Today was a scenic cruising day down the beautiful Moselle valley with its impossibly steep vineyards covering both banks.
For Jeanette, the enforced inactivity of scenic cruising was getting to her and she was starting to pace the deck.
Fortunately we had to stop around 3pm as 20 intrepid passengers were going to ride the next 25 km on the ship’s bikes and meet up with us at our overnight destination.
As we had about a 45 minute stop, we jumped off and had a walk along the beautiful river bank. We came across a mother goose with her little brood. She was keeping them well in line while dad was off chatting with a nearby swan.
By the time we came back down the path dad and the kids had all settled down for an afternoon nap and mum was keeping watch.
Further down the river, we passed under the Hochmoseluebergang Bridge. This massive structure carrying 4 lanes spans the valley from side to side. It is some 158 meters high and 1.7 kms in length. It is nearing completion and is designed to facilitate trade between Belgium and Germany. You will note from this photo that our top deck has been reduced to minimum height as the river is running some 1 metre above its normal level and we have to squeeze under some of the bridges: just not this one though.
Here is a shot of us entering our last lock for the day.
And here is the lock gate going down into the water to let us out. Just beyond this lock the river narrows a bit and there is not enough room at our destination town of Bernkastel to turn around so the captain sailed the ship backwards for the next 2 kms.
Hardys’ Travels 