Kiel, << keel, >> Canal is a waterway in northern Germany that links the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.Officially called the Nord-Ostsee-Kanal (North-Baltic Sea Canal), it is one of the world’s busiest artificial waterways. By using the canal instead of sailing around Denmark, ships save over 300 miles (480 kilometers) of travel. The canal runs between Brunsbuttel at the mouth of the Elbe River and Holtenau near Kiel, the Baltic seaport after which it was named.
The German government began building the canal in 1887 and completed it in 1895. Originally called the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal, it received so much traffic that the government widened and improved the canal from 1907 to 1914. The canal’s width ranges from 336 to 531 feet (102.5 to 162 meters). It is 36 feet (11 meters) deep and 61.3 miles (98.6 kilometers) long.
