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The railway line Zwettl - Martinsberg |
When we leave the railroad station Zwettl, we cross the most impressive construction of the entire trip. A 240 meter railway viaduct above the river Kamp begins immediately at the southern end of the station with four stone arches. Four steel sections, each 45 meters long, and two additional stone arches complete the view of this tremendous structure. In 1998 the viaduct was renovated. After passing the viaduct, a 90 degree turn follows and in 300 meters, the depot Syrnau and the stop Zwettl Stadt can be seen on the right side and on the left side there is the silo depot of the Lagerhaus Zwettl including a spur track. Then the train leaves Zwettl and enters a sharp left turn and passes through a narrow rock formation into the Schleifgraben.
After passing the slope, the rail begins to ascent in a straight line. Then the track drives past the villages of Koblhof and Ratschenhof which are approximately 300 meters from the rail.
Afterwards we see the Rudmannser Pond on the left side and turn immediately into the Schönauer Wald, a dense forest with an incline up to 2%. The rails go through the forest for 3 kilometres. Immediately after leaving the wood, we traverse a railroad crossing and approach Klein Schönau at kilometre 28.8 of the track. At the station of Klein Schönau there are two loading rails. On the one hand they serve as railroad car storage for the Waldhausen station and on the other hand to load lumber which comes from the circumjacent forests. The railway building of Klein Schönau was removed 20 years ago.
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railway viaduct over the river Kamp in Zwettl
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As we leave Klein Schönau, we take a left turn that brings us back into the forest. At kilometre 31.1 we leave the wood with an incline up to 2.1 %. Afterwards we cross a small river, the so called Sprögnitzbach, pass a viaduct and arrive at Obernondorf.
At kilometre 34.7 we reach Waldhausen, which is 700 meters above sea level. The main source of income for this railway is a sawmill of the international group Stora Enso, which is located in the village Brand near Waldhausen. The company freights timber into all parts of the world. Stora Enso works up lumber from the surroundings but also from the Czech Republic, Poland and the former Soviet countries.
The following railway is no longer in use. The OeBB closed it in December 2010! We leave Waldhausen and run along the Purzelkamp River, to the village Klein Weißenbach. There also is a station having the same name. Now there is a steady incline in the direction of Grafenschlag. At the so called Ritschgraben, the track leads us into a small forest, at kilometre 39.3 and we reach the stop Kaltenbrunn. Immediately after the stop, we cross the Purzelkamp River, which runs parallel to the track. Then we arrive at railroad station Grafenschlag at kilometre 41.0 741 meters above sea level. The station of Grafenschlag has one traffic rail and two loading rails. In former times, this station had a water crane that serviced steam engines. The MARTINSBERGER LOCAL RAILWAY CLUB, MLV, also takes on water here, unfortunately no longer by water crane but water hydrant.
When leaving Grafenschlag, the railway crosses the federal road # 36, does a left turn, and crosses the Purzelkamp River for the last time.
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map of the line - click to enlarge!
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The track is running parallel to a small creek called Langschläger Bach on a steady incline and enter a forest of 1 kilometre length and reach the stop Lugendorf at kilometre 43.3. Then we pass the village of Langschlag on an inclined track averaging a 1.7 % climb to the stop of Biberschlag, located in the middle of a forest. A 1.5 kilometre decline with 2.2 % takes us in the direction of Ottenschlag.
A viaduct consisting of seven stone arches takes us across the river Große Krems. The station Ottenschlag, 831 meters sea level and at 50.1 kilometres, has two loading rails, one traffic rail and a spur track connecting to local storage facilities. The station, whose buildings still exists, is situated approximately 3 kilometres outside the market Ottenschlag.
The route now takes another incline of 2.2 % at kilometre 51.6 while reaching at 860 meters above sea level the highest point of the track. Here you can see a small wooden bridge connecting the forests that were separated by the railway track. The bridge probably received its name “Seufzerbrücke” from a steam locomotive of the old days. After approximately 2 kilometres, which partially run in the forest, we reach the stop Kleinpertholz. From this stop we will take a 1.5 % decline in direction of Weitental at kilometre 75.6. The last station of the track is Martinsberg/Gutenbrunn. It has four rails (two for traffic and two for loading). The station building is approximately 500 meters outside of the local centre of the market Martinsberg, which is 825 meters above sea level.
Plans to extend the track to the Danube Valley with connection to the Westbahn never disappeared completely but this will probably remain a dream because of costs.
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the viaduct over the river Große Krems
photo: Thomas Anton |
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