Name: Emscher River
Rating: 2

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Germany

North Rhine-Westphalia

Münster District

Ruhr Region

Emscher River

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Places to see

Germany

North Rhine-Westphalia

Münster District

Ruhr Region

Emscher River

Recommended by 76 hikers

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Location: Ruhr Region, Münster District, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

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Best Hikes to Emscher River

4.8

(23)

hikers

1. Stairway to Halde Deusenberg – Emscher River loop from Dortmund-Westerfilde

20.2km

05:09

60m

Expert hike. Very good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Expert

4.6

(14)

hikers

2. View from Deusenberg – Stairway to Halde Deusenberg loop from Fredenbaum

10.8km

02:50

80m

Intermediate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Intermediate

4.8

(12)

hikers

3. Stairway to Halde Deusenberg – Emscher River loop from Deusen

4.96km

01:19

50m

Easy hike. Great for any fitness level. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Easy

Tips

PeterH65 (a.k.a. "Waldorf")

June 15, 2024

"... The Ruhr area should actually be called the Emscher area. Because in the middle of the region there is a river that winds its way through the core zone of the melting pot: the Emscher. Its source is in Holzwickede near Dortmund, and around 80 kilometers further west, in Dinslaken, it flows into the Rhine. More than a hundred years ago, the region around the Emscher was still a sparsely populated floodplain landscape with swampy heaths and damp marsh forests. However, industry and mining soon found their way into the rural idyll and an industrial conurbation quickly developed: more and more coal and steel companies settled there. The population density grew rapidly and numerous workers' settlements were built.

The changes in the landscape and infrastructure were not without consequences for the rural river. All commercial and domestic wastewater was channeled into the small Emscher river and its tributaries. The Emscher was not able to meet these high demands: during high water, severe flooding occurred again and again, submerging entire districts and leaving people with In order to get the problems under control, the EMSCHERGENOSSENSCHAFT was founded in 1899 by the neighboring towns and districts, mining and industry with the aim of allowing the Emscher to flow freely again. However, due to mining and the associated subsidence, it was not possible to set up an underground sewage system. Pipelines under the ground would not have been able to withstand this pressure. It was therefore decided to straighten the river and tame the Emscher - like a canal. The "untamed" Emscher thus became a system of open sewage channels shaped by humans.

Opportunities for change

Today, over a hundred years later, almost all the mines and most of the steelworks have disappeared. Mining has moved northwards and the subsidence has largely subsided. This gives the Emscher the chance to change its face again: the Emscher and its tributaries, once straightened by human hands and banished in concrete corsets, are once again becoming a river system without sewage pollution. ..."

emscher-weg.de/emscher-umbau

Translated by Google •

Streuner

May 1, 2025

The Emscher still flows in a straight line, but after the renaturation it appears more natural.

Translated by Google •

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Details

Informations

Elevation 140 m

Weather

Today

Monday 15 September

21°C

14°C

40 %

If you start your activity now...

Max wind speed: 24.0 km/h

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Location: Ruhr Region, Münster District, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Emscher River

1. Stairway to Halde Deusenberg – Emscher River loop from Dortmund-Westerfilde

2. View from Deusenberg – Stairway to Halde Deusenberg loop from Fredenbaum

3. Stairway to Halde Deusenberg – Emscher River loop from Deusen

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