The Mosel is Flooded!!!

May 18, 2024

We have stayed two nights at the guesthouse in Obervillig because there was an extreme weather warning. We ended up getting 24 hours of heavy rain. On the morning that we were heading out we heard from our fellow guests that the Mosel had flooded and the bike route in both directions was closed. We were shocked when we saw the extent of the flooding. We quickly finished packing and headed for Thionville in France.

The breakfast room at our guesthouse at Oberbillig.

The owner of the guesthouse/restaurant is an artist. This piece shows the view across the Mosel from the guesthouse. Can you see the orchestra in the picture? It’s the orchestra that was rehearsing above us.

A map of the Mosel showing all the vineyards along the river. The map is from 1906

The shocked look on Barry’s face is because he looked over the flood barrier and saw an angry flooding river which is not calming down. If the barrier hadn’t been erected, he would be standing knee deep in water.

Looking across to Luxembourg, we can see that the town doesn’t have barriers. Clearly the flooding doesn’t negatively impact the birds - these swans seem to approve that their river has expanded.

Looking across to Luxembourg, we recall riding over this bridge years ago when we rode the Moselle the first time.

The ground floors of these buildings are flooded

Seavo is caked with several layers of mud

We met this lovely couple at our guesthouse. They live in Antwerp in Belgium

We are trying to get out of Overbillig but all the roads and the bike route are under water. We will have to talk to some locals for a better idea of what is the best route to take.

Mary Ellen is getting advice from a couple of locals. They said that there is only one road open. We have to head up to the village church and then stay on the high road out of the village. They advised us to stay off the bike paths and to ride only on the road today. The Mosel River Cycle route is closed in both directions. We had planned to take the ferry across this morning and start our ride in Luxembourg. Not today…the ferry is not running.

The birds are loving having more river to explore

We have crossed over to Luxembourg hoping the situation is better

Actually it looks worse over here. As you can see from the bicycle route sign the water is several feet high

Liked this image of the 3 birds checking out the river.

We have stopped at this Italian restaurant to use their washroom and have some gelato . Sticker shock…ice cream is more than double the price than in Germany.

Doggy ice cream is a thing here, and apparently it only has good ingredients.

Perhaps we need wings to dodge all this flooding.

We saw a cyclist riding the bike route so we thought that we would give it a try.

Mary Ellen walked behind Barry. It really gave her waterproof socks a workout with water and mud above her ankles.

We have arrived in Schengen. It is where the Schengen Agreement was signed.

As travellers, we appreciate the Schengen Agreement as it allows free travel within the EU for 90 days. We can across borders without a need for border control or the showing of Passports or documents.

The historic signing in 1985 of this complicated document.

A series of sculptures in the Schengen Park with each star representing a different city in the participating EU countries.

Each star on these columns represents a city with identifying objects from that city.

Three countries in 3 minutes. We took the bridge over the Mosel from Luxembourg and arrived in Germany ….rode for 100 metres and arrived in France. This is a moment when we appreciate the Schengen Agreement.

Speed restrictions for the city, highway and autobahn. Barry and I hope to never drive on an autobahn…at our speed driving, we would be a hazard!

The flooding is making havoc here. Usually tour buses bring loads of people who want to visit the site of the Schengen signing. Today the passengers were discharged down the street and bus loads walked to the spot.

There is a system in France whereby each town is given a rating based on what they have done to beautify their town. The rating is given in the number of flowers (with the best being 5 flowers). As you can see, Thionville has done well with a rating of 4 flowers.

The village of Rettel (population 772) and its castle above the town.

Nuclear energy is still very active in France. The sight makes you stop and wonder when it can end.

Thionville has done well with a 4 flower rating.

We went for a wander through the town centre of Thionville, just to explore and find a grocery store for dinner.

A beautiful natural live wall with many flowering plants has been created on this building

Thionville has a lovely centre of town with wide pedestrian zones, places to sit and have a coffee or a meal.

We don’t understand the significance of these stone people on the corner of the building, but we can clearly see the joy the woman in brown robes has with her pint of beer.

The view from our hotel room in Thionville, France.

Today's ride: 62 km (39 miles)
Total: 474 km (294 miles)

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Suzanne GibsonThanks for the pictures documenting the flooding. You are now where we had planned to be a week from today. It's hard to guess how much the water will have gone down or how many bike paths along the Mosel and the Saar, where we would continue after visiting Trier, will be open. Any opinions?
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7 months ago

Barry BartlettHi Suzanne
I thought of you yesterday. Today we rode the bike route from Thionville to Metz - no problem. The bike trail is higher and not a problem.
We think the issue at Oberbillig is the confluence of the Saar and Moselle. Saarburg was the hardest hit, we heard.
We feel that if there is no more rain, it should be ok, but I do recommend monitoring the Moselle site for current conditions.
Yesterday we rode secondary roads and it was ok. We ran into trouble when we tried the cycle route.
Hope you get to do your trip.
Mary Ellen
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7 months ago

Suzanne GibsonTo Barry BartlettThanks, Mary Ellen!
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7 months ago

Suzanne GibsonGlad I got to read your entry before the text disappeared!
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7 months ago

Rich FrasierYou two rise to challenges really well! Nothing seems to stop you!
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7 months ago

Barry BartlettThanks for your comment Rich. We do try!
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7 months ago