Oste () is a river in northern

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

with a length of . It is a left tributary of the

Elbe The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Rep ...

. The Oste flows through the districts of Harburg, Rotenburg,

Stade Stade (), officially the Hanseatic City of Stade (german: Hansestadt Stade, nds, Hansestadt Stood) is a city in Lower Saxony in northern Germany. First mentioned in records in 934, it is the seat of the district () which bears its name. It is l ...

and

Cuxhaven Cuxhaven (; ) is an independent town and seat of the Cuxhaven district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town includes the northernmost point of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the shore of the North Sea at the mouth of the Elbe River. Cuxhaven has a ...

and empties into the

river near Otterndorf. Its drainage area is and the decline between the source and the estuary is . Tributaries are Ramme, Aue, Twiste, Bade, Bever and

Mehe The Mehe is a river in Lower Saxony, Germany. It flows into the Oste near Kranenburg. See also * List of rivers of Lower Saxony References Cuxhaven (district) Rivers of Lower Saxony Rotenburg (district) Rivers of Germany {{Lower ...

. The Oste is part of the Deutsche Fährstraße, an institution similar to the American

National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...

s. It connects various places between Bremervörde and

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland pe ...

with relation to the history of

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

and crossing of rivers, like the historic transporter bridges in Rendsburg and Osten. Also at the Oste there are two pram ferries in Gräpel and

Brobergen Brobergen ( Low Saxon: ''Brobargen'') is a village in the German municipality of Kranenburg in the district of Stade, Lower Saxony. The village of 6.06 km² has 220 inhabitants (July 1, 2011).Tostedt at the border of the Lüneburg Heath, flowing to the west passing Sittensen and Zeven, changing direction to north and passing Bremervörde, where influence of the tides is starting, Hemmoor and Neuhaus.

References

* August Heinrich von Brook (Hrsg.): ''Die Oste. Lebensader zwischen Elbe und Weser.'' Aufsatzsammlung. Heimatbund der , Bremerhaven 2003. * Willi Klenck: ''Heimatkunde des ehemaligen Kreises Neuhaus.'' Pockwitz, Stade 1957, Otterndorf 1986 (Faks.). * Gisela Tiedemann, Jochen Bölsche: ''Über die Oste - Geschichten aus 100 Jahren Schwebefähre Osten - Hemmoor.'' Drochtersen 2009,

External links

Osteticker
(in German)
Deutsche Fährstraße
(in German)
Erlebnis Schwebefähre
(in German) {{Authority control Rivers of Lower Saxony Rivers of Germany