand-steer the full way, don’t tell, but we did let autopilot take a turn. Most of the scenery is rolling farmland with people biking, walking and fishing along the banks. The canal passed through various towns and had many small car and people ferries along the way.
It must have been a huge amount of dirt to move to create a 60 mile long hole 30+ feet deep by close to 500 feet wide. Along the way it was easy to marvel at the engineering of the canal. In the lock, looking backwards In the lock looking forwards at the lock tourist boat, I didn’t know such a thing existed.Īfter leaving the locks, we entered the canal and made the 8 hr passage southwest to the North Sea side. During this time tankers were entering the lock first and smaller boats were circling around. Like many marine situations we next did a quick scurry once Vera/Renee were back to get off the dock and head to the entrance area only to end up circling and waiting for another 45 minutes. As they did the lights turned red/white giving the prepare to enter signal. We pulled up to a quay and Renee and Vera quickly headed off to find the place to pay. We knew we had to pay the canal fee but were unclear how long we had before it opened or where to go to pay.
The main sequence is: Red, closed green, open for tankers, red and white, prepare to enter white, enter.
#Keil canal plus#
As we approach there is a steady stream of tankers coming and going plus lights signaling the state of the locks.
Special rules apply to pleasure craft and sailboats without a motor are not allowed.The maximum length for ships passing through the Kiel Canal is 235.50 metres with the maximum width 32.50 metres.Īll permanent, fixed bridges crossing the canal since its construction have a clearance of 42 metres.We left the Laboe marina around 8am and headed to the entrance of the canal which was about a half an hour away. Larger ships are sometimes required to moor at the bollards provided at intervals along the canal to allow the passage of oncoming vessels. Furthermore, there are regulations regarding the passing of oncoming ships. Larger ships are obliged to accept pilots and specialised canal helmsmen, in some cases even the assistance of a tugboat. There are detailed traffic rules for the canal with each vessel being classified in one of six traffic groups according to its dimensions. More info: The Kiel Canal was built in 1895 and is a 68-mile canal through the rich dairy farmland of Germany’s Schleswig-Holstein region, connecting the North Sea to theīaltic and avoiding a 250-nautical mile navigation around the Jutland peninsula and through the Kattegat Strait.
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