The Canal de la Marne au Rhin connects these two watersheds by a 314 km long canal which had 178 locks before the creation of one of the most impressive French navigation works: the Arzviller boat elevator.
This canal is a real catalog of the engineering works that allowed freight boats to cross the relief! Among other things, you can see a lock with a saving basin that allows you to save water, the famous boat elevator, two tunnels with alternating channels pierced under the mountain, a division reach and even a canal bridge, all in a countryside that is as hilly as it is nicely wooded.
A waterway equipped for soft navigation!
We had the privilege to travel this canal aboard the Sixto Green, the first electric boat of the rental company Nicols. We inaugurated at the same time the boat and the pontoons dedicated and equipped with fast charging stations set up by Voies Navigables de France. Saverne, where we took possession of the boat is built all in pink sandstone. The harbor basin faces the castle, but this environment is especially worth the life that the municipality has managed to breathe into the shore. On the quay, just a few steps from the pontoons, there is a lively guinguette, an open-air restaurant, and a shop of the ice cream maker Jacques Bockeleuros. Even the local wheelbarrow manufacturer Haemmerlin is part of the scene, which provides free carts to boaters to facilitate their provisioning!
It is a pleasant and lively port, warmly promoted by Xavier Schramm, the port captain. It is difficult not to be taken by the atmosphere. We like to linger in Saverne and it is on the recommendations of Jean-Claude Buffa, deputy mayor, that we discovered the Taverne de Katz with its magnificent wood-panelled facade and tasted a sauerkraut that eclipses all others! He also encouraged us to climb the 470 meters that lead to the Haut-Barr castle or to go for a stroll to discover the city's treasures.
The navigation is governed by an automatism, that is to say that the exit of a lock triggers the opening of the next one. It is a practical system which only requires one thing: to warn by telephone the control post if you feel like stopping. Shortly after the border between Alsace and Lorraine (here we don't joke with that!), the canal undulates in a wooded environment, with an obligatory stop at Lutzelbourg, which has 3 marinas. There too, a climb is recommended along the marked path that goes up to the ruins of the castle on the plateau with an extensive view over the valley.
Rise in the air with the boat elevator
The boat elevator is one of the iconic attractions of the area and getting through it is a great experience! The passage takes 4 minutes and avoids a ladder of 17 locks that used to take all day. The boat enters a metal basin the size of a lock. A guillotine door closes the entrance and the whole thing goes up for nearly 45 m along the concrete slope. This feat is accomplished without any external energy: a counterweight and good brakes ensure the smoothness of the maneuver. No matter how many boats there are or how heavy they are, Archimedes is watching over them! The view on the valley and its meanders is splendid and you can even visit the machinery.
Then comes another of the bravura pieces of which the river navigation has the secret, a succession of 2 tunnels with alternating light, that is to say governed by a light indicating to the navigators that the way is free. The first one is 2306 m long, so much so that one can hardly distinguish the luminous point of the exit when one engages there. The impression is all the more astonishing as sometimes the vault starts to rumble under the effect of the trains which circulate in a parallel tube. With only 475 m, the second tunnel is a formality; nevertheless, we find the open air with relief! The navigation then continues peacefully to the small town of Hesse.
In this 33 km long section, the canal is without locks. It is a "bief de partage", i.e. the highest point of the network. On both sides, the locks are descending, starting with the Réchicourt lock, one of the highest in France with a drop of 15.70 m! If we add to these technical feats a bridge-canal which spans the road, we will have crossed here a good part of the works that the engineers knew how to imagine to make pass boats through countries sometimes quite steep!
Local tips and tricks
With its guinguette, its castle and its animations, the port of Saverne deserves to be much more than the starting point of your cruise.
The Taverne de Katz serves a sauerkraut just as memorable as the "nut Alsace" ice cream from the Jacques Bockel ice cream parlour, or the Unicorn black, the local beer served at the guinguette du port.
We will gladly linger at lock 23 where Madeline Jayet, the lock keeper, sells her eggs, honey, jams and delicious fruits in syrup!
Of the 3 ports of Lutzelbourg, the most eastern one is the most pleasant, the second one is a stop upstream of the lock and the last one is occupied by a renter. The walk to the old castle and the view from the plateau are well worth the climb!
Along the route, a dozen fast recharging stations for electric boats have been installed, with reserved locations.
At the foot of the Arzviller elevator, there is a restaurant, a glass factory and a small amusement park. It is a very popular place, especially on weekends.
Passing the elevator by boat is especially pleasant on the way down. This is where you have the most time to enjoy the view. For the passage of the tunnels, I recommend to think about dressing warmly before entering. It is wise to keep your distance from the smoking boats, even if it means letting your turn pass! To keep the line in the narrow underground, the secret is to touch the bar as little as possible. The bow wave tends to center the boat.
Don't forget to stop in Niderviller where Aude Valero takes great pleasure in showing you around her goat farm and letting you taste her delicious cheeses.
Supplies were found in Saverne, Lutzelbourg, Niderviller, Hesse and Gondrexange.
The section of the Marne-Rhine Canal between Saverne and Réchicourt in summary
- Length 47 km
- Locks 13, plus 1 boat elevator and 2 tunnels
- Speed limit of 6 km/h
- Border crossing: no
- Vignette and navigation tax : yes VNF
- Managing institution : Voies Navigables de France (subdivision of Saverne)
- Gauge : Freycinet (38,50 x 5,05 m)
- Minimum air draft : 3,60 m
- Minimum draught : 1,80 m
- Renters : Nicols in Saverne, Locaboat in Lutzelbourg, Kuhnle-tour in Niderviller, Le Boat in Hesse
- Unemployment period: see www.vnf.fr
- Smartphone application : no
