Moselle River, France / Mosel River, Germany

The Moselle river in France is busy with commercial barges and the scenery is largely industrial, especially from Metz north to the border. The 40-kilometer section shared by Luxembourg and Germany begins the scenic, twisting Mosel wine region; from Trier to Cochem the river continually twists between steep hillsides covered with vineyards, with many charming and interesting towns.

The source of the Moselle is at 715 meters above sea level at the Col de Bussang on the western slopes of the Ballon d'Alsace in the Vosges mountains. At Épinal the Canal des Vosges comes alongside the river from the southwest and parallels the Moselle until Neuves Maisons, where the wide, navigable portion of the river begins.

The most popular portion of the river is in Germany; the scenery on both sides of the Mosel from the Sauer river in Luxembourg downstream to Koblenz is spectacular; there are often mooring quays for a stop at wineries (below). At Koblenz the Rhein river offers a major waterway to the North Sea or a route south to Basel, Switzerland, or east as far as the Black Sea, via the Main and Danube rivers.

Hello Tom, Thanks so much for all the work you have done over all these years and your freely offered support, it really is very much appreciated. So much so it has enabled a group of complete amateurs to take a 40 foot steel Dutch motor boat from Arnhem to very close to the Med, all via your guides, and we're still going!! Stay safe. John C.