Met up with Mrs Theresa Linhout who is wife of the Captain and owner of the Inge...a ship 175 meters long and is 1250 tons in weight. It has two 1200 h.p. engines and is really a home from home in fact there there three homes on this ship. One for the crew, one for a member of the crew who has a family and at the rear a large living area for the Captain and his family. We load the car on the ship at Duisberg and are heading south against the flow of the river. the current is fast about 16 knots so this is why you need strong engines...particularly when you have 3750 tons of steel on board. The Rhine is unlike the Shannon, this river is used not for leisure but for business and transport of goods. You can see anything from sand and gravel to fuel. what makes this trip so interesting are the castles one passes and the towns. Teresa gave me maps of the river which made the journey so enjoyable and informative. Come along with me as we head south on this section through Dusselforf.

I have been on the Shannon with a 30 foot boat and thought this as big as they can get. In the driving area of this ship one has a radar screen, a global positioning system and numerous radio systems as well as a number of mobile phones. The ship is travelling 24 hours per day except Sunday. There are up to five at anytime on the ship who take turns to pilot the ship. Above you see Teresa who also pilots in her turn as well as cooking up some lovely meals with her mother who was on board. On the right above is her father who also owned a ship. Does'nt he look so relaxed driving 5000 tons along at about 18 knots? You also see Jan who also pilots the ship and who drove me back to Cologne from the south later in the week. Jan I learned more from you on that "slow" journey in the car but you taught me a lesson on that trip that since I came home I have applied and am so glad I did. Below you see where we travel through Dusseldorf with its promanades and lovely old houses alongside the river. I really loved this journey so next week on the 3rd. July you will have a link and we will travel through Cologne, see the cathedral and travel along as far as Koblenz, start of the most scenic section of the river.

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