The Harle (in its upper course: Norder Tief) is a river of
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, in the
district of Wittmund in
East Frisia
East Frisia or East Friesland (german: Ostfriesland; ; stq, Aastfräislound) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia ...
.
Its entire course is within the borough of
Wittmund and it discharges near
Harlesiel
Harlesiel is a resort town on the East Frisian coast of Germany, at the mouth of the Harle River. It lies in the Wittmund district, about north of . It is a small town, with a population of 809 in 2009, swelled by some 4800 tourists in season.
...
through a ''Siel'', a sluice in the dyke, into the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...
. Near the village of Willen two headstreams ''Nordertief'' and ''Südertief'' join forming the Harle. Both tributaries are streams that originate in
bogland
A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...
depressions in the neighbouring borough of
Aurich.
The Harle runs eastwards past the town of Wittmund and then flows in
meander
A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex bank ...
s in a northerly direction. It passes Carolinensiel and discharges through a
lock and a
scoop wheel Rim driven Scoop wheel of the Stretham Old Engine, Cambridgeshire
A scoop wheel or scoopwheel is a pump, usually used for land drainage.
A scoop wheel pump is similar in construction to a water wheel, but works in the opposite manner: a wate ...
into Harlesiel Harbour and from there into the North Sea.
The Harle is popular with tourists for rowing and, in the harbours of Carolinensiel and Harlesiel, for boats and ferries. Harlesiel is a ferry port for trips to the island of
Wangerooge
Wangerooge is one of the 32 Frisian Islands in the North Sea located close to the coasts of the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark. It is also a municipality in the district of Friesland in Lower Saxony in Germany.
Wangerooge is one of the East Fri ...
.
See also
*
List of rivers of Lower Saxony
All rivers in the German state of Lower Saxony flow directly or indirectly into the North Sea.
A–Z
A
B
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
* Purrmühlenbach
R
S
T
*Tiefenbeek
*Trillkebach
*Trutenbeek
* Twiste
U
* Uffe
*Ulrichswas ...
References
Rivers of Lower Saxony
Wittmund (district)
Geography of East Frisia
0Harle
Rivers of Germany
{{LowerSaxony-river-stub