Hafenlohr is a river of Bavaria, Germany. It is around long and discharges into the Main at the town of Hafenlohr. The Hafenlohr is located in the districts of Aschaffenburg and Main-Spessart in the Lower Franconia region.
The stream is known for its scenic valley, the Hafenlohrtal, and the eponymous nature preserve providing a habitat for many endangered plants and animals. In the past, for centuries the area was on the border between the territories of the Archbishop of Mainz and the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg. Past agricultural and industrial activities along the stream have been largely discontinued. Today, the area mainly offers recreation for hikers, bikers and other visitors. However, the Hafenlohr still feeds numerous ponds supporting fish farms and the forestry business of the nearby Fürstlich Löwensteinscher Park is located in the valley. A government project to turn most of the valley into a water reservoir by damming the Hafenlohr was abandoned in 2008 after decades of controversy.
Etymology
The name Hafenlohr is derived from the Middle High German determiner word Havenaere (relating to Hafner or "potter"). Lohr is derived from the Celtic Lär meaning "broad" and "shallow". The river gives the town Hafenlohr its name, which has for centuries been a centre of the pottery trade using locally found clay.
Course
The Hafenlohrquelle (source) of the Hafenlohr river is in the village of Rothenbuch, next to the wall of Rothenbuch Castle (Schloss Rothenbuch). It was set in sandstone when the road ST2317 was broadened.
The Hafenlohr flows through the castle moat and after around 100 m joins the Tiergartenbach which at that point is already 1.6 km long. However, since this rivulet often carries no water at all during the summer, it is not generally considered the main tributary. Flowing south out of Rothenbuch, the Hafenlohr is next joined by the Breitenbach. The Hafenlohr then continues to the southeast and at the Ahlmichdamm it is joined by the Steinbach. It then turns east-north-east into a steep-sided valley without any larger settlements whose floor is the "Nature Preserve Hafenlohrtal". Before it reaches Rothenbuch-Lichtenau the Hafenlohr is joined near the small Eichensee by the Mäusbach coming from NNW. It then continues through the Lichtenauer Grund, passes several small ponds and reaches the "Nature Preserve Mainzer Eck" where the valley starts to meander. The hill Klosterkuppel (552 m) blocks the Hafenlohr's by now easterly course and it turns into its final direction towards the south east at Rothenbuch-Erlenfurt.
The Hafenlohr then passes several forester's lodges, Alte and Neue Diana, Einsiedel, Lindenfurterhof and goes on into an unspoilt natural valley bordered on the south by the , a large, privately owned woodland. Further downriver are the Forsthaus Fürstenbrücke and Hubertus (formerly known as Bahnbrückenmühle). At that point lies the youth camping site Windheim of the Main-Spessart district and the Hafenlohr is joined by its largest tributary by far, the Wachenbach (also known as Wagenbach) coming from the south west. It then passes several small ponds fed by water from the Hafenlohr, crosses the town of Windheim as the valley widens and then flows past the solitary hill Achtelsberg (235 m), formerly located within a meander of the river Main. The Hafenlohr now flows through the Große Au, past several more small ponds and through the Kleine Au which is already bordered on the left and right by the outskirts of the town of Hafenlohr. Finally, it flows beneath the main street of Hafenlohr and at the town's eastern end discharges into the Main.
Watershed
The Hafenlohr and its tributaries drain an area of around 147 square kilometres of mainly wooded hills and partially cleared valleys of the region known as Spessart. It is roughly bordered in the west by Weibersbrunn, Rothenbuch in the north, Bischbrunn and Esselbach in the south and Hafenlohr in the east. Geologically, the whole area is made of red sandstone.
Water quality
The water is classified as Güteklasse 1.
Natural history
The Hafenlohrtal features two nature preserves. Most prominent is the "Oberes Hafenlohrtal", created in 1988. It covers around 71 hectares and stretches along a roughly 4 km long section of the valley from the Ahlmichdamm to Lichtenau. In this part of the valley, the Hafenlohr meanders through meadows of various degrees of wetness. These are kept clear of trees by regular mowing and by removing bushes.
This environment offers a habitat to a large number of plant and animal species. These include the beaver, which was reintroduced to the area.