Why this ride
A 339 km round trip from Xanten - roughly 5 h 04 in the saddle. The stops in between: Moers-Asberg, Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in, Krefeld-Gellep and Monheim-Haus Bürgel. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Xanten-Fürstenberg and Monheim-Haus Bürgel
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 339 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 04
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Xanten-Fürstenberg
The Fürstenberg is a low hill on the edge of the Lower Rhine plain, just south of Xanten, and two thousand years ago it was one of the most important military bases in the Roman Empire. Here the Romans built Vetera, a legionary fortress that housed up to two legions and served as a springboard for campaigns into Germania under Augustus. In AD 69 and 70, during the Batavian revolt, Vetera was besieged, starved into surrender and destroyed, and a new fortress was built nearby. The site on the Fürstenberg is part of the Lower German Limes, the Roman frontier along the Rhine from the Alps to the North Sea, which was added to the World Heritage list in 2021. On the ground there is little to see, mostly fields and woods, but the elevated position, with views over the river plain, explains why the Romans chose it.
Read the complete Xanten-Fürstenberg write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Xanten-Fürstenberg is where the day begins. Next is Moers-Asberg.
2. Moers-Asberg
Asberg is a quiet district on the southern edge of Moers, on the left bank of the Lower Rhine, and beneath its houses and fields lies the Roman fort of Asciburgium, one of the earliest military bases on the Rhine frontier. It was founded around the time of the emperor Augustus or soon after, garrisoned by cavalry and auxiliary troops, and abandoned toward the end of the first century, when the Rhine shifted its course and moved away from the fort. The site is now part of the Lower German Limes UNESCO site, and although there is little to see above ground, information boards and outlines help you imagine the scene.
Read the complete Moers-Asberg write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Moers-Asberg comes up about 39 km into the recorded legs. Next is Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in.
3. Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in
The headframe of Shaft XII at Zollverein, with its red steel lattice and double wheels, is the Eiffel Tower of the Ruhr, and it is easy to see why. Designed by the architects Fritz Schupp and Martin Kremmer and opened in 1932, the shaft and its surrounding buildings were built in a clean, functional style influenced by the Bauhaus, and it was hailed as the most beautiful coal mine in the world. At its peak, Zollverein was one of the largest and most productive mines in Europe, and the adjacent coking plant processed coal into coke for the steel industry. The mine closed in 1986, the coking plant in 1993, and UNESCO listed the complex in 2001.
Read the complete Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 78 km into the recorded legs you reach Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in. Next is Krefeld-Gellep.
4. Krefeld-Gellep
Most people pass Krefeld-Gellep without a second thought, because the view is dominated by the harbour of Uerdingen, chemical works and Rhine barges. Yet this is one of the most important Roman and early medieval sites on the Lower Rhine. The Roman fort here was called Gelduba, and it belongs to the Lower German Limes, the frontier along the river that UNESCO recognised in 2021. Tacitus mentions Gelduba in his account of the Batavian revolt of 69 and 70 AD, when legions and rebels fought around the camp, and archaeologists have found traces of that violence in the ground.
Read the complete Krefeld-Gellep write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Krefeld-Gellep, about halfway. Next is Monheim-Haus Bürgel.
5. Monheim-Haus Bürgel
Haus Bürgel is a manor farm that sits on top of a Roman fort, quite literally. The walls of a late Roman fortification, built in the fourth century to guard the Rhine frontier, form part of the foundations and outer walls of the medieval and later farm buildings, and the site is part of the Lower German Limes World Heritage Site, inscribed in 2021. Between Monheim and Düsseldorf-Urdenbach, it lies in a broad meadow landscape on the right bank of the Rhine.
Read the complete Monheim-Haus Bürgel write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Monheim-Haus Bürgel sits at 150 km, about halfway. Next is back through Krefeld-Gellep.
6. back through Krefeld-Gellep
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Krefeld-Gellep write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Krefeld-Gellep comes up about 221 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in.
7. back through Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 263 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in. Next is back through Moers-Asberg.
8. back through Moers-Asberg
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Moers-Asberg write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Moers-Asberg, late in the day. Next is Xanten-Fürstenberg.
9. Xanten-Fürstenberg
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Xanten-Fürstenberg write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 339 km.
Leg by leg
Xanten-Fürstenberg to Moers-Asberg
Xanten-Fürstenberg → Moers-Asberg is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Moers-Asberg to Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in
Moers-Asberg → Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in to Krefeld-Gellep
Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in → Krefeld-Gellep is 43 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Krefeld-Gellep to Monheim-Haus Bürgel
Krefeld-Gellep → Monheim-Haus Bürgel is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Monheim-Haus Bürgel to back through Krefeld-Gellep
Monheim-Haus Bürgel → back through Krefeld-Gellep is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Krefeld-Gellep to back through Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in
back through Krefeld-Gellep → back through Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in to back through Moers-Asberg
back through Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in → back through Moers-Asberg is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Moers-Asberg to Xanten-Fürstenberg
back through Moers-Asberg → Xanten-Fürstenberg is 37 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.