BACK TO CALENDAR 2000

July3                Monday

Vareddes to Trilbarton

Motored slowly, but went like the bats.

What a relief to be separated from the constant noisy grind of the engine, and clouds of mud in the water behind the boat, and the bumps on the bottom of the boat as we rode over hummocks in the canal bed.

However, although exciting, as there was no other traffic on canal we could take all bends and bridges blind.

It was not nearly so frightening as we had expected, until at one lock we "found" a plastic hire boat moored up that most certainly wasn’t there when we came up.

Was there, in fact, traffic other than us moving? Assumed not.

Stopped at pumping station to have look see.

Undershot wooden water wheel - 18 metres diameter, 6 metres wide - drives 4 pumps pumping 27,000 cu metres of water a day from the Marne to the canal up 12 metres. Built in 1869.

Most impressive - site open 365 days a year, wheel and pump work 365 days a year. Crofton - beat that.

It must be said that spit and polish around gardens, etc, lacking, but cost of entrance 5Frs!

Drilled more holes in boat to accommodate improved and - hopefully - quicker mounting of fender wheels and planks.

Much gossip on bank with "fellow" grandparents (French, of course) bicycling with grand children who had, in the past, taken a boating holiday in Ireland and loved it.

A bit sad that this part of the trip - i.e. "going up the Canal de l’Ourq to the end and returning" has resulted in partial failure. The relevant blurb - all written 5 to 10 years ago - states that the l’Ourq is the gem among canals in France - incredibly beautiful, pretty and all the rest, and small (English Canal widths except locks).

In fact, the first half, which is all we managed to cover, is through council type tower block housing in the towns, and lined with impenetrable bush and forest in the country. The canal also has high banks, which are also lined with trees and bush, so where there are nice views - and there are indeed, we did see the odd one - there was little chance of seeing them from the boat as we traveled. We took a short bike ride up the towing path from Vareddes, lovely open country, but the canal seemed much the same, with it’s line visible in the distance running through a strip of forest. Probably if we had persevered it would have been super - sod’s law.

 

July 4                                                Tuesday

Trilbarton to Clay Souilly.

Morning started at 0830 with M. & F. of all thunderstorms.

Stayed put till about 11.30, when rain lessened to silly drizzle that always seems to follow the storms.

Very wet trip to Clay Souilly, where we did "heavies" shop, and paid Tel bill. This is always exciting - pay cash via the equivalent of a Giro - but fortunately general public are not allowed to write out their own giros in French Post Offices, it is all done - helpfully, kindly and sympathetically - by the counter staff. One problem - apart from language - is that French numbers, while broadly similar to ours, are, in fact very different, as are many letters. Thus my figures have to be translated into French figures, my French into French, then the whole lot has to be faxed to France Telecom by the same counter assistant in the Post Office.

By this time the queue is long, but every one is incredibly patient.

Weather slowly improved, but nevertheless decided to moor up properly and sleep over.

Was doing odd jobs when hire boat drove up, moored up, and occupants disappeared.

Think this was the boat we saw yesterday - good thing he was going same direction as us, and half a day apart!

 

July 5                                            Wednesday

Clay Souilly to Paris Arsenal.

Fast Trip

Came down canal with current as yesterday - fast.

Fascinated and appalled once again at the quantity - and in a few cases - artistic content of graffiti. There is hardly a vertical wall anywhere that is not completely covered.

Past the complex of enormous wholesale builders merchants and ready mixed concrete sites - huge amounts of sand and gravel brought in peniches and pushed tugs (the cement arrives in specialist peniches with great spherical tanks ( 8 or so) in their hold), offloaded by specialist grab cranes on wheels (even their cabs are hydraulically operated so the operator can raise himself and see into the holds of the boats) onto ever bigger piles by the factories that make anything and everything out of concrete. Paris seemed full of these sites - there are several more down on the Seine.

Into, along and out of the Bassin de la Vilette once again admiring the facilities, some of them a bit way out - there is even a complete submarine in the park (on land) for recreation and entertainment supplied by the state.

Arrived at entrance to top lock, to find a large circle of canoes and buzz boats dashing all over.

A "senior" buzz boat removed lot to side, let us through, where-upon heavens - once again - opened.

Rang L.K. and understood him to say wait for Bateau Mouche (pleasure boats with seating for about 250, 2 engines and strange shape)

Because of wind with rain, couldn’t hover, so did circle back amongst buzz boats and canoes.

Then noticed lock had 2 sets of traffic lights - one with picture of peniche and bateau mouche under them, the other with picture of hire boat.

Latter was green as we sailed away from lock.

Returned hurriedly, soaking wet, and frozen, - instruction was meant to be "wait by the Bateau Mouche until we have the lock ready - and trotted down the 4 double lock sets to the tunnel into the Arsenal. Noted again the security - all locks and lock areas very firmly fenced off from general public.

Also noted that there had been a grand clean up. When we ascended the whole area was filthy and covered with enormous quantities of litter.

Now it was all clean, neat and tidy.

Met a peniche in one of the pounds, but had leant our lesson. Stopped, moored Albert extremely firmly, and waited till it had gone well past before continuing on.

Into the tunnel which runs below the Bastille and into the Arsenal again.

They tried to shoo us on, apparently the L.K. in Canal St Denis had phones through to say we were going straight through!

As promised, moorings were made available, but as is inevitable in a spot like the centre of Paris, we had to breast up - only 2 deep, but being latest comer, we had to be on the outside.

No sooner started mooring process - bit tricky in wind, strange port and amongst strangers - than boat we were mooring to donated one small female child to S. to baby sit, who promptly took over entire contents of Albert - in particular our mug of felt pens, etc. Right handful - subsequently transpired that ma (quite sweet) and boy friend - with another even younger child - lived permanently on the boat, a sort of Dutch Barge thing, but fancied doing a Rosy Swale.

Took ourselves out to supper at small brasserie/cafe just off the Place de la Bastille!

Both before and after supper wandered around.

Taken with the large numbers of young sitting on and around the Opera steps, whose most popular mode of transport seemed to be roller blades - in and out of traffic, totally fearless, great to watch.

Bed - this a noisy place. Traffic and sirens going all the time, and car horns for most of it.

 

July 6                                              Thursday

Paris Arsenal

To-day we "did" Paris - 1 day for one of the world’s greatest cities!

Really enjoyed it, love to come again, properly, and have nerve to use bikes.

Set out after breakfast on foot - should have taken bikes, but wanted to stay alive - for the Bateau Mouche jetty.

Took 60 minute trip up and down the Seine - down to the Eiffel Tower, up to just above entrance to Arsenal.

Point of this trip was to see from the water what we should have seen, but didn’t dare see from Albert. Due to the heavy traffic - lots of peniches, tourist boats and Bateau Mouches by the dozen as well as push tows, and bigger going through on way to North France, Belgium and channel ports making for congestion and very rough water and is most definitely not suitable for Albert.

Before and after boat trip lots of rubber necking and window shopping - very exhausting, but bought future requirements of IGN maps. Noticeable that whereas elsewhere in France they just run you over on pedestrian crossings, in Paris they give a blast of the horn as they flatten you.

Had splendid lunch in pavement brasserie/cafe on busy cross roads to one of the bridges - I believe Paris has 30 odd bridges over the Seine. (including the "Nelson Mandela" bridges.)

Back to the boat, very slowly - legs and feet finished, but had to find bread.

Did washing(!) at Arsenal launderette. (Sublime to Ridiculous).

Yet more heavy thunderstorm in evening.

Supper on boat, this time.

Thus our day "doing" Paris.

 

July 7                                               Friday

Paris, Arsenal to Nogent-sur-Marne.

Had arranged to leave at 0900 - but so had lots of other people!

Tricky getting out, turning boat, and re-mooring at office to pay bill.

Tried hovering whilst Dutchman in front paid his, but silly old fool took about 30 minutes to do nothing so breasted up to very pleasant Brit from South Coast Proper Yacht Club, who was happy for me scrabble across his boat to do business.

As the whole business of unmooring from original position on quite high boat, and messing about in the port could be hazardous, put out "life jacket alert" for both of us - first time this year.

Arsenal moorings cost £32 for the 2 nights - ouch, but we did know beforehand - and how could one be in France, and miss Paris

Charged off upriver, retracing steps through lots of bridges, past lots building sites and sand/gravel unloading quais.

Some, but not much large boat traffic, but river so huge room for all.

Past tee junction leading up the Seine from whence we cam, and almost at once up to first lock.

Overtaken by peniche and large trip boat on way up, but lock held for us - pleasant youth ready to take our lines with hook, and tidy us up.

Just finishing off when very English voice from trip boat (it was a sort of conference boat) calls "and what’s an English Narrow boat doing here"? It was the manager/barman of the conference boat - been doing the job for 16 years!

Out of lock, but current strong.

Laboured up to next lock, trip boat went down a branch, but peniche and ourselves held by red light at next lock over lunch break.

Started raining very heavily on our way in, so all a bit untidy - we were given instructions by 3 separate people and ended up fractionally too far forward, so got somewhat buffeted - but no damage or embarrassment. Classic example of conflicting instructions, though.

Through tunnel after lock to next river reach. There are 2 or 3 places where the loops of the river are so close they join them up with a tunnel across the narrows so we miss about 6 kms of river out completely.

Weather so foul, wet and cold, and current so strong, that we stopped at next moorings - Nogen-sur-Marne.

Very fancy moorings, but we had to put ourselves across 2 pontoons to fit without our back end dangling in the current.

Very well turned out moorings - secure (we were still within Paris - but cost frs 100 per night!.

More thunderstorms, more rain, and heavy fast peniche traffic.

 

July 8                                           Saturday

Nogent to Esbly.

Set off reasonably early to try and make up yesterdays total 3 kms.

This section of the river is alternated with lengths of canal with locks at 1 or both ends, and tunnels to straighten it and cut out the nasty bits.

No commercial traffic to-day - we saw most of last nights peniches tied up and lifeless at various places on the river or canal - but lots of rowers, buzz boats and all sorts. Is Sat reserved for private users?

Made heavy going up river, with engine at max we normally run it to, and disregarding temp gauge on the assumption that we know the cooling system is OK, so stop fussing.

Lot of logs and rubbish in water. Found 1 tree floating across with enormous bow wave. Wanted to cross above it, then saw at last moment very long wire hawser tying it to a bridge arch some 150 metres up stream. No warning of any sort!

Took to ringing locks ahead to tell them we were coming - this was most successful, it really did seem to ensure that lock was opened as we staggered in from the current. Probably everything is done over VHF, and the likes of us without are ignored unless we speak up. In one case we rang the guy and said we didn’t want to come through until 1430 while we had lunch! Sure enough, he pushed everything else through, and smack on 14.30 lo and behold a green light!

As we thundered up, seemed to be crossing ground slower and slower, until we noticed horizontal planks on edge on some sort of frame on river bank, and realised they were the top planks of bench backs, and all the buzz boats seemed to be moored about 12 feet from the river banks.

Realised while passing under 1 bridge with lots of spectators on top at land speed of possibly 1 km/h that we were breasting a flooded river.

Not much to do except soldier on - there was no where we could have safely tied up - indeed it would have been more dangerous to stop than go on.

2 boats overtook us - incl a nasty little cruiser from the Lymington Yacht Club who put foot so much when passing us we almost surfed on bow wave. Bit cross, we had enough to worry about already - however, it takes all sorts.

With enormous relief (it must be admitted that we were a little nervous, by this time - for nervous read shit scared, if you want) we finally got to next lock into a canal/tunnel section, to find both boats that overtook us uneasily fiddling about below it, whilst a houseboat peniche came down. We also fiddled, and had a hooting competition with the peniche when he came out decked with balloons and other birthday attributes. He had a superb siren - echoed around the trees, competing with our Ford Fiesta type peep-peep-peep horn.

Into lock - a deep one. Tied up as normal, water started in, and the little Lymington cruiser who had moored far too far up front with one bit of clothes line type rope started dancing around like a water-boatman bug. Heavy crash as he hit the side, but couldn’t see much as German boat between us and him, but gather he turned completely round.

Found a nice bit of revetment on a quiet bit of canal at village Esbly, moored up for night.

However, we suddenly started dropping, and ended up at a horrid angle, and had great difficulty in getting off bank of mud onto which we had been dropped. Had noticed on way up that canal was very full, with gates running over - presumably they were now letting the "extra" water - rather over enthusiastically - out, although as this was a 10 km pound, it may have been long slow deep almost invisible surges. Anyway, moved and did a full double ladder tie-up. Passed by Raven the utterly beautiful enormous cruiser from the "Royal Yacht Squadron" complete with his white ensign and automotive finish black paint, and good manners almost to stop as he went past.

Dull rainy evening - what’s new this summer!

 

July 9                                                 Sunday

Esbly to Meaux

Disturbed at 0830 by a loaded peniche, and although everything held, knew pegs were in softish muddy bank. No choice! when mooring last night.

Took ourselves up to Meaux, still in canal headed by a short tunnel at Meaux.

Followed signpost to Meaux’s P. de P., found it fairly full, but 1 complete jetty - separate from the rest empty - so took it over.

Came in with a bit of a bang - wind and current unhelpful, and a bit tired of fighting elements!

"Admiral" from Raven made very nice remarks about "well maintained" boat - actually she is filthy with all the rain.

Gossiped around a bit, treated festering mossy bites, bike ride round town in evening, but day largely spent sheltering from rain.

Met Jim and Margaret of neat little cruiser from Sagar - Yorkshire Maid.

Reason for stopping off is dentist for both of us. S broken tooth, self same trouble with apparent abscess under dead tooth which was treated with anti-biotics in Nemur, but I never completed the course - lost the pills!

Found tourist bureau open, so got p.c. of yellow pages dentists, and found streets which had greatest concentration for to-morrow.

Contrary to our opinion when on the Canal de l’Ourq - which goes through all the tower blocks on the other side of town - Meaux is rather nice, with some very old parts, but a very nice river "front" with the river going through very handsome bridges and on through the centre of town, whilst the navigation nips through a tunnel round the corner down to the canal.