Passau Boiotro - Kastell and Hirschleitengraben - Wachtturm

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Passau Boiotro - Kastell

   Passau stands at a meeting of three rivers, and the Romans noticed. The Inn, the Danube and the small, dark Ilz flow together under the cathedral hill, and the Inn bank opposite, where the Innstadt lies today, was the site of the Roman fort of Boiotro, which guarded the Danube frontier, the Limes, and commanded the river crossing. The name suggests the Boii, the Celtic people who once lived in this region, and the Roman fort stood in a long line of defences along the river, from here down to Oberranna in Austria.

   Read the complete Passau Boiotro - Kastell write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Passau Boiotro - Kastell is where the day begins. Next is Oberranna - Kleinkastell.

2. 2. Oberranna - Kleinkastell

   The Danube between Passau and Linz is one of the loveliest stretches of the whole river, and near Oberranna, on the Upper Austrian bank, it flows quietly between steep wooded slopes, dark and almost gorge-like. Here, beside the water, archaeologists found a small Roman fort, a Kleinkastell, part of the Danube Limes that guarded the northern frontier of the province of Noricum. Its remains are now protected under a modern shelter, and it forms part of the UNESCO listing of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire along the Danube.

   Read the complete Oberranna - Kleinkastell write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Oberranna - Kleinkastell comes up about 30 km into the recorded legs. Next is Hirschleitengraben - Wachtturm.

3. 3. Hirschleitengraben - Wachtturm

   Just west of Linz, the Danube narrows and the steep, wooded slopes of the Kürnberger Wald rise from its southern bank. In the Roman period this river was the frontier of the empire, and the soldiers who guarded it built a chain of forts and watchtowers along the bank to watch for raiders crossing from the north. The Hirschleitengraben watchtower is one of these, a small Roman tower in a side ravine of the forest, part of the Danube Limes, which UNESCO listed in 2021 as one of the great frontiers of the Roman Empire. Its remains are modest, but the position, looking over the river toward Puchenau and the hills of the Mühlviertel, makes the purpose clear.

   Read the complete Hirschleitengraben - Wachtturm write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 73 km into the recorded legs you reach Hirschleitengraben - Wachtturm. Next is back through Oberranna - Kleinkastell.

4. 4. back through Oberranna - Kleinkastell

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Oberranna - Kleinkastell write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Oberranna - Kleinkastell, late in the day. Next is Passau Boiotro - Kastell.

5. 5. Passau Boiotro - Kastell

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Passau Boiotro - Kastell write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Passau Boiotro - Kastell. That is the ride.