2007

BACK TO CALENDAR 2007

1.5 3 to 9 June 2007

 

2 June 2007   Saturday         Belleville-sur-Loire        Canal Latéral à la Loire

3 June 2007  Sunday              Belleville-sur-Loire        Canal Latéral à la Loire

4 June 2007, Monday             Belleville-sur-Loire        Canal Latéral à la Loire

Heavy rain in night - indeed over the last 3 days and nights.

Working on side hatch doors (been working on them for the past 4 days when weather permitted - removing old rotten and defaced fibre board wood panels and replacing with irroco panels cut and brought from Isle of Wight some 3 to 4 years ago.

 

Unfortunately, decided - in rush between showers - that the original measurements had been incorrect, and so had got the cut wrong, those years ago, so decided to remove a sliver from the side of one panel.   In fact, original measurements and cutting - strangely for me - were correct, and now I have a cock-up.   Not unusual - have very seldom measured and cut anything correctly.

Glued them on as best, and set to get at least 6 coats of varnish.

 

Managed it, with assistance of complicated tarpaulin shelter, clamped to the boat with G clamps to the side rails.

Now have to line up and glue on the little square maridadis with the polished brass handles - leave that for later.

Did big shop - 2 visits to S.M. with trailer behind Brompton.   S.M. actually a very poor one, but the convenience of relative closeness and ease of bicycling to it more than countered poor choice of things to buy.

In general - having decided that enough of Belleville was enough - got ready to depart to-morrow.

 

5 June 2007, Tuesday               Belleville-sur-Loire to Briare,   Canal Latéral à la Loire

Yet more heavy rain in night, but day came up misty sunny, bright, warm, and breezy.

Final water re-fill, bread purchase, disconnect everything, and off.

Intended to make Briare - estimated 1 and half days run, to arrive to-morrow.

Usual nonsences after starting - had forgotten to bring book, maps and navicarte up, so had to stop in middle of canal and get them, then remembered loo - also had forgotten the necessary 2 buckets of canal water tipped down before pumping out.  Got organised, Nice run, nice scenery, still going down the incredibly gentle drop of the Loire valley.  Countryside very lush, with all the rain, quite a bit of traffic on the canal.   Having said that, in fact there was virtually nothing - after seeing no boats, 2 become a crowd!. 

Noticed moorings at Beaulieu full (Beaulieu is a couple of kms N of Belleville) - including 2 hotel type boats.   Not nearly as nice as Belleville, no shade and a bit raw, and Belleville town has a super modern swimming pool.   However,  shopping probably much better at Bonny-sur-Loire just over the river from Beaulieu for serious shoppers.   Noticed one of the hotel boat girls pushing a very loaded sack trolley over to her boat.   Also, there are no medical facilities at Belleville - no dr, dentist, or pharmacy.

 Did lunch stop moored to steel revetts just outside last bit to Briare aqueduct.   Got here long before expected, but on re-reading map, found it was only 19 kms!

 

As always, thoroughly impressed with the "pont canal" or aqueduct.   Marvelous piece of engineering.   Just back from it's entrance the original canal branches off (it doesn't, of course - it is the modern canal that branches off).  It is still in water and its locks are in working order.   Used to take the boats down into the river, down river through Briare-le-Canal (actually Briare's proper name), then up again on the far side into the Canal de Briare.   The section on the Briare side has been converted into the P de P, and one goes up the old canal back it to the current cut.  One can go down the old cut by appointment, if of shallow enough draft.   Looking through the trees, there appears to be  leisure complex/picnic site there, I think. It was this run across - a frequently impassable river - that the Pont Canal and approaches was built to obviate. 

 

There are a number of these old river embranchements along this canal - hence the canal's name.   The word "lateral" used in this context indicates a canal cut alongside a river to iron out the bumps in the river bed,  and enable navigation to continue regardless of the behavior of the river. Most of the old embranchements are either still in use - St Thibault - P. de P. and dry dock, Nevers - superb P. de P and huge swimming bath complex , Briare - P. de P. and leisure area - Decize, of course, still used as originally cut, but waiting basin now, a  P. de P and hire boat base.  There is at least one more out in the country, but cannot remember it's name or find it on the map.

 

Would have been even more impressed with the Pont Canal if I didn't have to mess about before entrance in a thoroughly adverse wind while first an ordinary boat, then a monstrous Dutch boat that couldn't really manage the dimensions got semi stuck in the exit gate, with frantic manual pushing and bow thrusting.   There is no passing on the aqueduct, so both had to clear it first, while I got ants, expecting something else to start at the far end before I had a chance to stake my claim.   Finally got in, and happily and enjoyably across, but was met at the Briare end by 2 more monster Dutch boats coming round the approach corner - a blind one - far too fast on the wrong side.  As soon as they stopped the wind took them straight onto the canal side on my side, so being full of initiative and helpfulness, I went on my wrong side too, and avoided them with some skill, leaving them the whole canal width to fiddle around in.  However, it never pays to use common sense and help these people - one gets any blame going, anyway.   It was obvious that they were going much too fast, and were much too close to the aqueduct end before they knew the aqueduct was clear, but still had strange looking women in curlers looking out of windows and down from hugely high flying bridges shaking their heads.

 

The Commercial Port - just over the pont, and on the main canalside in the town, where I had reckoned on spending the night, was full.   Never found that before, but the fillers were yet more of those huge boats.   Fiddled about in indecision - still miss those infuriating committee meetings inherent upon these occasions - but finally decided to go on the 2 kms up canal to the Y junction that takes us back down the old canal cut and back into the town P. de P. through 3 locks.   Enjoyed this - but nervous, as the locks are not full length, and when I did the same thing about 4 years ago when Herself was in UK buying houses I got into trouble going out again.   Enough to the occasion ..... etc.   Was greeted by Capitaine as long lost fried, when I recognized him, and got good mooring, lying alongside, under shade.  Sun was out - had been nearly all day and quite warm.    Coupled up, G & T, and looked back on good day.   Sort of municipal complex opposite, millions of teenagers in organised groups attending some function or other.   Looked a bit like all the top class students being hauled along to a Shakespeare evening.   Like all teenagers, they all spoke in high pitched shrieks, all at once, very loudly, all the time.   Actually, in all fairness, they were just far enough away not be annoying - but there were an awful lot of them.

 

6 June 2007   Wednesday.       Briare to Ouzouer-le-Trézée.    Canal de Briare

Object of stopping in Briare was to get some really thick electric feed cable for the fridge, some battery water, replacements for my 2 orbital sanders that have died the death (damp and neglect), etc etc...

Got good map from Tourist Info, but read it upside down and went off on long pointless cycle ride in diametrically wrong direction - 4 km round trip each time.   Did it twice, as couldn't believe I had got it wrong.   Tried again, and saw I had to pass railway station - remembered as picking up place for Herself after house buying episode mentioned yesterday, and then got map set right way round.    No cable, forgot the battery water, but enjoyed buying the orbital sanders at the brico.

Finished by lunch time, so decided to stop paying €12.00 a night, and push on to moorings marked on map, noticed on way past, but never before visited, up the canal about 8 kms.   Marvelous name - Ouzouer-le-Trézée - love to give it as my address to those indescribable people who man our call centres .   The canal goes straight through the village, and very enterprisingly, they built it into proper canalside jetty, with all facilities - free!

There were no problems coming up the 3 short locks from the town, except 2 separate L.K.s, on 2 occasions, letting down a hook on a length of rope to the front end of the boat.   Looks of puzzlement, when no one issued forth from the cabin to hook our mooring rope over were great to behold.   The locks are automatic (don't know what the LKs were for), so one cannot control speed of ingress of water, but in fact all was without drama, except for head scratching after I explained that I was on my own, and there was no one to take their hooks and fill them with mooring ropes.

 

Moored up at Ouzouer-le-Trézée, 5 locks and 7 kms up the hill - totally satisfactory.   Room for about 10 boats on canalside concrete jetty with all facilities, and many more further back on the grass side with steel revetts but no facilities, unless one has a long cable.  Tempted - don't like concrete - but too lazy to move!   There were, in fact, only one hire boat - who spent the evening barbecuing in paraffin, judging by the smell, and one temporarily unoccupied large Dutch Barge.   Albert looked very small beside her.

 

Village has conveniently situated bread, chemist, charcuterie, bar, cafe, etc, and moorings very quiet, although part of large complex of new looking but empty buildings as for library, school, hall and so on.

 

7 June 2007,  Thursday      Ouzouer-le-Trézée to Summit Pound,   Canal du Briare.

Last night enlivened by being woken at 0200 by unusual boat noises - grunts and scrapes.

We were adrift, had completely turned round, but only moved a very short distance from original mooring.  No real drama, except in principle, as wind and current light to non-existent.   Just got up, found both torch and outdoor slip on shoes exactly where they should have been (this was quite the most surprising part of the whole affair) removed hanging mooring ropes in vicinity of propeller, motored back to canal-side, and re-moored.

 

Had cup of tea, thought about it, and satisfied myself that boat had been properly tied up - both boat and shore ends, mooring ropes and springs, and therefore had been cast adrift by human (sub-human?) agency, as there was no way 3 separate tieing up points could have fallen off, or come untied, and they weren't untied anyway, the knots were still in them.   Lifted off by spooks.  I feel, in a way, that they got their fun after all by watching - presumably from the bushes - as elderly gent in pajamas whose jacket only had one button and whose trouser elastic was long since dead wandering around re-mooring his boat.

 

Felt very bung eyed when finally got up in morning, did little bit of shopping, left at 1400 for the summit pound - 6 kms and 5 locks.

I had promised myself last year that I would stop here - no moorings except neat steel revetts and mown grass, but very beautiful area, lakes forests, etc - but on a dozy afternoon drove right past it.   We stopped here for several days some years ago, just to enjoy the countryside and wander around.

Sods law ensured this year that found the spot and stopped OK, but weather dark, misty, overcast, and hazy. 

 

Still it was a nice run - pleasantly relaxed, and the countryside very much an area of lakes, woods, and nice outlooks are superb.  Gloriously quiet.

 

8 June 2007,  Friday           Summit Pound to Chatillon Colligny,   Canal du Briare.

Significance of this summit in canal network terms is that it is the watershed or summit between the Loire - and hence the Saône and Rhone, on the one side, and the Seinne and north east France and, I suppose eventually, the Rhine, on the other.

Had intended to stay a couple of days here, but weather unimpressive - precluding photography, so pushed on at 10.00. for Rogny les Sept Ecluses and beyond.

Restful 6 locks and 5 kms into Rogny - dark cutting through mostly forest and woodland, opening right out just before Rogny.   L.K. accompanied us - large sort of cruiser  - really huge - joined us in 2nd lock.   He spent hours fiddling with his ropes all the time, while his wife watched me do absolutely nothing under their bows.   Nice folk!   Swiss French?

Tied up at the end of the main canalside moorings in Rogny to have lunch and take photos.   Poor old Rogny - the commune let the moorings to a nasty piece of work, and no one will stop there now - had the makings of a row with him last year when he tried to charge me for non existent water a electricity.    Moorings now have the typical line of partially finished, tatty, being worked on boats that those sorts of moorings seem to attract.  Gather they are trying to get rid of him, but he has a long contract.

Few photos - weather still hazy and overcast - pushed on pretty promptly after lunch for Chatillon Coligny.   Again, nice run.   Plenty of traffic, now, as this is the time of year when private boaters come to get the warmth, but leave before midsummer heat and the holidays.   Hotel boats - official and "Captain's Guests" plentiful.   Perhaps that is what some of what I call "the enormous boats" are.

Met, once again, L.K. at lock above Chatillon, he who kept a short length of our mooring rope that we left in his long grass, for a year, recognized us, and returned it to us at our next passing a year later.

Moorings full, so had to get knitted by other skippers (who were terrified, I am sure, of this elderly gent in sole charge of 15 tonnes and 15 metres of narrow boat) more or less against one of the short 4 metre diagonal pontoons.  Comfortable enough, but hate not being able to get out of either end of the boat when necessary.

A good day.

9 June 2007,  Saturday           in Chatillon Colligny,   Canal du Briare.

Watched every body depart, then set too to wash clothes - what a joy to have ready access to good supply of clean clothes.   Sounds so basic, and is only when one hasn't got them that one feels in sympathy with Chris Christopherson when he sings of choosing his cleanest dirty shirt.   Hate Laundromats - they are never where and when you want them.   Still haven't solved problem of drying sheets without them getting dirtier falling on the ground.   Most people use lines tied to their masts - mine is only 15" high.

Moved down onto the long alongside jetty (it is actually the "home" of one of - I believe - only 2 pump outs  in France) when hotel boat departed, but can only have it for to-day - another hotel boat has booked it for to-morrow.   No less than 3 loaded commercials came up and past - must be a special contract, as these days that would normally be a month's take.

Bit of shopping, bit of hanging around and gossiping - whole lot of large boats - far too big for pontoons -  arrived.   Made myself scarce so couldn't be asked - ever so nicely - to go back to diagonals to let large boat moor up, with result that intended boat cleaning still not done.   Boat is in appalling mess, but really haven't energy to sort it out.   Belleville was supposed to be painting and polishing jankers, but rain put paid to that.

Weather warming up - will have to put biminy up in next day or so, but it is nice being completely in the open.

Pictures:

Top    Jubilant of Lymington going through Belleville

2.       Loire Country

3 & 4.   Signs canalside.   VNF Lateral a la Loire is quite keen on these - so am I.   Note the pottery on the Briare one - Gien would be the next stop down river, if the canal didn't turn right to go over it, and climb the hill.

5.    Albert with inferiority complex.   Facing down canal after overnight assisted independence.

6.    The summit to-day (left) and 4 or 5 years ago.

7.     Commercials in Chatillon - not much room.