The beauty of this part of the Rhine is indescribable.
Mountains tower directly up from the water's edge, here and there dotted with historic castles.

Time after time was Paul's bugle salute answered on the ramparts far above and many a fair hand waved a handkerchief.
When they approached the Lurlei, the boatmen used superhuman efforts to get away from the dreaded whirlpool and hugged the opposite shore.
Their cries of: "This way Captain, the Lurlei," were unheeded by Paul who kept directly for the jutting rock which causes the eddy known as the whirlpool.
"Where are you going ?" thundered out one of the members of the press, "Come to this side of the river!" "Oh, I'm going to visit the mermaid," responded Paul and a few minutes afterward he was in her embrace; or rather in the embrace of the noted Lurlei.

Instead of swallowing him up, as had been anticipated, it only whirled him around a few times; he soon succeeded in getting away with a few strokes of his paddle and rapidly overhauled the terror-stricken occupants of the press boat.

He dashed alongside and with a dexterous twist of his paddle, sent a shower of water over the astounded and horror-stricken Simnick, who was sure that the voyager must be crazy to take such risks.
"Why," said Paul, "there are a thousand more dangerous eddies in the Mississippi that have never been heard of," and he laughed heartily at the danger he had passed.
At Coblentz the Strassburg boatmen refused to go any farther so they were sent home.

The guiding of the press boat was now left to the tender mercies of Simnick.