Adelante's 2007 Summer Cruising

Across the Channel …

It was an eventful year for Adelante, our 12 metre Dutch steel twin-engine motor cruiser, built about 1970. With Margaret’s retirement, would we achieve and enjoy the extended cruising for which the boat had been bought in the first place? Last winter was spent preparing – on the hard at Penton Hook.  Following a survey, we had just over a ton and a quarter of steel plate welded to the hull, which had become pitted. Given the wet weather, by the time painting was finished we were tight on our schedule of getting to France before we went off on a booked holiday (a yacht charter in Sicily - but that’s another story). Adelante was launched at Penton Hook on 7 June, and sailed to Teddington the next day, where John, Margaret and son Robert were joined by a friend, Mike. We had a long, but straightforward trip to Ramsgate the following day though with a rolling sea round North Foreland. Next morning at 0430, with calm sea and slight mist , we set off for Dunkerque (the lock at Calais was damaged), taking the tide South of the Goodwins, across the lanes and then up the French coast – a route chosen to keep us closer to havens if we were to have engine or other failure – this was after all the shake-down cruise! We moored at the Yacht Club Mer du Nord (YCMN) at 1140. Margaret and Robert abandoned ship immediately heading by bus for Calais and home.

Mike and John celebrated arrival in France in the best gastronomic fashion, having a leisurely start the next day: the Trystram lock opens at 1020 - now a fixed entry time. By 1135 we had cleared the third lock, and were into the Grand Gabarit – a “motorway” canal where we made good progress to Bethune by 1945, where we moored alongside a very posh houseboat. Having purchased the vignette (inland waterways licence) first thing next morning, we cruised on to Tryst St Leger (near Valencienne), mooring to a peniche by the lock.

The following day we crossed into Belgium and arrived at Mons, having covered just under 200 kilometers in 28 hours cruising. Here we left Adelante for some six weeks.

Starting South … slowly

We returned to Mons in late July – the secure marina on the edge of a leisure lake has excellent facilities and good communications by both road and train.  A few days of maintenance and other left-over jobs from the winter, and we set off on the first leg of the summer cruise.  The Belgian Canal du Centre has been designed and enlarged to take large commercial barges (peniches), providing the link from the Danube/Rhine to Dunkerque.  The first excitement was the spectacular 73.5 metre boat lift at Strepy-Thieu – we were one of ten cruisers, with lots of room for more.  The “vrac” is lifted steadily by winding cables and it only took about half an hour from beginning to end.  The view got increasingly better and cruising along the viaduct at the top, we really felt on top of the world – certainly on top of Belgium!  Joining the Canal Bruxelles-Charleroi, we caught up with three Dutch boats, moving in loose convoy through rural countryside, through three 7 metre deep descending locks into the startling industrialisation at Charleroi, where, joining the Sambre, we waited for the next lock between steel mills, and watched fascinated as scrap metal was unloaded from a barge by crane drivers high up in the roof, and then the rise of the barge was measured to ascertain the tonnage delivered.  The middle of the city has turned its back on the river – it feels a bit like a storm drain! -  so we pressed on until the locks closed and moored alongside a peniche which, we were told, would not move as the daughter was getting married next day. John was woken in the night by rain and was concerned to see a sinister group by the lock – binoculars showed it to be a combined stag and hen party!

We reached the Meuse and Namur at lunchtime next day, and we were lucky to get a finger pontoon in the Port de Jambes, crabbing in across the current – we had been warned that everyone moves in the morning and places are quickly snapped up!  It’s a stunning location with the fortified citadel high up on the bluff, and an historic city centre.  Our friends arrived via Eurostar and Brussels and the following day, after refuelling alongside, we set off up the Meuse.  We were told that the lock at Charleville- Charleville-Mézières was “en panne” and that investigations were underway to ascertain the problem.   But that was a few day’s cruising away…!  The Meuse met everyone’s expectations – wide, gentle, scenic and despite the somewhat soggy weather, an enjoyable day’s cruise brought us to Dinant – late in the day and the only space was upstream alongside the casino.  Reconnaissance revealed the Capitanerie on the bank opposite the main town so we moved smartly the following morning to the convenience of shore facilities and washing machine alongside and a stunning view of the town from the deck.  News about the Mezières lock was getting worse – at least three weeks closure.  We adjusted our plans and spent a couple of days at Dinant; we visited the chateau on top of the cliff, walked along the river and enjoyed local produce.  Next stop, Waulport (pontoons with power), tucked into a peaceful bend in the river with woods behind.

Into France and we were provided with the “zapper” to trigger the lock cycle – which by and large worked well.  Next stop, Givet – again pontoons and a fully equipped Capitanerie – including free internet access!  It was sunny and hot and a couple of days relaxation in such acceptable surroundings was appreciated by all.   No better news on the lock – so we moved gently on, getting into the steep sided wooded slopes of the Ardennes.  We learnt to check which side the manually operated trigger mechanism is before tying up.  The skipper, with lots of unwanted advice, got us through the first tunnel successfully (as we’d expected!) to the next night’s mooring at Vireux-Wallerand (power and water); another pretty town, and with temperatures of 30 deg, we took the afternoon off to laze around.  There were some Dutch and Belgian boats alongside, and a man with his daughter (aged about 6) camping and travelling in a large rubber dinghy, with a canopy at night!  We cruised on to Fumay (good facilities),then Revin which was full so rather than rafting up, we moved onto Laifour, a tiny village in a stunning wooded gorge, with a small quay with electricity.  Only one shop, which was going on congé annuel (annual holidays) the following morning, so had a very limited selection of fresh food.  The “ annuel” problem was to dog us for most of the Summer (and Autumn!) – the boulangerie, boucher, restaurant, mechanics - never a major issue, just inconvenient at times. Next stop, Bogny-sur-Meuse (pontoon but no facilities), where there were several scenic walks into the forest, and thence (in the rain) to Charleville-Mézières, where the modern marina was guarded by a designer footbridge – 3 metres airdraught at the edges and a gently rising curve over the centre channel!  We lowered everything (airdraft 3.15m) and scraped in to excellent facilities serving an almost empty 60 berth marina!  It is a bustling town, of historical interest, with good rail connections to Paris and Lille.  We met several Australians, who own a variety of boats and come to Europe for six months cruising in our Summer.  They are largely based at St-Jean-de-Losne and were beginning to be anxious about getting back in time for flights back home.  A local TV crew came round to ask about the inconvenience caused by the lock but at least bearing the news that it was drained, the new bits were being provided and it would be back in action in a few days.  Celebration all round.

Moving on – a focussed ten days

Our crew departed by train and we were left to assess the situation.  We had hoped to be much nearer Rheims; we were seeking a winter home for Adelante out of the water, and had not realised how few places have the necessary cranage (17 tons).  The port at Givet is diversifying and is setting up good shore facilities for “hivernage” but the power was not yet connected; in addition, they would bring in the lift-out crane in early Septmber – this was early for us, but necessary as all the locks on the northern bit of the Meuse were shutting for planned maintenance in mid September. (The VNF chomage leaflet is well worth having as a reference!)  There was Meaux (on the Marne outside Paris) and Migennes (on the Yonne, near Auxerre).  We studied the maps, did our calculations, and decided that, with some focussed passage making, and barring further lock failures or other technical problems, we could get to Migennes by extending our cruising period by a week or so.

We did not try to go through the lock on its first day in action – although we were alarmed to see the river rise considerably and possibly could have not got out anyway!  Margaret had retrieved the car from Mons – an easy (and very economical) journey by train and bus, and a pretty drive back across farming country.  The bow thruster batteries were failing, so with the car, a quick trip to the retail park produced two news ones which the skipper fitted without undue hassle (to the crew!). 

The following day, the river had fallen, so we left at lunchtime, joined a German cruiser awaiting the lock and discovered it was in fact one of the deepest we had encountered for sometime; fortunately manned by a helpful lock-keeper who dropped a hook to take the lines!  At the next lock (automatic) the light went red when the German boat entered; we were confused so backed off.  We subsequently realised that the first boat breaks the beam but the lock does not work until set in motion by the hand operated handle in the lock.   At the next lock, a peniche was just exiting, but the lights stuck on red/green (preparing the lock).  We waited… tried re-zapping… and then entered gingerly, tied up and summoned assistance; the little white VNF van (a sight we learned to welcome!) arrived in about 15 minutes, and soon we were off.  The next lock was the entrance to the Canal des Ardennes.  We zapped, approached …  no lights at all!  We were beginning to feel jinxed.  A Dutchman hailed us from a small boat tied to a fishing platform; apparently, there was a car in the canal but he was hopeful that it would not be there too much longer.  We cruised gently up and down the river – there was nowhere easy to moor -  hitch on to a tree or drop the anchor? -  then the little white van appeared! Two locks in quick succession, with the lockkeeper going ahead to make ready the second, bought us to Pont à Bar (good mooring).  Were we going on?  The lockkeeper said we could just get to the next two locks before closure if we wished so we pushed on, the single-handed Dutchman coming too.   The lockkeeper and his little van were duly there with the first lock ready; it was followed by a sharp right hand bend, a second lock, and a short tunnel.  Just at the entrance to the St. Aigan tunnel, tucked into the hill, was a peniche sized quay and there the lockkeeper recommended we stopped for the night.  Drinks all round – Wilhelm from Das Domper spoke excellent English and we enjoyed his company for the next few days.  

The next day dawned misty (thunder and torrential rain during the night); the lockkeeper arrived to make sure we were moving as peniches were due later in the day.  We cruised through pleasant hills and farmland; the second lock of the day was recalcitrant – one of the sluices would not close.  The summer-relief young lady lockkeeper summoned help, but to her credit continued to jiggle it, and eventually she was able to get it working without outside help.  We squeezed passed a couple of laden peniches and arrived at La Chesne at about noon – the top lock of 26!  We hoped we could get down them in the afternoon…  In sunshine, squally showers, and strong gusts, we moved through the system, supported by lockkeepers from time to time, with some boats coming the other way.  Wilhelm was great at leaping ashore and operating the lock mechanism, and we gradually became quite proficient.  With enthusiastic encouragement from the lockkeeper, who clearly wanted to go home, we moored to the bank just upstream of the last lock at Semuy at 6.30 – 25 locks in just under six hours!  We felt the sundowners were well deserved.

The next day was more gentle – we left the Canal des Ardennes , entering the Canal Laterale a l’Aisne, surrendering our zappers and moving on to the system of turning a suspended rod to wake up the lock. One lock failed to respond – a call established that another car was in the canal!  The delay was only about 20 minutes – the lockkeeper told us that cars in the canal were not unusual!  We had a close encounter with an empty peniche in the next reach – the skipper rounding a bend was possibly unsighted and did not spot us over his high bow – fortunately we were able to push into the willow trees and to do him justice, he was very apologetic as he passed!

After a night at Rethel (quay with power and a pretty town, good rail links), we cruised gently on to Berry au Bac with Wilhelm, stopping by the entrance to the Canal de l’Aisne au Marne at 5 p.m. on a sunny Saturday evening. Next morning, having fetched pain au chocolat from the boulangerie, we were taken aback to see a peniche coming up through the lock and turning in to the Canal de l’Aisne au Marne – we had naively thought that it would be quiet on a Sunday.  And then another appeared.  So we set off at 10 – the next problem was that the starboard engine would not start!  With the last leg to complete and knowing that the two peniches were in front of us, we were now unsure whether we would make Sillery (34K and 13 locks) in the day.  It was a long day on one engine and bowthruster in stiffish wind but we were lucky; after cruising slowly behind the second peniche along a very long stretch into Rheims, the skipper waved us to pass – and turned out to be English!  We passed the Rheims port de plaisance (noisy from roads but with all facilities and close to city centre) and caught up the other peniche, which meant we had to wait a lock cycle each time and stooging was not easy as the spillways emptied with some vigour, often very close to the lock gates.  However, we made the Sillery lock with 20 minutes to spare – and once tied up were passed by the friendly English peniche who said he realised we would not have made it if we had stayed behind him!

Sillery is an excellent spot – several English boats were moored up there (until then, we had seen only two others all trip).  It is a peaceful suburban village, reasonably modern as it was almost totally flattened by the First World War battles in the area. There are pontoons, all facilities, a supermarket, an outstanding boulangerie and a bus service to Rheims, plus a view of hillsides of champagne vines on the Montagne de Rheims.  We spend a pleasant few days; Margaret retrieved the car, the skipper removed the defunct starter motor, we tasted champagne, toured Rheims, and watched the resident kingfishers hunting along the bank.  We paid our mooring for a month and set off home.

The final leg

Arriving back almost four weeks later, we found all serene.  Some boats in the marina had moved on; others were still there.  Several peniches passed during the first couple of days – and then nothing for the next two, and we wondered if there was another lock problem, but it was just the random nature of the fluvial traffic.   John successfully installed the new starter motor, Margaret visited the supermarket to replenish the stocks, and we walked in the vineyards – the whole harvest had taken place in the time we were away!  Our friend Alan arrived, successfully catching the bus out from Rheims with the homecoming schoolgirls!    

Our strategy was to get to Paris via the Marne in a week so Alan could catch the train home, enjoy the city for a couple of days, and then set off up the Seine to Migennes.   The first day – Sillery to Mareuil-sur-Ay was probably the most challenging – 34 kilometers with 13 locks and a tunnel.  Margaret left the men to achieve this alone, driving the car down to Migennes (about 3 hours) and coming back by train (via Paris).    A long but successful day all round, with a  rendez-vous at the pontoons at 5.30 for a well earned G&T or two on deck – a sunny, still evening with a magnificent sunset behind the nearby woods reflecting all along the canal.  After a well deserved lay-day and a shopping expedition to Ay for food (congé annuel afflicting the shop in Mareuil!), we set off on a Sunday morning, gently cruising along watching the varied towpath activity – and being overtaken by a lady jogger, a group on horseback and numerous cyclists.  Once through the final two locks of the Canal Lateral à la Marne, the river opened up and we enjoyed the scenery as we gently moved down stream.  The V-shaped Marne locks  have floating pontoons, so present no particular challenge; they are automatic and respond to the magic “zapper”.  We had learned not to totally rely on the facilities information in the Navicarte – sometimes, the facilities are better, sometimes not so good, sometimes not visible at all.  The passage plan therefore had a range of alternatives for the night, and having passed two candidates - Dormans (pontoons occupied) and Jaulgonne (smaller, and no room) we tied up for the evening just upstream of the lock at Mont-St-Pere, a beautiful stretch of river with the town on the bluff, but no facilities.  A good day- 44 k, in six hours with 6 locks – and nowhere did we have to wait more than ten minutes for a lock; there was only one French cruiser moving in the same direction.

The next day was very windy with squally showers.  A hotel barge, which had been downstream of the lock overnight, worked the lock first thing, making it convenient for us to move off just before 9 o’clock.  We stopped in Chateau-Thierry for provisions – a largish town stradling the river then moved on to a lunch stop by Charly lock – where irritatingly there was a big supermarket 200 yards from the river!  We caught up the French cruiser, and were joined by a Belgian boat for the next couple of locks – its always useful to observe other boaters techniques in the locks – the French couple were charming, but somewhat disorganised and lots of discussions attended each manoeuvre; the Belgians were very efficient.  That night we stopped at La Ferté-sous-Jouarre following a recommendation from the Frenchman – the Navicarte indicated shallows by the pontoon but sure enough, pontoons were to be found behind a little island, newly dredged, extended, with power and water.  A lovely location with kingfishers hunting along the island.  The following day we pushed on to Meaux; all of a sudden, traffic was getting very commercial!   Meaux offers good pontoons with power and water, and is a big town with lots of shops and restaurants.  There were several UK boats, including a couple of narrow boats.

The next destination was Paris and the Arsenal marina.  A quick phone call to make sure they had space and we were off; locking into the Canal de Chalifert – a typical canal laterale – long straight treelined stretches, a few villages squashed between it and the river, and a regular procession of peniches coming the other way.  The locks space the traffic out, so we were not overtaken by peniches on a reach, and monitoring the VHF of the next lock is very helpful to keep tabs on them.  We caught up the French and Belgians again at the end of the canal (they must have been somewhat held up, having left an hour earlier than us, but we moved smoothly through the Lesches lock, the tunnel (avoiding a dredger) and the Chalifert lock, dropping down onto the river again.   It was much bigger now, and much more built up along the banks as we were nearing Paris.  The weather was changeable – showers, sun, stiff breeze.  We saw a sand peniche heading upstream, which we had passed the previous day (also heading upstream) so it had completed the round trip in 24 hours.   Into another canal cut, busy with peniches – the unloading harbour was half way along, and we noticed a whole new leisure area being created between the canal and the river.

Back on the river again, we came across rowers – canoes, skiffs, eights, kayaks – all over the river and seemingly oblivious of the channel – even with a laden peniche bearing down on them.  We proceeded cautiously, and together with the two motor boats approached the tunnel which cuts off a large meander at Saint-Maur-des-Fossés. We knew a large peniche was following us and at first the lockkeeper held us in the basin outside the lock, where there was no where to tie up.  However, a torrential squally rain storm seem to change his mind, and he opened the lock, montioning from his dry cabin that we should go right to the front of the lock.  Sure enough, the large (and empty!) peniche loomed in behind us, coming right up the stern of the (fortunately) French cruiser (who didn’t like changing mooring lines once attached!); an animated conversaion between Madame from the barge and Madame from the cruiser sorted all out amicably – we were apparently making room for a further peniche behind that!  It must be said that the bargees are excellent helmsmen and generally, we have found them very helpful and accommodating.  At the next lock, roles were reversed to the more normal scenario of the two barges first following by the gaggle of cruisers.  And there we were, on the Seine, with the Paris bridges lining up.  Together with the Belgian boat, we locked into the Arsenal with minimum fuss, although it was wet and squally, and thence to our allocated finger berth into which we squeezed with just enough room to push a fender down each side of the boat.

It had been a long day (8.5 hours) but we had made it!  In the four days from Mareuil, we had covered 185k, with 20 locks.  We had had minimal hold ups, cruised through some lovely scenery and had some interesting encounters.  We were really thrilled to get to Paris at last. We had an enjoyable two days (despite a day’s rain) – there is lots to do and see indoors too.

Upstream again

We were anxious to push on to make sure we arrived at Migennes in good time and despite the ease of the trip down the Marne, we were nervous of extensive hold-ups now we were in the commercial peniche traffic.  So we set off on a dull Saturday morning to head up the Seine – interesting to pass from the commercial area into well appointed suburbs, with lots of large houseboats moored on each bank.  A heavily laden peniche had passed as we locked out of Arsenal, but when we got to the first lock (Port a l’Anglais) a half an hour later, it was in one lock and the other one opened for our exclusive use – very comfortable!   We were moving under the Orly flight path, making us think of the Thames in the Barnes area.  We had a remarkable day, with locks opening on our approach and only at the Vives Eaux at 3 p.m. did we share a lock with a peniche.  We passed several nice looking moorings and some lovely scenery, and stopped for the day at Melun on a beautifully refurbished quay by new university buildings – but no water or electricity yet.   A very pleasant town with a history dating from 10^th century of river communication and transport to Paris.  Sunday dawned calm and sunny – a lovely autumn morning.  The first lock made up for the lack of commercial traffic the previous day, but having checked with the lockkeeper on VHF, we followed in a double peniche and two singles, one laden.  The Seine locks are comfortingly large – there would have still been room for more cruisers!   On leaving the lock, we overtook the laden boats but the empty one roared off and having started with the idea of keeping up, we slowed down following a protest from the port engine. In the evening it was found that the thread of the machine screw clamping the lever between throttle cable and fuel injection pump had worn but a liberal application of epoxy glue held it for the rest of the trip. Another day of lovely scenery - wooded slopes and very smart houses around Fontainbleau and an attractive place to stop at Samois-sur-Seine.  For the first time, at Champange-sur-Seine we came upon a lock “at lunch”, so tied up and enjoyed ours whilst waiting.  We wanted fuel and St. Mammès, at the junction of the Canal du Loing, was the first place where we found it.  However, having stooged to allow a peniche to complete its fuelling, the garage crew disappeared – we came to the conclusion it was not open for private boats on a Sunday, so moored up at the pontoons and took to our bikes to visit Moret-sur-Loing a couple of miles away – it was “en fete” with lots of food and craft stalls, and is very pretty with old water mills and houses across the river.  For the first time, we were moored alongside two other English cruisers – and from here on, there were always other English boats around.

The fuelling the following morning took ages because the pump was very slow – after over an hour, the tanks were still not full but we called a halt at just under 600 litres!  A short cruise brought us to Montereau, the junction of the Yonne, where we stopped to shop, cycle to inspect the infamous sloping sided locks, and generally relax a bit.  Whilst safely moored, we saw the largest “vessel” of the trip – a pusher with six peniches, attached two by two in front!

The Yonne

After discussion with other boats, we took the advice to not moor up in the sloping sided locks but to hold station in the middle using the engines.  We were doubtful about whether the lockkeeper would accept this (signs said one must moor), but there was no problem – he merely advised us to stay at the back of the lock to avoid the turbulence at the front.   Greatly heartened, we pushed on and caught up a 50 ft narrow boat from Weybridge – Jerimus Piscator – with whom we travelled for the next couple of days.  There was a surprising amount of peniche traffic, and it is not possible to share the Yonne locks with them, so progress was slower, but by sharing the locks with JP, we got to the picturesque town of Sens by 4 p.m. mooring to the quay, with power (as long as you have a long lead!).  As well as medieval fortifications and churches, it has an excellent “cave” of Burgundy and other wines – with tastings – right by the bridge.  It was very misty the following morning and although JP had departed early for Villeneuve-sur-Yonne (they were aiming for lunch in a very good restaurant), we waited until about 10.30 before heading for the same destination, and had a good exercise in using the radar in the fairly poor conditions.  Progress was slower, interleaving with commercial traffic, but the lockkeepers communicated well with each other and were very efficient.   There was mooring along the quay but we squeezed into a little marina tucked behind an island on the opposite bank – a very quiet and sheltered mooring. We were now close to Migennes and had the luxury of having shorter days – 4 hours cruising with time for walking, shopping and general relaxation.  The following night brought us to the Locoboat marina at Joigny (quayside mooring also available) – fascinating 15 century wooden houses as well as the churches and city walls, and the first glimpse of Burgundy vines!  Next stop Migennes – where we locked into the Canal du Bourgogne – the deepest lock for some time, shared with JP, and only just enough room.  We had got there with four days to spare – it was great to relax alongside the quay (power and water).  We enjoyed meeting other boaters – mainly British – and watching the hire boats come and go from the Connisseur boatyard.  Migennes has good shops, good communications and good restaurants!  Four days later, we locked back down onto the river and Jo Parfitt of Chantiers Fluvial skilfully craned Adelante out and into its winter position.

It has been an interesting year – a big learning curve on what’s possible, what’s desirable and what can, if necessary, be achieved!  We had established that for us, an ideal cruising pattern is to set off reasonably early, moor up for a late lunch and then enjoy the area for the rest of the day.  Looking back, we did a few very long days, and it makes sense when passage making, but its better when we have other crew on board!  We passed lots of places that we would like to have visited, and next year, will try and stop more – even if just for half an hour.  Progress in the canals is of course slower – the speed limit, more locks, but this provides the essence of cruising; lots of time to watch the world go past, the wildlife and the birds.  But above all, we have learned that just when you think you’ve cracked it, there is a different set of lock controls and you start again!

As for this year, the questions are endless -  how long to cruise, which way round Burgundy should we go, where should we winter?  Planning is half the fun!

Cruise statistics:

In all, we covered 1,350 kilometers with 176 locks and a lift, in 201 cruising hours

July/August – 5.5 weeks: Mons – Rheims     330 K, 100 locks and a lift

September/October – 4 weeks: Rheims – Paris – Migennes     385K, 61 locks