Aerial image of the Danube Gorge near Weltenburg

The Danube Gorge near Weltenburg (german: Donaudurchbruch bei Weltenburg) is a narrow section of the Danube Valley in the

Lower Bavaria Lower Bavaria (german: Niederbayern, Bavarian: ''Niedabayern'') is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of the state. Geography Lower Bavaria is subdivided into two regions () – Landshut and Donau-W ...

n county of

Kelheim Kelheim () is a town and municipality in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the district Kelheim and is situated at the confluence of the rivers Altmühl and Danube. Kelheim has a population of around 16,750 (2020). History Kelheim is ...

, which has been recognised as a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological o ...

and

geotope A geotope is the geological component of the abiotic matrix present in an ecotope. Example geotopes might be an exposed outcrop of rocks, an erratic boulder, a grotto or ravine, a cave, an old stone wall marking a property boundary, and so forth. ...

. This section of the valley in the southern Franconian Jura is officially called the Weltenburg Narrows (''Weltenburger Enge'').

Location

The Weltenburg Narrows lies on the Lower Bavarian section of the River Danube between the town of

and Weltenburg Abbey. The nature reserve covers an area of about 560

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre i ...

s, is 5.5 kilometres long and about 400 metres wide.

Description

The Gebiet is a designated nature reserve and bears the catastre number NSG200.002. The area was designated as a natural monument under King Ludwig I of Bavaria as early as 1840. The nature reserve, which has existed since 1938, was awarded the European Diploma on 5 March 1978. It is part of the

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respecti ...

network and the protected area of ''DE7136301, Weltenburg Narrows and Hirschberg and Altmühlleiten''. In addition, the area is also geotope no. 273R005. In 2002 the Weltenburg Narrows was awarded an official seal by the Bavarian Minister for the Environment for being one of Bavaria's most beautiful geotopes. In 2006 The Danube Gorge was listed among the 77 outstanding national geotopes of Germany.Ulrich Lagally: Piratenstück eines Flusses - The Weltenburger Enge bei Kelheim im Danube Valley. In: Ernst-Rüdiger Look, Ludger Feldmann (Hrsg.): ''Faszination Geologie. Die bedeutende Geotope Deutschlands'', E. Schweizerbart'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Stuttgart, 2006, , pp. 159ff. Geologically the Weltenburg Narrows belong to the Upper Jurassic (

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

), and therefore the most

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

-rich formations in Germany, which was laid down about 150 million years ago when the area was still a shallow sea. The gorge is enclosed on either side by rock faces up to 80 metres high, pierced by numerous small caves. Between the so-called ''Stillen'' and the rocks of the ''Lange Wand'' (''Long Wall'') the river narrows by up to 110 metres and attains a depth of 20 metres. The limestone formations bear sometimes fantastical names such as The Three Warring Brothers (''Die drei feindlichen Brüder''), Pirate Rock (''Räuberfelsen''), Kuchel Rock (''Kuchelfelsen''), Petrified Virgin (''Versteinerte Jungfrau''), Bavarian Lion (''Bayerischer Löwe''), Bishop's Mitre (''Bischofsmütze''), Two People Kissing (''Zwei Sich-Küssende''), Roman Rocks (''Römerfelsen''), Peter and Paul (''Peter und Paul''), Beehive (''Bienenhaus'') (a rock with holes like a honeycomb), Napoleon's Suitcase (''Napoleons Reisekoffer'', which he is supposed to have left behind during his retreat to France). By contrast with the enormous water depth at the site of the actual gorge, there is a less striking stretch of river about halfway between Kelheim and Weltenburg, the so-called Wipfelsfurt. This is the shallowest point in the Danube between Ingolstadt and Regensburg. The bowl was probably formed by a meteorite during the Ries Event 15 million years ago.

Gallery

File:Donau durchbruch weltenburg.jpg, View of the Danube Gorge from Weltenburg Abbey File:Donaudurchbruch Weltenburg August 2012 012.jpg, Striking rock formation (the Bavarian Lion) in the actual gorge File:Donaudurchbruch Weltenburg.jpg, Overview of the gorge areas from the Michelsberg File:2013 Weltenburg 18.jpg, View through the Danube Gorge of Liberation Hall (Befreiungshalle) File:Rings_in_Donaudurchbruch.jpg, In the Long Wall (Lange Wand), the most dangerous gorge rock, there are rings once used to assist boats travelling upstream. File:Nepomuk in Donaudurchbruch.jpg, The patron saint, St. Nepomuk, on the Long Wall

References

External links

{{Commons category, Weltenburger Enge, Danube Gorge near Weltenburg * Landschaftspflegeverband Kelheim VöF
reserveWeltenburgerEnge(Donaudurchbruch)mitUmgriff(10).aspx ''Gebietsbetreuung nature reserve „Weltenburger Enge“''

Lage and Ausdehnung des nature reservees (OpenStreetMap)
(retrieved 9 July 2013)
nature reservee (NSG) im Regierungsbezirk Niederbayern
(retrieved 9 July 2013)
Information page on the Danube Gorge
Nature reserves in Germany Lower Bavaria Canyons and gorges of Germany Valleys of Bavaria Danube Geotopes Natura 2000 in Germany Kelheim (district)

Location

Description

Gallery

See also

References

External links