Important correction on comment some time in last month's logs on price of bottled gas.   I bought a 13 kg bottle at le Clerk in Montceau les Mines, and was charged 52 Euros for it.   Was totally horrified at increase since last year (almost 100%) and, as always when buying from supermarket forecourts from the little booths,  insisted on machine printed invoice - but did not read it.   A month later (last week) checked the invoice.   Found that I had, in fact, been charged for 2 bottles, at Euros 26.00 each, so there is the correct price for 13kg bottles of gas!   As for me - when next in Montceau will try, but think this is a "gone baby" - in future pay more attention to what is going on.

Middle of the  month saw us - bruised in spirit - shaking the dust of Nevers complete with it's Orange France/France Telecoms main shop from our feet, and washing it off our floor plate.   Spirit is still bruised, reception and service on mobile and internet has steadily deteriorated over the last 2 weeks as we progressed down the canal in the direction of Belleville.

16/05/2010 - Sunday.   Paligny to Cours-les-Barres
In Paligny, on the village picnic site, but week-end weather had discouraged picnickers.
Down to super market over the bridge and on Nevers road - about 300 metres.   Large and very good one!
Off mid morning, just to hit the lovely great aqueduct across l'Allier shortly before mid-day, only to find a hire boat had met some motoring friends, moored himself onto the lock-waiting mooring in such a position that he concealed the traffic light from me, and concealed me from the lock keeper, some 400 yards away at the lock other end of the aqueduct, and had off-loaded a massive family picnic onto the bank.   However, all came right, and was over the aqueduct straight after official lunch break in plenty of time to reach Cours les Barres late tea time.   A good pleasant day through interesting country-side.

17 to 25 May 2010.   In Cours-les Barres, very busy working very hard on boat.  The weather was reasonable, and for a spell of 2 or 3 days shorts became the dress of the day.   Little doubtful as to what occupied the busy time, but definite impression of hard work - albeit difficult to categorize a result.   Never mind - exhausting, but good fun and lots of congenial people to gossip with.   Except for the big green areas of the cabin sides, Albert is just beginning to look a bit more respectable.   For time of year mooring very busy, apart from 2 or 3 private boats on a 3 to 6 night stay, a weekly rush of hire boats as they arrived in a string on their second day out from Decize or Chatillon.    Several hotel boats called or stayed over.   Little doubtful about the ethics of some of them.   They moor up, and then chase their guests off on bikes and then just sit there.   Nice to gossip with, though.

26 to 29/30 May 2010.   Coures les Barres to Belleville.   Set off down canal (it is down-hill from Montchanin - beyond Montceau - to Briare) taking it very easy.   (cost of diesel precludes "greyhound of the ocean" type throttle control).  Almost at once into basin at Marseilles les Aubigny well known for it's 2 boatyards based on a dry dock each, and where the long abandoned Canal de Berry sets of West across country heading - eventually - for the rivers of Brittany.   What a marvelous development for waterborne tourism the opening up would be - but fear it is like so many old English canals - it has just gone too far, filled in, built over, and presumably the land sold off.      Through the basin "at" Charity sur-Loire, which appears to be being developed - used to be a small hire base, yard and dry dock there, but it was difficult to see what they were actually doing - although there seemed to be a lot of sanitizing going on, with new jetties, and moorings for the big silo.   Say "at" Charity sur-Loire as they canal is actually a good  km along a dead straight road from the town.   

Very pleasant trip through very pleasant  countryside - flattish Loire Valley - just into full summer greenery in spite of more or less continuous rain - uniform of the day is still long trousers and sweaters.

Badly caught at Thouvenay lock, last before St Satur.   The L.K.s were on strike - 1 day - but they arranged all to be at work except 1 lock, thus having us on whilst blocking the canal completely and missing out on wages as little as possible.   Warned by L.K.s on 3 locks before with considerable glee, but went through none-the-less, and tied up just short of the - deserted - lock regrettably by an ants' nest - major ant motor ways straight into the boat along the mooring ropes.   Only 2 kms from SM ay St Satur, so cycled in and did a leisurely major shop.    Surprising how quickly the day went - absolutely no hurry anyway.   Perhaps should have improved the shining hour by climbing up to Sancerre!   Didn't - weather not appropriate to get a good view.

Having done shopping on Thursday, was able to moor up over road from  SM and make a thing of buying diesel.  Usual performance, but took it easy, and completed job reasonably painlessly.  1.15 euros per litre!   First year paid 0.45 centimes at bunker ship at St J de Losne at end of first year, with an exchange rate of, I think, about 55 to 60 pence to a Euro.

Pushed on down canal, and moored up on short length of steel piles found in 2007,  right opposite a fuel distribution depot.  Sounds dreadful, but revett piles made for safe secure comfortable mooring, and depot completely muffled traffic noise on canalside main road!   How reliably inaccurate memory is on these occasions - remembered depot as being across at least 2 fields, but in fact only about 50 metres from canal - fortunately work ceased at 17.30 and view the other way - east - uninterrupted across Loire Valley!

Thence on to Briare - wanted to have full day in town, so moored up on a short length of stone jetty just short of the last bridge before turning the corner to the aqueduct.   Shall always know it as Jerry's Jetty, after Jerry of "Pebbles" who directed me to it.   Nothing there except shortish grass, and forest behind, and most importantly, a large bollard at each end.   This is commercial peniche country, and one does not moor up 12 tons of Albert on steel pins hammered into the ground.   The bollasrds were distanced to suit at least 2 peniches - but have long ropes, so able to tie up safely, with springs onto sledge hammered (yes I carry a sledge hammer - and bolt croppers for that matter) pegs deep in the hard ground.

Enjoyed the Briare aqueduct over the Loire - always turn on flashing yellow beacon light to discourage any larger boat try to enter from the far end, but no problems, except no room at the town Commercial Quay, so had to go all the way round to the Port de Plaisance, where an idiot official suggested I moored up to a flower bed in 9 inches of water, then disappeared so I couldn't escape out of the port.

Escaped in due course by frantic telephoning and generally being a nuisance to various officials who were determined on a quiet life, after a singularly abortive visit to Briare.   No telephone shops, and no interest there-in.

and up to Ouzouer-sur-Trezee (try saying that with a mouthfull of toast) free village moorings (good ones - all facilities and shops - stayed here last year) for lunch, gossip with Brit camping car, and look-see.  Moorings quiet, but was in easy reach of the summit with it's views, lakes, and locks, so went on up gently in the afternoon to comfortable quiet canal-side moorings at Lock 12 - Gazzonne.

Early summer, canal Lateral

    Plagny, from boat hatch

       Cours-les-Barres

           Belleville Nuclear

       Moos - white ones

Canalside -Lateral a la Loire

         Gazonne Lock