Elbe Cycle Path (Magdeburg - Elberadweg (Magdeburg

The Elbe Cycle Route begins in Czech Giant Mountains and then leads through Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt. These upstream sections are in Elbe Cycle Path (Czech Republic) and Elbe Cycle Path (Saxon Switzerland - Magdeburg) discussed.

From Magdeburg, the Elbe is a pretty stately river, flowing through a wide lowland landscape with many floodplains, backwaters and swamps. The stork still feels at home here.

From Hamburg onwards, the picture of the river changes suddenly. Large ocean liners now operate on the river. The tides of the North Sea are already noticeable here. The cycle tour along the Elbe ends in Cuxhaven at the famous Kugelbake.

If you want, you can take a boat trip to the trip Heligoland or Neuwerk to lock.

Route profile

  • Length: 460 km
  • Signposting: available; detailed on-site knowledge is not available
  • Slopes: over 90% flat route. There are only a few hills on the high banks of the Elbe in Wendland and in the Lauenburg - Hamburg area.
  • Path condition: Greatly changing quality of paths depending on the region.
  • Traffic load: barely
  • Suitable bike: best touring bike with tread tires and gear shift (important because of the wind).
  • Family suitability:
  • Inline suitability: consistently no

Wind tip: The probability is high that the wind blows from the west / north-westerly direction. It is therefore advisable to drive upstream from the main wind direction, unless you can react flexibly to the weather situation at short notice.

background

preparation

getting there

Public transportation

By bicycle

In the street

Route description with sights

Magdeburg - Tangermünde: approx. 60 - 65 km

Tangermünde - Wittenberge: around 70 km

Wittenberge - Hitzacker: approx. 75 - 80 km

  • Gorleben (left Elbisch) - The "Gorleben exploration shaft" known as a possible future nuclear waste disposal facility can also be visited (More information). If you want to see something different than the Elbe and the dike cycle paths, it is worth taking a detour to the Nemitzer Heide between mid-August and mid-September when the heather is in bloom (about 6 km south of Trebel; More information).
→ 22 km. The (right-Elbe) cycle path runs largely on or behind the Elbe dike with changing surfaces, mostly fine gravel or concrete slabs. Shortly before Dömitz you have to change to a country road without a cycle path for about 2 km.
Ruins of the Dömitz railway bridge. The bridge was built between 1870 and 1873 for the Wendland Railway (formerly the Wittenberge - Lüneburg line). Towards the end of World War II, the building was destroyed on April 20, 1945. Because of the inner-German border, there was no reconstruction after the war.
  • Hitzacker - nice stage town with half-timbered old town.
→ At Hitzacker you can cross the river with a small bicycle / passenger ferry.

Hitzacker - Lauenburg: approx. 60 - 65 km

On this stage there is a half-timbered town in the morning and evening. The route is about 60 - 65 km long.
  • Hitzacker - historical half-timbered town surrounded by water
→ About 18 km left Elbe: If you like it hilly for a change, you can take the bicycle and passenger ferry to Hitzacker. The district road to Neu-Darchau has little to moderate traffic. There are two on the route with a lot of forest Lookout towers with a view of the Elbe. From Drethem the Elbe Cycle Path branches off into the forest away from the river. There are worse z. Sometimes there are also sandy stretches of road. A specific, rather treacherous danger point is therefore at a not entirely harmless descent in the direction of Hitzacker 53 ° 11 '56 "N.10 ° 56 '23 "E to find. Below in the depression lies among other things. a "pothole with a sand pit". So go downhill more slowly here, although it is only a hill descent (status 03-2011).
→ By using the district road from Darchau or Drethem, this and the other poor sections of the route in this route area can be bypassed. So here it makes sense to shorten the dangling part of the official route and continue to use the county road. When there is a strong headwind, you are sometimes a bit more protected through the forest than in the open Elbe valley to the right of the river.
→ About 18 km right elbow: If you want to drive completely away from traffic, stay on the right side of the river in the Elbatalaue. The path here leads almost entirely over well-developed dike defense paths. Often the route on the land side of the dike is monotonous, as there is no river view. With a tail wind, you can really "make a stretch" here.
  • New Darchau (left Elbe) and Darchau (Neuhaus Office; Right Elbe) - Car ferry across the Elbe. Darchau was founded in 1993 Lower Saxony slammed. In this area there are only a few bicycle workshops and only one gas station in Neuhaus itself.
→ 15 km

Lauenburg - Hamburg: around 60 km

Elbe north side: Hamburg - Brunsbüttel

→ Connection to the Kiel Canal Route. Along the Kiel Canal to Kiel

Elbe south side: Hamburg - Altes Land - Stade: approx. 40 - 50 km

The "Old country"is the largest closed fruit-growing area in Europe.

Stade - Cuxhaven: around 80 km

Here, too, we drive through the old country, which was reclaimed almost 1000 years ago by Dutch people who traveled there.

Hadelner Canal near Otterndorf
  • Stade → 16 km
  • Drochtersen → 24 km
  • Freiburg → 26 km through the municipality Balje and over the eastern barrier (passable in summer 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., otherwise a detour necessary)
  • Belum - then along the busy B 73 to the Hadelner Canal.
  • Otterndorf → 15 km - beautiful bike path between the canal and the dike. Later on, it's time to cross the dike and get to know a few sheep.
  • Cuxhaven - In 2012 the route between Cuxhaven-Altenbruch and the port area of ​​Cuxhaven was changed. The new route is mostly away from traffic, but runs on part of it on or on harbor roads with sometimes high truck loads on weekdays. You pass numerous restaurants with German and international offerings. The last 2 km before the end are on the beach. The Kugelbake, which marks the end of the Elbe, can only be reached on foot. The logo was painted on the last meter of asphalt.

trips

Note: If you are familiar with the route, create a detailed route description for the stages. You can find instructions on how to do this here .

GPS data

  • Route profile with GPS data and Google Earth KMZ file in Bike tour wiki

References to literature and maps

  • Elberadweg - manual. Informative manual with map excerpts and accommodation options. The manual can be ordered free of charge and is available at Download.
  • Compact-Spiralo "Elbe-Radweg" 1: 50000 (section Magdeburg - Cuxhaven) see Bielefelder Verlag
  • Bikeline guide "Elbe-Radweg Volume 1" 1: 75000, ISBN 978-3-85000-636-1 - please refer Esterbauer publishing house; the guide describes the route from Prague to Magdeburg; is the upper reaches from the Giant Mountains Not contain.

Web links

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