Rastplatz Au

Information: Municipal office
Tel.: +43 (0) 72 62 / 582 55

Forked river...
Before man intervened in the course of the Danube, it forked into several main and side arms. A dynamic equilibrium prevailed between bed load deposits and sedimentation, which included regular flooding and course shifts. Under these influences, floodplains developed in which all inhabitants adapted to the fluctuating water levels. In Central Europe today, only remnants of the original floodplains remain, as many of these forests have been destroyed by deforestation, conversion to agricultural land, colonisation and river regulation. Despite utilisation and hydraulic engineering interventions, extensive alluvial forests have been preserved along the Danube. They contain the most valuable animal and plant species of the Machland in terms of nature conservation. (more information: Saxen Nature Information Centre, www.entenlacke.com).

In the past, the Danube floodplains were inhabited by water spirits who beguiled people with their songs and then drew them down into the depths. Today there are no more water creatures. "Who drove the mermaids away"? A Danube legend tells of the event.