Hunte Flood Barrage This flood barrier is located where the Hunte flows into the Weser. Having four powerful flood gates and a breadth of some 120 meters, it protects the hinterland against storm tides. The facility began operating on the 1st of October 1979 and was one of the largest coastal protection facilities of this type at the time. Each direction of travel has ist own gate which has a breadth of 26 meters, and the two-part miter gates remain open as long as possible in order not to disrupt the shipping. The flood barrage will be closed only when the Weser rises to a water level of three meters above normal. On a daily basis, always at the top of the hour, the nearly vertical rolling lift bascule bridges are lowered in order to allow pedestrians and cyclists to reach the peninsula Elsflether Sand. [More]
Lock The floodgate lock of Brake connects the sea harbor – the Stromkajen – to the inland harbor. In the past, this very point served as the entry into the “Braksiel”, which was utilized as a protected moorage for small vessels, prior to its subsequent use as an expanded harbor basin. Already as early as the beginning of the 19th century, the space for mooring was extraordinarily limited, given that the ships of the Imperial Navy overwintered here. On the 29th of October 1861, the first ship passed through the floodgate in Brake. In 1980, the facility was modernized to serve as a chamber lock independent of the tides and with the ability to protect against storm surges. [More]
Harriersand The riverine island Harriersand is eleven kilometers long and is located directly adjacent to the center of Brake. It received ist current form as a result oft he so-called “Weser correction”. Thereby, the Lower Weser was straightened and deepened from Bremen down to the estuary, as it flows into the North Sea near Bremerhaven. In the course of this technical masterpiece, a revolutionary achievement under the direction of Bremen´s Chief Construction Officer, Ludwig Franzius (1832-1903), Harriersand was formed by uniting seven riverine islands along Brake´s coast. Harriersand is now home to 150 holiday cottages, a campsite and many small sand beaches. The ferry GUNTSIET travels regularly between Brake and Harriersand. [More]