The Selke Valley Railway (''Selketalbahn''), ''Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway'' (''Gernroder-Harzgeroder Eisenbahn'') and the ''Anhalt Harz Railway'' (''Anhaltische Harzbahn'') were different names for the metre gauge railway in the Lower

Harz The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German ...

, Germany, originally owned by the

Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway Company The Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway Company (german: Gernrode-Harzgeroder Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft) or GHE was a private railway company in Germany that operated the Selke Valley Railway (the line from Gernrode via Hasselfelde and Alexisbad to Harzge ...

(''Gernrode-Harzgeroder Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft'', GHE). It is now only known as the ''Selke Valley Railway''. This has included the

Quedlinburg Quedlinburg () is a town situated just north of the Harz mountains, in the district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. As an influential and prosperous trading centre during the early Middle Ages, Quedlinburg became a center of in ...

–

Gernrode Gernrode () is a historic town and former municipality in the Harz District, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2014, it has been part of Quedlinburg.Alexisbad Alexisbad is a small spa town, part of Harzgerode in the district of Harz, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Geography Alexisbad is located about northwest of the Harzgerode town centre on the Bundesstrasse 185 road to Ballenstedt. It is situated in ...

Hasselfelde Hasselfelde is a town in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated in the eastern Harz, approximately 17 km south of Wernigerode. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Oberharz am Brocken. Hasselfelde has 2,390 ...

and includes the Alexisbad–

Harzgerode Harzgerode is a town in the district of Harz in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Geography Harzgerode lies in the lower eastern part of the Harz mountain range on the Selke River, south of Quedlinburg. It is connected to Gernrode and Quedlinburg via Ale ...

branch and the Stiege– Eisfelder Talmühle connecting line. All of them are now owned by the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways ''(Harzer Schmalspurbahnen''). The line follows the Selke river between

Mägdesprung Mägdesprung is a village in the municipality of Harzgerode in the district of Harz. It nestles in the Harz Mountains at a height of 295 m. History There was a mill here below the ''Mägdetrappe'' until the Thirty Years' War. In 1646 an ironwo ...

and Albrechtshaus.

History

Opening and early years

The Gernrode–Mägdesprung railway was opened by the

(''Gernrode-Harzgeroder Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft'', GHE) after a construction period of 316 days on 7 August 1887. The Selke Valley Railway is the oldest narrow gauge railway in the Harz Mountains. Because of the terrain conditions and for cost reasons, ''Localbahn-Bau und Betriebs-Gesellschaft Wilhelm Hostmann & Co.'' from

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

was awarded the contract to build the 1000 mm gauge railway. Services were initially hauled by three powerful steam locomotives called ''Gernerode'', ''Harzgerode'' and ''Selke''. The line was extended in stages to Hasselfelde by 1892. After the opening of the Stiege–Eisfelder Talmühle railway by the

Nordhausen-Wernigerode Railway Company The Nordhausen-Wernigerode Railway Company (''Nordhausen-Wernigeroder Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft'') or ''NWE'' was the second railway company to be founded in the Harz mountains in Germany, after the Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway Company (''Gernroder-H ...

(''Nordhausen-Wernigeroder Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft'', NWE) on 15 July 1905, a connection existed to the

Harz Railway The Harz Railway or Trans-Harz Railway (german: Harzquerbahn) was formerly the main line of the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways (''Harzer Schmalspurbahnen'' or ''HSB'') and runs north to south right across the Harz Mountains from Wernigerode to Nordhau ...

(''Harzquerbahn''). Because of the increased demand for both passenger and freight traffic, three more steam locomotives had been put into service by the turn of the century, the ''Güntersberge'', the ''Alexisbad'' and the ''Hasselfelde''.

Developments after the Second World War

In the spring of 1946, the Eisfelder Talmühle–Hasselfelde and Herzogschacht–Lindenberg sections of the Selke Valley Railway were dismantled and almost all the rolling stock and track material was sent as

reparations Reparation(s) may refer to: Christianity * Restitution (theology), the Christian doctrine calling for reparation * Acts of reparation, prayers for repairing the damages of sin History *War reparations **World War I reparations, made from G ...

to the former

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

. The operational management between Efelder Talmühle and Hasselfelde was transferred to the NWE from 15 April 1946. Because of its importance for the transport of

fluorite Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon. The Mohs sca ...

, reconstruction began in the autumn of 1946 between Gernrode and Lindenberg (now Straßberg), which dragged on because of lack of material until 1950. The Lindenberg–Stiege section was not initially rebuilt. The GHE was nationalised in 1946 and it was absorbed by

Deutsche Reichsbahn The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'', also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the regiona ...

(DR) on 1 April 1949. In 1983, the reconstruction of the Straßberg–Stiege section was approved, especially to ensure the supply of lignite from

Nordhausen Nordhausen may refer to: * Nordhausen (district), a district in Thuringia, Germany ** Nordhausen, Thuringia, a city in the district **Nordhausen station, the railway station in the city * Nordhouse, a commune in Alsace (German: Nordhausen) * Narost ...

to the new cogeneration plant of Silberhütte. Scheduled passenger services between Hasselfelde and Gernrode were resumed on 3 June 1984. Since then, the three Harz narrow gauge lines (Selke Valley Railway, Harz Railway and

Brocken Railway The Brocken Railway (german: Brockenbahn) is one of three tourist metre gauge railways which together with the Harz Railway and Selke Valley Railway form the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways railway network in the Harz mountain range of Germany. It r ...

—Brockenbahn) have again been connected as one network, now 140 kilometres-long. On 1 February 1993, the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways (''Harzer Schmalspurbahnen GmbH'', HSB) took over the Harz Railway, the Brocken Railway and the Selke Valley Railway from DR.

The extension to Quedlinburg

Rail traffic on the standard gauge Quedlinburg–Gernrode–Ballenstedt–Frose railway ended in Gernrode after a signal box fire in

Ballenstedt Ballenstedt is a town in the Harz district, in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Geography It is situated at the northern rim of the Harz mountain range, about 10 km (6 mi) southeast of Quedlinburg. The municipal area comprises the vi ...

. Deutsche Bahn saw itself as no longer able to operate the line economically and the Gernrode–

Frose Frose is a village and a former municipality in the district of Salzlandkreis, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 15 July 2009, it is part of the town Seeland.Quedlinburg Quedlinburg () is a town situated just north of the Harz mountains, in the district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. As an influential and prosperous trading centre during the early Middle Ages, Quedlinburg became a center of in ...

to metre gauge on 18 April 2005. The railway supervisory authority of Saxony-Anhalt approved operations over the line on 17 February 2006 and it was opened on 4 March with festivities and special trains. Since various remaining works had to be carried out, only a few special trains operated until the start of scheduled passenger traffic on 26 June 2006. The 2017 timetable shows six pairs of trains a day between Gernrode and Quedlinburg, two of which are hauled by locomotives.

Route

From Quedlinburg, the Selke Valley Railway runs for a few kilometres parallel with the standard gauge line to Thale until the newly-laid narrow gauge track turns to the south. This is followed by the stations of Quedlinburg-Quarmbeck and

Bad Suderode Bad Suderode is a village and a former municipality in the district of Harz, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2014, it has for administrative purposes been included as part of the municipality of Quedlinburg.Gernrode station is reached. Now the old route of the

Magdeburg–Halberstadt Railway Company The Magdeburg–Halberstadt Railway Company (german: Magdeburg-Halberstädter Eisenbahngesellschaft, MHE) was a railway in Prussia. It was nationalized in 1879. History The ''Magdeburg-Halberstadt Railway Company'' received a concession on 14 J ...

branched off towards Frose and the line continues along the original Selke Valley Railway. The line runs past the halt (''Haltepunkt'') of Osterteich, next to the artificial pond of the same name, and through the Ostergrund. Past the ''Heiliger Teich'' ("holy pond", an artificial pond, which was built on the site of a pond that was believed in the Middle Ages to have health-giving properties) the line climbs through Sternhaus-Haferfeld station and continues to Sternhaus-Ramberg station. Like the previous one, this is located in the middle of a forest. After Sternhaus-Ramberg station, the line descends into the valley of the Selke. This section is the steepest in the entire network of Harz narrow gauge railways. The narrow valley of the Selke is reached by Mägdesprung station. The line now follows the course of the river to Alexisbad. The numerous rock cuttings that the railway must pass through demonstrate the difficulty of engineering the line. After passing the small halt of Drahtzug, the line reaches the village of Alexisbad. Alexisbad station, which is also the starting point of the branch to Harzgerode, lies at the end of the small town. Subsequently, the branch line climbs out of the narrow valley of the Selke onto the plateau of Harzgerode. The first section of the Selke Valley Railway ended at Harzgerode station. From Alexisbad station, which is known for its simultaneous departures of two steam locomotives, the second line of the Selke Valley Railway continues through the Selke Valley towards Stiege, firstly to Silberhütte. Passing small factories, the line continues its journey via Straßberg, which has a halt as well as its main station, and continues to

Güntersberge Güntersberge () is a village and a former town in Harz District, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It holds the status of an officially recognized resort town since 2001. Güntersberge, together with the other municipalities of the former ''Verwaltung ...

. After Güntersberge, the railway continues to climb, passing through Friedrichshöhe and Albrechtshaus stations to

Stiege station Stiege is a village and a former municipality in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Oberharz am Brocken. Stiege has 1083 inhabitants (1-1-2010). Transport The village has a railway stat ...

. Since 1905, the connection to the

has branched off here. This short line, the second section of the GHE, ends in Hasselfelde, also on a high plateau. The connecting line to the Harz Railway runs from Stiege station up to the highest point at 523 metres above sea level near the halt of Birkenmoor and then downhill through the Bere valley. In the Bere valley, which is surrounded by high ranges, the railway crosses two side valleys on two large bridges, before reaching the Harz Railway and Eisfelder Talmühle station.

Rail operations

Passenger services

The route is used daily by steam trains and railcars. According to the summer and winter timetable, there are five daily services in both directions over the whole route, some with changes in Alexisbad and Stiege, as well as on the side branches to Harzgerode and Hasselfelde (2016/2017 timetable). Other trains run between Quedlinburg or Gernrode and Alexisbad. The number of pairs of trains operated by steam trains or diesel railcars is approximately the same in the summer timetable, with railcars predominating in the winter half-year. Although the Selke Valley Railway has some importance for regional traffic on the Quedlinburg–Gernrode section, the passengers on the other sections of the line are mostly tourists, people on excursions and hikers. Since April 2010, steam trains have also run regularly on the connecting line (Stiege–Eisfelder Talmühle); before 1996 it was exclusively served by diesel multiple units. Depending on the timetable, there may be simultaneous departures from Eisfelder Talmühle, Stiege and Alexisbad.

Freight

Today, scheduled freight trains operate on the Selke Valley Railway only on the short section from the ''Hartsteinwerk Unterberg'' to Eisfelder Talmühle station: the Hartsteinwerk Unterberg regularly transports standard gauge gravel wagons on

Rollbock ''Rollbocks'', sometimes called transporter trailers, are narrow gauge railway trucks or bogies that allow a standard gauge wagon to 'piggyback' on a narrow-gauge line. The Vevey system enables a coupled train of standard gauge wagons to be autom ...

s to the transfer yard in Nordhausen (Harz Railway). There are two converted diesel locomotives of class 199.8 available and equipment for transporting standard gauge freight cars.

Rolling stock

In Gernrode and Nordhausen Nord are the locomotive depots for the Selke Valley Railway. The diesel railcars of the Selke Valley Railway are based in Nordhausen Nord. Both locomotives and motor coaches are serviced and the steam locomotives are fueled and cleaned. The rolling stock of the Selke Valley Railway, like all HSB rolling stock, are maintained in Wernigerode-Westerntor. This is the location of the HSB's central rolling stock depot, where all examinations and repair work are performed on all rolling stock. For the main examinations, however, the locomotives are taken to special maintenance facilities.

Peculiarities

Compared to the Harz Railway and the Brocken Railway, the Selke Valley Railway has some special features: * The stretch out of the northern edge of the Harz is a very varied landscape up to the high levels of the middle Harz mountains. * While on the Wernigerode–Brocken railway in normal traffic steam locomotives of DR classes 99.23–24 are used in particular, one-of-a-kind steam engines are used on the Selke Valley Railway ( 99 6101 and 6102, 99 6001 and 99 5906). *The Selke Valley Railway traverses a slope of 1:25 (4%), which is the steepest track used in the Harz mountains. The Brocken Railway traverses more elevation but does so at a shallower gradient of 1:30 (3.333%). *Stiege Station has the smallest terminal loop of any public railway. This is a balloon loop which was constructed specifically to allow heavy trains to the power station at Silberhutte from Nordhausen to continue in the direction of Silberhutte without reversing.

References

Footnotes

Sources

* * *

External links

(in German)
Freundeskreis Selketalbahn e.V.
o
Profile of the Selke Valley Railway
{{Authority control Metre gauge railways in Germany Railway lines in Saxony-Anhalt Transport in the Harz History of Anhalt Railway lines opened in 1887 1887 establishments in Germany Buildings and structures in Nordhausen (district)