The Romance of the Ruhr Valley on Rails

When near Lake Baldeney in Essen, your thoughts naturally turn to sailing boats, strolls and perhaps an ice cream in the sun. What many people don’t expect is the genuine piece of Ruhr history that runs directly along the lakeshore – the Hesper Valley Railway. By Sigrid Riewe-Scholz

And it’s something special. Museum trains now roll unhurriedly through a green recreational landscape that used to be a place of hard industrial labour. Coal, ore and materials for the nearby factories were transported here – reliably, loudly and without anyone mentioning delay tracking apps. There was nothing nostalgic about this at the time. Rather, it was a matter of supplying an entire industrial region.

Today, the track has taken on an entirely new character, without losing its history. Instead of freight transport, it now hosts journeys through time on the rails. Historic locomotives and lovingly preserved carriages chug through the Hesper Valley and along Lake Baldeney – with a sense of time passing more slowly here than in everyday life outside.

The mix of engineering and experience is especially charming: the rhythmic chugging of the locomotive, the smell of iron and oil, and the passing scenery encompassing water, forest and former industrial sites. When you come on board, you are more than simply a passenger – you are immersing yourself in a different era of the Ruhr region.

Of course, the Hesper Valley Railway would not be a genuine Ruhr attraction unless it also offered a bit more than “just” a museum ride. Accordingly, there are various activities throughout the year, including convivial gatherings in the railway beer garden, family and children's festivals, mining heritage walks and in winter even special trips such as the Santa Express and “Waiting for Christmas Eve”. It is obvious to anyone that the history of the railways is not just being preserved here, but is actively lived.

This contrast – recreational area outside, industrial history on wheels inside – is exactly what makes the experience so appealing. By combining both, the Hesper Valley Railway shows that even the past is still in fairly good working order in the Ruhr.