Selke Valley Railway

Selke Valley Railway
Selketalbahn
Quedlinburg–Hasselfelde
The Selke Valley Railway is shown in dark blue on the HSB network.
Route number:333
Line number:9703, 9704
Track gauge:1,000 mm (3 ft 3 38 in)
Legend
Standard gauge from Magdeburg
Quedlinburg(Start of metre gauge)
Standard gauge to Blankenburg
Standard gauge to Thale
Quedlinburg-Quarmbeck
Bad Suderode
Standard gauge to Frose
Gernrode
Osterteich
Sternhaus-Haferfeld
Sternhaus-Ramberg
Mägdesprung
Drahtzug
Alexisbad
Harzgerode
Silberhütte
Straßberg-Glasebach
Straßberg
Güntersberge
Friedrichshöhe
Albrechtshaus
Hasselfelde
Stiege
Birkenmoor
Harz Railway to Wernigerode
Eisfelder Talmühle
Harz Railway to Nordhausen

The Selke Valley Railway (German: Selketalbahn) is the name of the 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 38 in) (metre gauge) railway in the lower Harz mountains that originally belonged to the Gernrode-Harzgerode Railway Company (GHE). The Selke Valley Railway main line connects the towns Quedlinburg and Hasselfelde, passing through Gernrode, Alexisbad and Stiege. There are also two branch lines: one connects Alexisbad with Harzgerode, the other connects Stiege with Eisfelder Talmühle, on the Harz Railway.

Between Mägdesprung and Albrechtshaus, the track passes through the valley of the river Selke, hence the name was given to the track.

In Spring 1946, all but a small section of the Selke Valley Railway was dismantled and the resources were recycled and carried off to the Soviet Union. Because of its importance for the transport of fluorospar, the part between Gernrode and Lindenberg (present-day Straßberg) was rebuilt starting in Fall 1946. Because of scarcity of materials, the reconstruction took until 1950. In 1946, the GHE was expropriated and was taken over by the Deutsche Reichsbahn of the GDR in 1949. The section Lindenberg (present-day Straßberg) - Stiege was not rebuilt until 1983.

On February 1, 1993, the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways (Harzer Schmalspurbahnen GmbH or HSB), which had already acquired the Harz Railway and the Brocken Railway, took over the Selke Valley Railway from the DR.

In 2006 the Selke Valley Railway was extended to Quedlinburg by regauging the abandoned standard gauge DB line between Gernrode and Quedlinburg. This may make the Selke Valley Railway more popular with tourists visiting the World Heritage Site of Quedlinburg.

The Selke Valley Railway is today part of the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways but is relatively unknown. It is a well-kept secret among railway enthusiasts for the following reasons:

External links

(in German)

Coordinates: 51°37′32″N 11°01′54″E / 51.6256°N 11.0318°E / 51.6256; 11.0318

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