Discover the Saar... on foot and by boat!

On Sunday 13 June, the Sarreguemines Confluences Tourist Office, in partnership with the Club Nautique L'Eau-Reine, offered its new summer tour format for the first time: a combined tour of the Saar on foot and by boat, on board the Schiff-Nickel!

An original principle for

A summer visit

The principle of this tour is original: a first group, consisting of a maximum of 10 people, begins the tour on foot along the towpath. The second group, also made up of 10 people, takes a trip on the Schiff-Nickel for a ride on the Saar. Each group’s journey ends at the meeting point, the Welferding pontoon, where the walkers will embark while the freshwater sailors will take the towpath. The walk lasts about 2 hours and alternates between leisurely walking and boating on the Saar.

© Louis Verdoux – Républicain Lorrain

The fauna, the flora

The historical treasures

with Arlette Kremer, passionate guide

©J. Lauer – Sarreguemines Tourisme

On the walking side, our passionate guide Arlette Kremer leads the way. The first departure is at the landing stage of the Stadt Saarbrücken, on the side of the city centre of Sarreguemines. During this short walk of 1.2 km, you will learn about the history of the bridges of Sarreguemines: the Allied bridge, the bridge of Europe… But also the influence of the faience industry on the town with the famous Casino on the banks of the Saar or with figures such as Paul Utzschneider or Alexandre de Geiger. The Schiff-Nickel itself is not without its own explanation: why is the little boat called the Schiff-Nickel? In the past, the Schiff-Nickel existed and was already sailing on the Saar.

The Saar has a rich and varied natural environment. On the flora side, you can see pretty yellow-flowered water lilies (not water lilies!) floating on the surface. As for the fauna, a wide variety of fish cohabit underwater: pike, pike-perch, eels… and many others! There is plenty to feast on, especially the king of our region, the heron, emblem of the town of Sarreguemines (also worth a visit, the heron trail!).

Freshwater sailors

On board the Schiff-Nickel

with Captain Jean-Yves Haus

© C. Turpin – Sarreguemines Tourisme

At the helm of this pretty little boat is the cheerful captain Jean-Yves Haus, an experienced sailor! At 3 km/h (or rather 2 knots as the pros say!), it is not the race that is sought, but rather the quiet pleasure. The Schiff-Nickel, sheltering its passengers under the shade of its navy blue roof, travels upstream past the confluence of the Saar and the Blies or the barge yard. The most important moment of this journey is the passage through lock 28. As Jean-Yves Haus points out, this lock is the gateway to France from Germany.

This part of the tour includes a little surprise: combined with the boat trip, the group will also be able to visit the Pauline, a large green barge moored in the Sarreguemines marina in front of the Casino. It is in fact the harbour master’s office.

 

 

 

 

 

 The Schiff-Nickel in video!

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator