Since this is part 10 and it’s been almost two years, you might enjoy going back to some of the previous stories. I’m gonna hand things over to Rhena right away, don’t worry. She decided to hang out in Koblenz for almost two years but called on me to come join her again on the way to Basel (and possibly beyond).
Rhena - Intro, Rhena - Part 1, Rhena - Part 2, Rhena - Part 3, Rhena - Part 4, Rhena - Part 5, Rhena - Part 6, Rhena - Part 7, Rhena - Part 8, Rhena - Part 9
Well, hello everybody! I’m back! Did you miss me?
My name’s Rhena and I’ve just been dumped by the love of my life.
Also, my first love ever. So, I’m totally going to feel plenty sorry for myself. Her name was Aariana. I guess I should have known that she was too good to be true.
I’m sure you know that the Aare joins the Rhine in Koblenz. I was floating along on the left embankment when the Aare hit us. It his us with such force, I didn’t really know what to do or how to react. Then somebody grabbed my hand and pulled me towards her. It was Aariana. It was love at first sight. She floated into my life, and I knew it would never be the same again.
So, we’ve been hanging out in Koblenz in an area close to the hydro-electric power plant that sits at the end of the Klingnauer Stausee. It was blissful, it was heavenly.
Until it wasn’t.
I was distraught and hiding for a few weeks until I figured I might as well continue my journey down the Rhine. Too many hurtful memories in this area. I gave my travel companion a shout-out and here we are. Ready to tackle what lies ahead.
Evelyne came to meet me by the old railway bridge. We both don’t know if that’s still in operation, but apparently, it’s dangerous to jump off of. Sounds reasonable.
We walked to the Rhine, and I was super nervous about rejoining my former friends and family members. Although I didn’t expect to see any of them right away. Too much time had passed.
It was so good to be walking/floating together again. We had so much to catch up on. Nothing I wanna bore you with right now though.
It was gonna be a hot day so we had a reasonably early start and after only about 40 minutes I heard an excited – “oh wow how adorable” from up on the dike. There was a boarlet on the loose. I’m glad we didn’t come across its mom though. Those things smell and pee in the water. They are even worse than dogs.
Not as bad as humans with smelly feet though. They are the worst. They walk all day and then stick their smelly feet right in your face. They have no boundaries.
I actually prefer to be peed on.
There, I said it. 🫣
How did we get here?
Somebody change the subject, please!
Rowing? Yes, thank you. I love rowers. We can play with their oars and make it seem a lot harder than it actually is and then suddenly let go and they almost hurt themselves because they pull with too much force.
Such fun!
There are many farms along this stretch of the Rhine. They bring a new danger – mostly in the summer when it’s super hot. Here’s what to look out for. It’s farms.
Farms need water. The Rhine contains water. Water that is clean. Water that can be used for irrigation.
Knowing the Swiss there are very strict rules on that though.
These weird looking things pump water out of the river and you can lose friends easily if they are too close to the embankment and / or are not paying attention. In the summer it gets really hot and floating on either side close to the bushes is usually how we keep cool. In this case that’s not a good idea unless you want to go flying up in the air and be rained down on random vegetables.
And die.
It looks harmless enough but as soon as they stick the end of that hose into the water, you have to get out of there – FAST. Most of the time our early warning system works as somebody spots it.
But look how hidden this one is from the water’s perspective. Sneaky!
Anyway, how does everybody feel about nuclear power?
We passed a nuclear power plant next. Even if you didn’t see the tall cooling tower looming above, you’d notice that the water is slightly warmer flowing out of it.
Again, there are strict rules as to what temperature the Rhine is allowed to have after that nuclear power plant. If the water gets too hot, it has to be switched off.
My friends - the fish - are super thankful for that.
They really make good use of the water when it comes to generating energy. Just a bit further down river there is Kraftwerk Albbruck-Dogern – a hydro-electric power plant.
And this one comes with a cool feature. There is a water park for the fish to pass it safely. It looks really cool and nothing like the boring fish steps you usually see bypassing the turbines. I floated through what we later found out was also a nature reserve. It’s situated right between the nuclear and the hydro-electric power plants. A crazy fascinating area.
This is also where I overheard Evelyne making a phone call about that boarlet we had seen earlier. Turns out it’s perfectly normal for boarlets to go explore while mom sleeps. We both learned something.
Anyway, on we went and we continued to catch up.
I won’t repeat what I said earlier, but my companion was glad there was a portapotty along the way. It was the posh kind. Well, sort of.
It came with a chemical flush, proper toilet paper and hand sanitizer. Not bad for out by the river.
Shortly after that pit stop, we had to say goodbye again. There was a heat warming in place starting at 11 AM and there was a bus at 11.09. Perfect timing.
I could hear the 11 o’clock bells in the distance. What a treat.
It was an emotional reunion in warm walking conditions. You can watch the video here.
I hope to see everybody back for my next adventure.
Take good care of yourselves and stay cool.
Thank you, Rhena, for your delightful story! I must apologize. One of my great joys is immersing my feet in pleasant moving water 💙
Thank you for a wonderful story Rhena that is only 😉 about the trials and tribulations of a strong flowing river. At times you may blend with others, at times your “coolness” may get siphoned off for awhile, but you will always keep flowing through it all !! You are strong and will stay strong through low and high tides !