L'Avenir - cruising Europe's inland waterways

Cruising the River Maas. Mooring overnight on the river is generally not possible but at convenient locations just off the river there are large, former gravel pits which have been turned into picturesque nature/recreation reserves. There is usually a marina – can be expensive - but elsewhere you can moor either more cheaply or sometimes even free of charge (although there’s always a cost of sorts). These manmade lakes are very shallow around the edges which call for ‘Bow To Moorings’. This would be our first effort. How To Bow To 1. Select suitable mooring spot depending on proclivities – easiness of mooring, isolation, wind conditions, convenience to bar/café, cycle track etc etc 2. Prepare anchor and mooring lines 3. Deploy crew at bow 4. Head for bank 5. Drop anchor 6. Stop boat at bank 7. Crew steps off 8. Crew secures lines 9. Reboard, relaxing evening on deck with glasses of chilled wine and beer Idyllic Mooring at Leukermeer (It may not look very high from the bow...

 L'Avenir's bottom has recieved an expensive makeover and we are at last back in the water. Pity no-one will be able to see it so look long at these photos and admire.  The Workers Makeover Complete I needed a bit of a lie down after we received the bill (VAT here is almost 20%) but after a couple of days of nervously watching exchange rates we breathed deeply, pressed the enter key and electronically wiped out a large chunk of the bank balance. Naturally sods law once again prevailed and the aussie dollar decided that was the moment to plunge. As I can no longer see the paint job, however, I'm fairly successfully suppressing the memory of the monetary pain.  Splashdown Otherwise things have definitely been on the up. The sun is at last shining and the arctic wind has dropped - slightly. We've caught up with friends we made last year and enjoyed a lovely day of food, drink and stories on their boat at Kaag Island. Thank you Nicky and Mike. Kagerplassen. R...

Up she goes. The yard has done this with hundreds of boats but that doesn't make it any less nerve wracking. The hull is encrusted with mussels. Obviously the anti fouling ceased working long ago. Pressure hosing them off before replacing the anti fouling. Destination local restaurant?? We'll be out of the water for a few days. Sleeping on a boat on dry land is all wrong.....

By rights we should be flying a Dutch flag as we register ed L'Avenir in the Netherlands after we purchased her last year. She was previously un registered as there's no legal requirement here to do so and most Dutch people don't bother. If you travel to other countries, however, you may be asked for ownership papers. Most 'foreigners' fly the flag of their home country though. This serves several purposes. It advertises the fact that you probably don't speak the language and can't read the signs and you may very well be an idiot who can nether drive nor moor a boat. To ensure that you don't collide with their pride and joy Dutch boat owners will, quite rightly, leap ashore to help you tie up, all the while offering painfully direct advice as to what you're doing wrong and the correct way to go about things. Some people don't take too kindly to this but there's no denying that the Dutch know a thing or two about boat handling. Your flag...

  These photos were taken last July just after signing the agreement to pur chase. Missing are photos of the main cabin and bathroom. (I could, of course, just go and take a couple but things are no longer quite as tidy I'm afraid). Since then the artificial flowers have been liberated and surreptitiously planted beside their living relatives at various spots along the waterways (rather than just chucking them in the bin). I'm sure no-one will notice until winter when they'll be the only splashes of colour.The ornaments are lurking in a dark cupboard.

Type - Dutch Steel Motor Cruiser Make - de Ruiter Grand Star Gsak Year - built 1980 but completely refitted over past 5 years Length - 13.25m (43ft) Beam - 3.7m Draught - 1.2m Air Draught - 2.75 with everything folded down Engine - 110hp Daf Generator - 4.5 KVA Name - L'Avenir