Rur - Rurstausee - Heimbach
Rur - Rurstausee - Heimbach
The Rur (French Rour and Dutch Roer) is a 164.5 km long tributary of the Meuse in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.
A popular hiking area for me are the two reservoirs "Tosbecken" and "Staubecken Heimnbach", which begin directly below the Rur Dam (Rurtalsperre).
The Rur dam (Rurtalsperre) Schwammenauel is a 77.4 m high dam and has existed since 1938.
The Rurstausee (Rursee), which is dammed up by the Rur dam, has a volume of 203.2 million m³ of storage space with the Obersee and Eiserbach pre-dams and is the second largest reservoir in Germany in terms of volume.
Below the dam there is the smaller Heimbach dam. It has its own hydropower plant with an output of 775 kW. The overflow is like a weir and has an 18 m wide fish-belly flap to adjust the water level at least when it is almost completely full. The small waterfall at this barrage is also a very popular photo opportunity.
Especially in the morning hours and when there is no wind, the opposite bank is reflected in the calm waters of the Rur. For hikes, wooden walkways have been installed on the left side of the river so that you have a direct view of the reservoir.
