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September 12th
Sunday
PK29, Villiers to PK 13, short of Brienon.
Warmer mornng - windless, but hazy and muggy.
Sunday tradition spoilt - we ALWAYS have cornflakes and boiled eggs for Sunday breakfast.
However, to-day it was porridge and boiled eggs. Night cramps and lethargy could be a salt deficiency, and always cook lots of salt into porridge. (There are those who would prefer the cramps).
Continued along wide tree lined canal - several hire boats encountered, especially in locks, where 4 strapping men will happily watch female L.K. do ALL the work - which inevitably means walking round the entire lock at least twice - then tip her 40 centimes (40p). By the time they have done up and undone their knitting, each lock will have accounted for 20 - 30 minutes of their holiday. (As an example, since leaving St de L we have passed through about 180 locks, or 60 to 90 hours (I think) of hire boat time!
Hit St Florentin at 11.45, so stopped on canalside near P.de P. Saw "Gadabout" inside, but looked all locked up with curtains drawn.
Whole place felt like Sunday mid-day in hot weather - not unnatural - it was. Just odd picnic.
Our spot had clear view of famous Cathedral, complete with a mass of flying buttresses, S.'s favourite architectural feature above all else in any building. Cathedral looked super from our position, but too hot to walk up and see, or do clever things with cameras.
Noticeable that the staff on the locks are of a very different calibre on Sundays, to weekdays. Either they are seniors doing their stint, or "volunteers" from the canal society. More chatty, more fun, more mature, and use their commom sence about emptying locks unnecessarily.
The guy in St. Florentin held the lock full for almost 2 hours while we had lunch.
Last-night and to-day held endless committee meetings about next 6 weeks.
Roughly the arithmetic is we have to go to UK on or abouth the 15th of next month - 33 days.
Round the bottom of the Yonne, back along Canal du Loing, de Briare, Lateral a laLoire, and to Roane is some 439 kms, starting to-morrow.
Returning down the Nivernais, i.e. up theYonne when we hit it to-morrow, to the Nivernais, down it to Decize, bottom half of the Lateral a la Loire, is 317 kms starting to-morrow.
I think, as we are doing this for fun, and must let nothing possibly stand between the arrival of Esmarelda and Gran-to-the-fore-helping, such as important things like boats, that we will go down the Nivernais to Roanne, rather than the long way.
As last Sunday, did lots of computer - transfering Pion to PC and other clever things.
Mooring we have chosen is cool, has something of a view if one looks for it, but is not far enough away from the TGV railway line. They built new tracks for the TGV, and it charges along incredibly fast and quietly.
However, they seem to send all fast traffic along it, and they are not as quiet.
Hence this mooring is not as tranquil as one could wish. Even so, we have only seen 1 party of 3 cyclists, 1 of 2 walkers, and 1 (VNF) van since we arrived, plus sundry trains in the distance.
Not at all sure shouldn't restart boyhood hobby of putting pennies on rail track so they get squashed. Played like conkers - as most squashed pennies get thrown off track like a bullet, one is very lucky to find them at all. Hence a penny that has survived 3 or more trains, apart from being well flattened, brings it's owner considerable street cred.
 
September 13th
Monday
PK 13, short of Brienon to through Laroches Migennes to Bassou on the Yonne.
Very slow start - we only have to get as far as Laroche Migennes to meet up with the "noisettes".
Passed peniche loading with grain ftrom the silo just outside Laroches Migennes - empty one behind waiting. Super to see them working, but where was the grain going? It looked very uncleaned - masses of leaves and weed seeds.
Unfortuneately, got away really too late in the morning, bimbled gently along, but only just in time to get bread before the 1200 deadline.
Stupidly didn't check the S.M. - they didn't shut till 12.30, and don't re-open till 1500.
Weather cool, but very muggy - storms on their way?
Poured the 2 jerricans of diesel into the diesel tank - it appears we have used 20 - 25 gallons since leaving St Jean de Losne in, 21 days - about right - 1-1¼ galls per day. More on rivers or large canals going flat out. Diesel here - we don't get red diesel - costs about 4.40 to 4.90 per litre. (44 to 49p)
Idea was to get to fill the 2 jerricans at the S.M. - with the aid of Jules's little car, when they arrived
Jules and Roch arrived close on the tail of streams of S.M.S.s at lunch time
Diesel idea ended up a ball of cheeze - 2 empty jerricans in the "boot" of the car, but cash sale part of S.M. fuel stop closed on Mondays, so 2 empty jerricans remained in car. What a cock-up.
Much tooing and froing, up to S.M. "heavy" purchases, and loo paper, packing of stuff into boat etc,
Left Jules' car in car park at P. de P. at Laroches Migennes and off through last lock of Canal de Bourgogne. Handed in the "green card". Actually beige, with rubber stamps from the "control" or "garde" locks, all the way from St J. de L Somewhat battered by now.
We have completed the balloon - this where we started in early May!
Out onto the Yonne, and dead slow passed Joe Parfitt's yard, in the hopes of seeing and greeting someone. No-one about, so through the 1st Yonne lock - desparately slow for a rise of only 3 to 6 feet, and stopped at mooring site just above lock, where we slept over and cleaned boat on arrival.
Very noisy - main road just behind trees - how did we survive it in the Spring? Easily - like so many of them it quietened down in the evening, and was largely inaudible from inside the boat anyway.
Out with chairs, and out with beers - warm dry day, although Jules had come through some dreadful weather. Is it on it's way to us?
 
September 14th
Tuesday
Bassou on the Yonne to Auxerre ( on the R. Yonne)
Very late start, what with new "drills" for guests getting up, tidying boat, and so on.
Retired to front of boat with P.C. e-mailed Ruth with train timetables to Clamecy, only to receive one from her at same time saying that she had found that she had already got the same information.
Also to Andrew about quite apalling bill from Vodaphone - over £200 for relatively few voice calls and 33 e-mails.
Set off about 1100 up-river.
Fascinating seeing it all again. This time weather fine, and locks ready for us - although still desperately slow in filling, emptying, and gate manipulatioon.
Had lunch on bank at Gurgy. This was the spot we tried to overnight at in the spring, where the level was 6 to 10 ft down resulting from a wier break during the floods in March/April. Now it was properly up, as was the canal cut leading to it.
Pleasant lunch in tree shade, on Gurgy village/river shore under small shade trees, on grass.
On up river after lunch - Jules and Roch off for short walk (between 2 locks) slow locks meant we did not hit Auxerre until 17.30.
Not a mooring space to be seen, but after motoring once right through to end of town - we seem to have got over the dislike or horror we used to have of driving around where other boats can see us, arrogance, maybe, - saw a stretch in public moorings where great space wastage meant that, greatly daring, we were able to persuade boats to close up a bit, and we got in by the skin of our teath, with much fancy manoeuvring. Innitially S. discussed from front of boat, whilst boat itself lay across and at 90 degrees to river, wandering downstream quite fast.
Rain set in in afternoon, but cleared to-wards dusk.
Took a walk at dusk through old part of town - still as lovely as when we were here in the spring.
Too wet to think of eating out - all cafes were folding up their outside tables and chairs.
 
September 15th
Wednesday
Auxerre to Bailly.
Traffic in .Auxere in morning very noisy - and local dogs very insanitary Didn't remember trafic being a prpoblem last time we were here - bypass? Started about 0530!
Very late breakfast - J&R "ferry lagged" - and weather drizzle.
J&R went to Laroches Migennes to fetch Jules's cads car by train (They went by train - not the car)
Got cash, and called in at Mobile Phone shop re French Mobile phone.
Sent us to France Telecom - quite a long walk, when received a call from Andrew saying Voda being bloody minded about bill.
Suddenly France Telecom wasn't so far after all
French tried to the limit ("infra red" in French? ) but time well spent.
However, much additoional infotrmation required.
Back to boat mid-day, still a faint drizzle, but things improving.
Set off oneish - first boat away, so no lock sharing.
Children to meet us as and when - wrong side of river excercise in offing.
However, met comfortably, for us, at lock of M.Phillippe, one of the ringleaders in the K.& A. twinning.
Loaded diesel, and had lunch on lock cutting.
On down canal, seperate, various meetings being considerred, to Champs sur Yonne.
Tried various moorings along the revetts, but water shallow, and traffic over bridge dreadful - as bad as when we were here in May/June. J&R went as far as the Chateau, then we left them to go up river looking for a better mooring.
Nothing till the Caves at Bailly, on the far side of the river, where proper moorings were built some years ago to serve the wine tasters and buyers going into the caves.
Since then they have been largely neglected - we stayed there in the spring, in the rain, under a tree.
This time, in spite of a plethora of hire boats all the way up, we were amazed to have it to ourselves, mooring in the open, on a an evening with steadily improving weather.
Sent SMS to tell J&R where we were, and waited.
Lusty bellow/scream from, footgers on far side of river. It was J&R. They had left their car on the towing path where we last saw them - about 2k, down river and walked. Their telephone was flat, and was in the boat, anyway.
Sorted that out with delicately spoken directions.
Then a very pleasant barbecue, sitting out till 9.30 on lovely evening.
 
 
September 16th
Thursday
Bailly to Bazarnes.
Awoke to cold thick mist.
Off to Auxerrres in cads car to see fiurther about French mobile.
Apparently is perfectly feasable - just change sim - but like everrything else here it cannot be hiurried
Having satisfied them of the number to be used in data link - what does it matter? - we have to produce things like passeports, a cheque - overwritten "null" and £350 deposit because we don't have a French bank account! However, the call and line charges are a great deal less than in England, and even less for e-mail, etc.
The mist cleared at once, and it got quite warm in Auxerre, J. did some shopping - good things bought! - and we got back to boat about 11.00.
Set off for Vincelles, weather improving.
Moored to grass bank (ladder mooring) just above ex-public moorings, now new hire cruiser base.
Sun bright, ambient low, so all sat in sun and had prolonged picnic lunch.
J&R left for ferry, we set off up river/canal amidst a swarm of hire boats.
Rather slow going, but they thinned out by the Vermonton branch junction.
The country-side was particularly good, the weather fine - it was raining when we came up before, and it was very English park land look-alike, evren got black and white cattle.
Stopped abouit 5.00 on comfortable mooring in cut at Bazarnes/St Pailly.
 
September 17th
Friday
Bazarnes to Merry sur Yonne (Les Roches de Saussoirs)
Rained quite a lot during night, and set in heavily with daylight.
Logged on, and did several letters - Angela Thorne, Amy Glover, Kath!
Thought and talked sabout immediate future plans.
Rain diminished, and able to get away about 11.30.
1 lock, then lunch break precluded any further progress!
Realising - having seen and drooled over this part of the system in the spring, and then seen so much elsewhere, that we were right - it is absolutely lovely - English park like.
Got paired off with Locaboat hire boat, but they were French, and knew what they were doing - relief, but didn't ealise what we were up to when we waved them them into the locks first
Most of the canal, it's environs, sand it's staff showing signs of end of season. We really thought one lock-keeper - a young woman - was "busy dieing" she was so slug-like in her movements.
Stirred her to near hysteria by shutting one of the entry gates on S. - a perfectly normal procedure, she only needs one, and we often shut one gate behind a big boat before the narrow-boat goes in. Then she had just made the first tentative steps to-wards the head of the lock when I started opening paddles. This definitlely woke her up, to the enjoyment of the populace, as she walked much faster - indeed almost ran - and snatched the paddle handle out of my hand and shut it again - quite surprised when I pointed out that she had shut it!
Very childish, but it was rather a dull day, and although the canal is super, this bit was a bit boring in the intermittent rain.
Met N.B. "Shire Oak". Had appeared in the French Waterways magazine, at the rally at Decize in July, with owners dressed in "trad" narrow boater style - yuk. Boat very beautiful, all traditional colouring - mostly red - and not yet travel worn like poor old "Albert"
Round the sharp bend below Mailly le Chateau, on for about 2 kms, then tried to moor up below that part of the cliffs that is National Park.
Nice big open space below- several hectares, wide and long park-like rough grass, last time full of the great U.W. picnicing, this time empty.
Difficult getting a mooring - although up to 2 kms available, due to the maddening habit of putting nice revetments in, then filling in on the water side to about 3 ft out, and 6" deep with masses of very ugly rocks and shale. Protects the banks and revertments from boat wash, especially the Germans who drive too fast to a man, but converts very nice moorings in nice areas to impossible propellor breakers.
Moored up about 1715, but too cool to sit out - cold wind, when not raining, so went on up the towingpath for quite a decent walk
Weather cleared to a certain extent - wind dropped, and heavy rain clouds passed us by.
Got progresssively cooler, sky cleared, moon and stars appeared, and it will probably not be long before we have frosts!
 
September 18th
Saturday
Merry sur Yonne to la Place (pk 31)
Beautiful sunny cool bright morning, not a cloud in the sky, thick mist rising off the water.
Heater on in cabin to assist rising!
A real pleasure to be boating - it is always a pleasure, but there is a gradient in pleasurableness between this morning, and the steaming hot scorching muggy days, and pissing cold windy ones..
Into Chatel Sensoir almost at once, this was the pretty village where S. trudged up a mountain to the church on top in May/Jun, and I visited Connoisseur Cruisers about fan belts.
This time S. went to village for bread- also up a mountain, and I visited Connoisseur Cruisers about drive/damper plates - equally unsuccessfully.
Met "Otter", beautifully painted up, we met her at Meilly la Ville in May, belonging to what we thought was a Dutchman. In fact a Frenchman, and incredibly enthusiastic. She is rather elderly Narrow Boat, steel hull, fibreglass top. Still lots about on B.W. built in Sowerby Bridge, but now defunct. "Thorne Bird"/"l'Etale" .in Roane was one.
Lock lunch time while we were in Chatel Sensoir, so had ours as well, and continued after lunch for 4 or 5 Kms, then realised we would be in Clamecy late to-night or early to-morrow, to meet Ruth next Wenesday, who is coming a day later than originally planned.
The only way we can conform to that is to sit on the bank and do nothing.
Not good - bad weather is forecast. Sitting in a N. B. under dripping rain is slap on the line at the boring end of the "enjoy boating" gradient.
Found, after wandering up and down a 2 km length of canal, including turning right round twice. extremely pleasant rural spot, with grass, (as opposed to thistles, nettles) etc, with plenty of depth of water, near railway bridge.
It was in this area that we enthused about the natural wild pastures with the Charolais cattle,- complete with dung fans on their backsides - grazing with the grass and buttercups up to their bellies. Now the grass is short, or hay on the root, and the Charollais have clean bums (seem to remember that fresh young grass on its own causes scouring in cattle, and that it can also cause bloat).
Even so, the country-side still looks very nice, rural, natural, and pleasantly peasant like.
As it was Saturday, there were virtually no trains - 2 little 2 carriage locals was the sum of the traffic during our tenure. There were also no hire boats - or relatively few until the evening, as they mostly change over on Saturdays - in by 0900, cleaned up, and out again not before 1600.
Disturbed night - first S. woke at 0130, and chuntered about, then at 0230 was driven made by fender against hull creaking just by ear, so loosened morings, then 0330 smelt fire, then 0500 heard continuous splish, splashing as of somebody fiddling with boat, creaking, and again smelt fire. (bush, grass, or bon-fire).