54 I World of Ships I Paddle Steamers
AMMERSEE
The Ammersee is a 15km lake in southern
Bavaria which is up to 6km wide at its widest
point and is one of several lakes in the
German foothills of the Alps. Paddle steamers
came relatively late to the area, when a small
wooden-hulled vessel was purchased, renamed
Omnibus and put into service in 1877. Until
2002 the last paddler to be built was Diessen
(1908), which was in service until 2005.
However, 2002 had seen entry into service
of the diesel-powered Herrsching, a new
paddle-propelled vessel, 2006 then seeing the
return of Diessen in substantially rebuilt form.
Two motor vessels, Ammersee (2008), and a
new Utting which debuted in July 2017, also
figure in the current fleet, running services to
the north and south from Herrsching, where a
twin pier provides easy interchange between
vessels which arrive at the same time for
services south to Diessen and north to Stegen.DIESSEN
BUILT 1908 by J.A.Maffei, Munich
MACHINERY Two-cylinder compound diagonal by builders,
230hp. Replaced 1974-75 by diesel hydraulic, with further
new installation by Deutz in 2006
DIMENSIONS Length 39.8m, width 10,9m
PASSENGERS 400Diessen and sister Andechs entered service
in 1908, the fifth and sixth vessels to follow
pioneer Omnibus. They were built by Munich-
based engineers J. A. Maffei, a company
well known for construction of railway
locomotives. After withdrawal in 1955,
Andechs became a yacht club headquarters
at Utting on the Ammersee’s western shore,
leaving Diessen to sail on, mainly running
from and to Stegen until failing to obtain a
passenger certificate after the 2005 season.
Rather than scrapping the vessel, a decision
to rebuild was taken. The craft was moved by
road to Lux Werft on the river Rhine in Bonn,
where work included complete replating up
to the waterline, a new wooden deck and newKIELER FOERDE
FREYA
OWNER Adler Schiffe
BUILT 1910 as paddle steamer Westersterscheld by J&K.
Smit, Kinderdijk, Holland. Rebuilt 1988-90 as paddle
steamer after use from 1935 as oil barge
DIMENSIONS Length 51.60m Width 6.60m (hull), 11.40m
(over paddles). Machinery Compound steam engine (180hp)
originally built 1926, assisted by 300hp diesel engine
SPEED 10 knots
PASSENGERS 300A former Dutch steamer built in 1905 for
the fleet of the Provincial Steamship Co of
Westerschelde was, unusually for the time,
fitted with a triple-diagonal steam engine that
gave a service speed of 12.5 knots. Together
with slightly enlarged sister Zeeland, built in
1909, Westerschelde, equipped from new with a
bow rudder, steam-heated saloons and electric
lighting, was used on services from Vlissingen –
then Flushing – across the estuary to Breskens
or upriver to Boseken and Terneuzen.
Westerschelde became an unofficial DutchRoyal Yacht, carrying Queen Wilhelmina during
an early 1930s Zeeland visit, but was sold to
the De Klok Shipyard at Terneuzen in 1933.
Westerschelde was acquired by an Oosterhout
company in 1935 and was converted into an
inland navigation bunkering station. Half
a century later, what was little more than the
hull of the original steamer was bought by
Dutch enthusiast Klemens Key, whose father
Wijnand Key had already returned former
Dutch steamer Reederij op de Lek 6 to charter
service from Amsterdam as Kapitein Kok.
Restoration and rebuilding work
commenced at Zaandam in 1989, with a 180hp
compound steam engine turning the paddle
wheels assisted by a 300hp diesel-powered
propeller at the stern. A second-hand boiler
dating from 1929 was also fitted and Der
Nederlander was given a 1920s theme, with
passenger accommodation on two decks and
two main saloons, each having a bar; there
was a further seated area including a rising
stage lift. Making a debut in 1990 under
Nederlandse Raderstoomboot ownership,
the vessel ran from a Massboulevard base in
Rotterdam, carrying up to 300 passengers on
docks cruises and with other trips to Massluis
and the Hook of Holland.
Der Nederlander was sold in December
1999 to the Sven Paulsen-owned Alder Schiffe
and has been based at Kiel since 2000,
operating regular cruises as Freya on the
Kieler Foerde and through the Kiel Canal, with
visits to Rostock and Hamburg while regularly
taking part in Kiel Week each July.ABOVE After a move north in 2000 as Freya, the vessel is pictured during a visit to Emden in April 2015.
(Myra Allen)ABOVE Freya restored to service in 1990 and seen
at Rotterham as Der Nederlander.ABOVE Diessen after a first switch to diesel
hydraulic power from 1975.07 Paddlers_Germany_NL.indd 54 17/04/2018 12:09