Engineering Wonders

The Scharnebeck twin ship lift is far from being described as "oh-so-cute", but the time spent with technical translation has given me a sense of appreciation for such impressive engineering structures. The ship lift is situated 10km to the north-east of Lunenburg, on the Elbe Lateral Canal which connects the Midland Canal with the River Elbe. The 61m height difference between the water levels is overcome by a lock in Uelzen, and the boat lift in Scharnebeck. More than 21,000 ships with a maximum displacement of 1,350 tonnes pass through the lift each year.